Kingdom's social mores are changing under reforms led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, but men still have a tight grip on all the levers of power
Saudi woman Mada’in al-Balawi works at a cosmetic shop in the old town, in Al-Ula, Saudi Arabia, in this photo taken on October 31 2021. Picture: REUTERS/AHMED YOSRI
Al-Ahmed, who lives at home with her parents and five younger siblings, chose a shop with mostly female clients to allay her parents’ concerns about mixing with men. Men still have a tight grip on power. There are no women in King Salman’s cabinet or in senior advisory roles, and the advisory Shura Council has only 30 women members out of 150.
A small number of women had long worked in Saudi Arabia but typically held public sector jobs as teachers or medical workers, in keeping with once-strict gender segregation rules. But with looser restrictions on mixing, driving and some aspects of the male guardianship system, firms are hiring more women than ever.
After graduating from university, Ghada al-Salman, 33, struggled to find a job in Qassim, where women’s unemployment still hovers at 18%, more than three times the rate for men.
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