The Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor, Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser Abuthnain, participated in the National Observatory for Women Conference titled "Saudi Women in Development Ambitious Steps for a Promising Future," organized by Princess Noura bint Abdulrahman University. The conference was attended by a number of Highnesses, Excellencies, leaders, and decision-makers. The conference was graciously sponsored by His Excellency Engineer Ahmed bin Suleiman Al-Rajhi, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development.
His Excellency gave a speech during the opening session, in which he reviewed a range of qualitative achievements in the field of empowering Saudi women. He also emphasized that this progress is part of the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030. Additionally, he discussed the positive transformations witnessed in the labor market in recent years, including the historic decline in the unemployment rate among Saudi women to 11.9%. He highlighted the significant increase in women’s economic participation, which reached 36%, compared to only 19% in 2017, along with the notable progress in women holding leadership positions, as women now occupy 43.8% of middle and senior management positions.
Moreover, His Excellency referred to several initiatives that had a direct impact in supporting these results, including the leadership training program in partnership with INSEAD University. This program enabled 1,700 Saudi female leaders from various sectors. In addition, the parallel training program provided training and employment opportunities for more than 122,000 Saudi women currently employed. His Excellency also highlighted the positive impact of the "Wusool" and "Qurrah" programs, which supported the stability of working women by facilitating access to work and providing childcare services.
Additionally, His Excellency participated in a panel discussion within the conference, which addressed Saudi Arabia’s efforts in supporting and empowering women through collaboration between the public and private sectors. During the discussion, he emphasized the importance of joint efforts to align the outcomes of education and training with the needs of the labor market. During the discussion, he highlighted a number of initiatives implemented by the Ministry in partnership with various entities, including the Sectoral Skills Councils, the "Skills Accelerator" initiative, and the national training campaign "Wad.”In addition to efforts to enhance skills in modern work models such as flexible work and remote work, and the programs provided by the Human Resources Development Fund (Hadaf) to guide, train, and empower students and job seekers. His Excellency also participated in the opening of the exhibition held alongside the conference.
