In the last part of this March report by Dr. Mona Al-Munajjed, senior adviser with Booz & Company's Ideation Center, she focuses on what initiatives various government sectors can take to promote the employment of women in the Kingdom.Saudi Arabia's women represent an untapped and important source of power for the economy. Although incorporating women fully into the labor market may not be achieved overnight, it can—and must—be achieved if the Kingdom is to transition to a knowledge-based economy. To this end the Saudi government needs to ratify, enforce, and implement legislation that promotes equal participation in the labor market, implement policies that create employment opportunities for women, and establish institutional mechanisms that promote women's wellbeing and success in the workforce. Specific policy recommendations to enhance women's employment are proposed below. At national policy level the government should: • Develop a national plan of action and policy formulation for working women, targeting women's participation in the labor market, upgrading their levels of literacy and education, and increasing capacity building and vocational training. The government should form partnerships with civil society, NGOs and the private sector for the implementation and follow-up of the action plan. • Launch a national taskforce to assess the needs of women in the labor market. This taskforce would facilitate the exchange of information and raise awareness about employment issues, exploring the needs of women in urban and rural areas, a key step in diagnosing and treating existing problems and creating a comprehensive framework for action. Once established, that framework needs to be energetically implemented across every sector of society and the government should ensure that every aspect of labor policy is strictly evaluated, monitored and modified based on feedback as well as the evolving needs of the market. • Work to raise public awareness about the positive role that women play within the labor market, as well as their rights, opportunities, and successes. • Ensure that women are represented at top decision-making levels, across every sector and region. Women should be encouraged and prepared to assume highly visible positions, and selected to represent the Kingdom at regional and international meetings. • Facilitate the development of a system of transportation services for women that enables them to commute to work without the help of a driver or a male family member. Ministry of Labor's role As the entity that is most directly responsible for setting employment policy, the Ministry of Labor has the opportunity to assume a vital role in improving the role of women in the Saudi labor market. A critical first step in achieving this goal is the establishment of a Special Bureau for Women's Affairs within the ministry, creating a framework for policy and establishing the direction of future research. Without a strong legal foundation, policies crumble and the Ministry of Labor should ensure that national and international labor laws are enforced and implemented, including legislation to ensure gender-equality in recruitment, employment and compensation, as well as social security coverage and family-friendly policies. At the policy level, the ministry should: • Implement infrastructural support for working women, including flexible hours, parental leave, and child-care facilities, and expand the availability of nurseries in workplaces. • With the Ministry of Education, create centers that offer career guidance and development services for women joining the labor market. • Establish a timetable for implementation and a framework for monitoring progress and modifying programs based on evaluation and feedback, ramping up data collection and employing up-to-date statistical techniques. Data collection should include household surveys in urban and rural areas, and institutions across all sectors of the labor market should be analyzed in regard to the skills in demand. Ministry of Education's role The Ministry of Education has a valuable opportunity to assume a leadership role in reforming and improving the Saudi public educational system so that it produces a robust, capable labor force that prepares girls for the labor market. To accomplish this, the Ministry of Education should: • Reform the curriculum so that learning materials emphasize the ability to identify, analyze and solve problems and to adapt to new tasks, with an eye towards gender-sensitivity by highlighting women succeeding in a variety of professions, including those traditionally associated with men. • Prepare women to work in fields such as information technology and engineering. • Offer open-entry/open-exit courses and distance-learning opportunities at women's universities in major cities and provinces and revise their curriculum to portray women as a vital part of the country's economic development. • Encourage the creation of a culture of continuous education and training for women. Ministry of Commerce and Industry's role The Ministry of Commerce and Industry can play a critical role in Saudi Arabia's economic progress by leading efforts to incorporate women into the labor market. The Ministry of Commerce should: • Enforce and implement the 2004 decision to eliminate the wakil requirement. • Encourage private institutions and funds to support women's economic growth through loans and grants. • Encourage and promote cross-sector partnerships. • Encourage entrepreneurship for low-income women through the development of microfinance programs and, with the Ministry of Social Affairs, support women's traditional income-generating activities such as food processing and marketing and the production of handicrafts. • Establish training programs to empower women with confidence, skills, expertise and technical know-how to advance to managerial, decision-making positions. As Saudi Arabia looks to develop a knowledge-based economy, it has to invest in the education and training of all of its citizens. Women represent a valuable yet untapped source of energy for the new economy. Investing in women's education, training and professional assimilation will yield enormous rewards, both today and far into the future. These measures proposed above will ensure that the Saudi labor market is robust, capable and equipped to deal with tomorrow's challenges—and reap its opportunities. – SG Dr. Mona Al-Munajjed is presently a senior adviser with Booz & Company's Ideation Center, a leading think tank in the Middle East. She is located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and writes regular publications on social issues in the GCC countries and the Arab region.How some Arab countries promote women's economic integration Algeria and Oman: Gender discrimination is formally prohibited in the workplace, and Laws in these two countries provide for equal pay for equal work Bahrain: In March 2005, the Supreme Council for Women announced a “national strategy for empowerment of Bahraini women,” which aims to achieve full participation of women in the workforce and enable their access lo leadership positions in both the public and private sectors. Morocco: In 2006, Morocco adopted a national strategy on gender equality with a new labor code that strongly endorses the principles of equality and nondiscrimination in the workplace. As a result, women's access lo public-sector jobs significantly improved. Tunisia: Tunisia passed a law in 2008 allowing women to balance family and professional life, and allowing some female employees in the public sector to work part time while still receiving two-thirds of their salary. United Arab Emirates: The UAE has actively promoted the presence of women in the workplace. As a result, 41 percent of public-sector workers are women. Yemen: In 2003, the government adopted a national strategy for gender equality, the Ministry of Labor developed a women's employment strategy and the Finance Ministry created channels for gender-responsive budgeting. Source: International Labor Office, ‘Institutions and Policies for Equitable and Efficient Labor Market Governance in the Arab Region,” 2008, p. B __
