Deputy minister of human resources says Saudi reforms boost women's economic participation
'Vision 2030 is more than a set of goals,' he said. 'It brings government, civil society, and the private sector into shared delivery,' he said at the 2025 UN High-Level Political Forum in New York City on Tuesday.
'We've focused not only on policy, but on the support systems women need to participate fully — whether that's jobs, childcare or reliable transport.
'There's more to do, but we've made real progress, and we're determined to build on it,' Alhamad said.
He described Vision 2030 as a national framework that aligns closely with the SDGs and provides the basis for long-term reform.
The deputy minister noted that female workforce participation reached 36.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025, up from 19.7 percent in 2018. Initiatives such as Qurrah, which has supported more than 40,000 women with childcare, and Wusool, which has helped more than 300,000 women with transport to and from work, have been key to this shift.
Maternity leave has been extended to 12 weeks with full pay, and close to 1.3 million women are now working freelance.
'Change doesn't happen in isolation,' Alhamad said. 'It needs institutions that can partner, systems that allow for transparency, and frameworks that reflect our national priorities while staying aligned with global standards.'
HRSD has introduced new legal frameworks for volunteering, donations and non-profit work. Alongside the National Center for Non-Profit Sector, the ministry is helping to expand the role of civil society in service delivery and innovation.
Initiatives such as the National Volunteer Portal and the Ehsan platform are making it easier for citizens to participate, while helping institutions track and improve impact.
The ministry is working to contribute to several SDGs, including Gender Equality (SDG 5), Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8), Reduced Inequality (SDG 10), Strong Institutions (SDG 16), and Partnerships for the Goals (SDG 17).
Dr. Tariq also spoke about the value of international partnerships, highlighting HRSD's collaboration with the International Labour Organization and the World Bank, both part of the broader UN system. These relationships, he said, help ensure that national reforms meet international standards while staying rooted in local realities.
'Vision 2030 and the 2030 Agenda were launched the same year. They're not the same, but they speak to many of the same goals,' he said.
'For us, the SDGs are not abstract. They're reflected in the way we build institutions, form partnerships, and serve our communities.'
The minister of economy and planning, Faisal Al-Ibrahim, delivered the Kingdom's address at the UN High-Level Political Forum in New York City.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asharq Al-Awsat
28 minutes ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Israeli Gunfire and Strikes Kill at Least 42 in Gaza as Many of the Dead Sought Aid
Israeli airstrikes and gunshots killed at least 42 people in Gaza overnight and into Saturday, according to Palestinian health officials and the local ambulance service, as starvation deaths continued and ceasefire talks appear to have stalled. Gunfire killed at least a dozen people waiting for aid trucks close to the Zikim crossing with Israel in the north, said staff at Shifa hospital, where bodies were taken. Israel's military said it fired warning shots to distance a crowd "in response to an immediate threat" and it was not aware of any casualties. A witness, Sherif Abu Aisha, said people started running when they saw a light that they thought was from aid trucks, but as they got close, they realized it was Israel's tanks. That's when the army started firing, he told The Associated Press. He said his uncle was among those killed. "We went because there is no food ... and nothing was distributed," he said. Elsewhere, those killed in strikes included four people in an apartment building in Gaza City, hospital staff and the ambulance service said. Another Israeli strike killed at least eight people, including four children, in the crowded tent camp of Muwasi in the city of Khan Younis in the south, according to the Nasser hospital, which received the bodies. Also in Khan Younis, Israeli forces opened fire and killed at least nine people trying to get aid entering Gaza through the Morag corridor, according to the hospital's morgue records. There was no immediate comment from Israel's military. Stalled ceasefire talks Ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas were at a standstill after the US and Israel recalled negotiating teams on Thursday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday his government was considering "alternative options" to ceasefire talks. A Hamas official, however, said negotiations were expected to resume next week and described the recall of the Israeli and US delegations as a pressure tactic. Egypt and Qatar, which mediate alongside the United States, called the pause temporary and said talks would resume. They did not say when. "Our loved ones do not have time for another round of negotiations, and they will not survive another partial deal," said Zahiro Shahar Mor, nephew of hostage Avraham Munder, one of 50 still in Gaza from Hamas' attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war. Mor spoke at a weekly rally in Tel Aviv. Children starving to death The United Nations and experts say Palestinians in Gaza are at risk of famine. And now children with no preexisting conditions have begun to starve to death. "We only want enough food to end our hunger," said Wael Shaaban at a charity kitchen in Gaza City as he tried to feed his family of six. While Israel's army says it's allowing aid into the enclave with no limit on the trucks that can enter, the UN says it is hampered by military restrictions on its movements and incidents of criminal looting. The Hamas-run police had provided security for safe aid delivery, but it has been unable to operate after being targeted by airstrikes. Israel on Saturday said over 250 trucks carrying aid from the UN and other organizations entered Gaza this week. About 600 trucks entered per day during the latest ceasefire that Israel ended in March. The Zikim shootings came days after at least 80 Palestinians were killed trying to reach aid entering through the crossing, one of the deadliest days for aid-seekers in the war. Israel faces growing international pressure. More than two dozen Western-aligned countries and over 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticizing Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since May while trying to get food, mostly near the new aid sites run by an American contractor, the UN human rights office says. The charities and rights groups said even their own staff were struggling to get enough food. "Stand for Gaza, for silence is a crime, and indifference is a betrayal of humanity," said Father Issa Thaljieh, a Greek Orthodox priest at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, as religious figures and the mayor gathered to call for prayers to end the war. Turning to airdrops, with a warning For the first time in months, Israel said it is allowing airdrops, requested by neighboring Jordan. A Jordanian official said the airdrops mainly will be food and milk formula. Britain plans to work with partners such as Jordan to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's office said Saturday. The office did not give details. But the head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, warned on social media that airdrops are "expensive, inefficient and can even kill starving civilians" and won't reverse the increasing starvation or prevent aid diversion. More than 59,700 Palestinians have been killed during the war, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between fighters and civilians, but the ministry says that more than half of the dead are women and children. The ministry operates under the Hamas government. The UN and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties.
Arab News
40 minutes ago
- Arab News
Jordan signs near-$200m foreign investment agreements in health sector
AMMAN: Jordan has signed two major foreign investment agreements in the health sector, worth a combined $187 million, in a move hailed as a significant step toward modernizing healthcare infrastructure and digital services. Prime Minister Jafar Hassan witnessed the signing ceremony on Saturday alongside Saudi Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed, chairman of KBW Investments, and Maj. Gen. Yousef Huneiti, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Jordan News Agency reported. The first agreement, between the Jordanian government and KBW Investments, will see the construction of the new Madaba Government Hospital. The second, a digital transformation project in Royal Medical Services hospitals, was signed between the Jordanian Armed Forces and Farah Jordan Smart Cities Company, in which KBW holds a 49 percent stake. The agreements represent the first wave of new foreign investment in the sector, with the government indicating plans to expand similar partnerships into areas such as transportation, infrastructure, and additional hospitals. 'This is the first government hospital built in partnership with the private sector after a delay of about 10 years. It is absolutely essential for the people of Madaba Governorate,' said Hassan. He confirmed that the hospital would be fully government-run, with an initial capacity of 260 beds, expandable to 360, and is scheduled to open within three years. The agreement to build the hospital was signed by Minister of Investment Muthanna Gharaibeh, Minister of Health Firas Hawari, and KBW's CEO Ahmad Sallakh. It falls under the Jordan Investment Fund Law and marks the first partnership of its kind in the country between the government and private sector in this domain. The 13-story hospital will span 54,000 sq. meters and include a wide range of medical facilities such as eight main operating rooms, 60 outpatient clinics, and 18 dialysis units. It will also house emergency and intensive care departments, lithotripsy and endoscopy units, medical laboratories, catheterization laboratories, and offer 830 parking spaces for visitors and staff. Construction will begin this year, with KBW handling all building works. The government will take on full operational responsibilities, including staffing and equipping the facility. Payment to the company will begin only after the project is completed, in installments over a 10-year period. The second agreement focuses on the digitization of RMS facilities, including hospitals, health centers, warehouses, and other medical sites. It aims to enhance efficiency in drug inventory, reduce waste, and modernize the management of medical assets and supplies. It also targets improved performance in laboratories and radiology services. The deal was signed by the Assistant Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for Planning, Organization and Defense Resources Brig. Gen. Ammar Al-Sarayrah, and KBW's CEO Sallakh. Prince Khaled reaffirmed KBW's commitment to investing in Jordan, calling it 'our second home,' and added that KBW had been investing in the kingdom for over 10 years and was keen to expand across multiple sectors.
Al Arabiya
40 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Freedom Flotilla aid boat approaching Gaza shores, group says
The activist group Freedom Flotilla announced Saturday that its latest aid boat dispatched to Gaza was approaching the territory and planned to land there the following morning in defiance of an Israeli blockade. The vessel, named the Handala after a popular Palestinian cartoon character, was just 105 nautical miles (194 kilometers) from its destination, organizers said -- closer to Gaza than its predecessor the Madleen was when it was intercepted in June. The Israeli navy said it would likewise block the new vessel from reaching the war-torn Palestinian territory. 'The [Israeli army] enforces the legal maritime security blockade on the Gaza Strip and is prepared for a wide range of scenarios, which it will act upon in accordance with directives of the political echelon,' an army spokesperson told AFP on Saturday. Carrying 19 activists and two journalists from various countries, the Handala first set sail from Sicily on July 13 in a bid to break the Israeli blockade on Gaza and deliver aid to its population. The territory is facing severe shortages of food and other essentials, with the United Nations and NGOs warning of an imminent famine. The Handala's crew said in a post on X that they would go on a hunger strike if the Israeli army intercepted the boat and detained its passengers. The last boat sent by Freedom Flotilla, the Madleen, was intercepted by the Israeli army in international waters on June 9 and towed to the Israeli port of Ashdod. It carried 12 campaigners on board, including prominent Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
