The Minister of Social Affairs has announced the opening of the first female multi-purpose cooperative society in the region of Qassim. Yousuf Al-Othaimeen said after inaugurating the Cooperative Societies forum on Sunday evening that cooperative societies would contribute greatly in helping the government to achieve a prosperous society “as soon as cooperative work is understood in the way it should be”. Minister Al-Othaimeen described cooperative work as a “sublime Islamic value” and something which civilized societies seek to achieve and benefit from. “Cooperative societies are socio-economic projects that enable citizens to obtain commodities and services at reasonable prices and with greater ease,” the minister said. Al-Othaimeen said a women's group in Qassim had approached with a request to set up a women's cooperative society, and that the ministry “which does not differentiate between female and male societies in terms of licenses” gave its approval. “The start of the society will be announced when formal procedures are completed,” Al-Othaimeen said. “There have been no other similar requests so far.” The ministry's Undersecretary for Social Insurance, Muhammad Bin Abdullah Al-Oqla, added to the minister's words by saying that he hoped the forum would generate ideas and suggestions on ways to promote the work of cooperative societies in order to meeting increasing demands in terms of the Kingdom's development.
