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It’s been a momentous year for Saudi Arabia, with the lifting of the ban on women driving as well as various other reforms, such as allowing women into sporting stadiums. And it looks like there is more change to come, according to the Kingdom’s Crown Prince. Mohammed bin Salman this week gave an interview to Bloomberg, where he touched on everything from US President Donald Trump to Aramco. The lengthy transcript also deals with women’s opportunities in the country, with the royal admitting that more social reforms are on the horizon.
“Our target in Saudi Arabia is to be competitive. So for example, I have a foundation, I’ve been trying for the past month to hire a new CEO, a non-Saudi CEO. I can’t. They don’t want to live in Saudi Arabia because the lifestyle is not good,” the Crown Prince told the publication. “They want to work one week in Dubai and one week in Saudi Arabia. So we have to reach the best standard as soon as possible to be sure that people can work in this country and can proceed and build things in this country.”
The royal revealed the Kingdom has a plan to entice more workers to its shores “without moving from Saudi based laws and religion”, adding that “I believe we have achieved a lot in the past year compared to what’s been achieved in the previous 30 years”. “If you look at that speed, you’ll know it’s only a matter of time,” he said. So, could changes to the male guardianship law be next in line? According to the Crown Prince, possibly.
“If we look at the 70s, it’s different from now,” the royal said. “The rules of guardianship were held in 1979, if I’m not mistaken, and now we’re looking at the laws that were put in after 1979 and we’re talking to most of the Council of Senior Scholars to see what’s Islamic and what’s non Islamic in that area, and I believe there’s opportunity in that area.” Mohammed bin Salman also addressed arrests in the Kingdom following the overturning of the driving ban, stating that “it’s nothing to do with that.” “I believe there are a lot of people who called for women to have the right to drive and they are walking free in the streets so it’s not about women asking for the right to drive and they have been arrested before Women Driving day,” he said.
The lifting of the ban was first announced last September, and now women are legally able to drive themselves throughout the Kingdom, ending a dependence on private chauffeurs. The reform came as part of a sweeping raft of social and economic changes made as part of Vision 2030, a post-oil blueprint for Saudi helmed by the Crown Prince. The plan will allow Saudi Arabia to move towards a more modernized, tourist-friendly future, with aims such as increasing the percentage of women in the nation’s workforce from 22% to 30%. As of this year, females have also been allowed to attend sporting matches in select stadiums, and just last month Saudi Arabia passed a law to criminalize sexual harassment.
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