MUST-READS

• Saudi Arabia has highest penetration rate of women professional gamers globally: Saudi prince: Video
  HRH Prince Faisal bin Bandar Al-Saud, chairman of the Saudi Esports Federation, said on Thursday at CONVERGE LIVE that the country has had the opportunity to show that professional gaming is a “real career path with no baggage for women”.

• Saudi Arabia Chairs 69th Session of UN Commission on the Status of Women

  The 69th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) began yesterday, chaired by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by its Permanent Representative to the United Nations Abdulaziz Alwasil. The session will continue through March 21, featuring a high-level delegation led by Family Affairs Council Secretary-General Maimoonah Al Khalil. As chair, the Kingdom emphasizes enhancing international cooperation to support women's empowerment and address their challenges. It will also share its experiences and initiatives that have strengthened Saudi women's role as a key driver of national development. Al Khalil emphasized that Saudi Arabia's selection to chair CSW69 demonstrates the significant strides made in empowering Saudi women. She attributed this success to the unwavering support of the Kingdom's leadership, which has facilitated women's continuous achievements across all fields.

• Saudi Arabia spends $724 million to implement 1,072 projects to empower women in 79 countries

  Saudi Arabia, represented by the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief), has implemented as many as 1,072 projects dedicated for the most needy women in 79 countries around the world. Implementation of these projects, which are valued at nearly $724 million, coincide with International Women's Day, which falls on March 8 each year. The projects implemented by KSrelief included provision of assistance to Yemeni women and empowering them economically, building their capacities by providing training programs in the professional and commercial fields, and providing them with the necessary tools that help them find income-generating opportunities that contribute to improving the livelihoods of the beneficiaries and their families.

• More Saudi women take the lead with over 78,000 in senior roles, 551,000 business owners

  In honor of International Women’s Day, Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Statistics released data highlighting the increasing role of Saudi women in the workforce, leadership positions, and entrepreneurship. According to the report, Saudi Arabia is home to 9.8 million women, with 36.2% participating in the labor force as of the third quarter of 2024. The employment-to-population ratio for Saudi women reached 31.3%, reflecting steady progress in workforce inclusion. The report also shows that more Saudi women are stepping into leadership and business roles. In 2024, 78,356 Saudi women held senior management positions, while 551,318 women registered businesses in 2023. Freelancing is also on the rise, with 449,725 Saudi women obtaining freelance work permits in 2023. Meanwhile, the tourism industry saw a boost in female employment, with 111,259 Saudi women working in tourism-related jobs in 2024.

• Women’s pro tennis introduces paid maternity leave funded by Saudi sovereign wealth fund

  The Women’s Tennis Association and Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund have launched a new program to provide players with maternity and child family planning benefits, the organizations said Thursday. Women’s tennis is one of the last professional sports to provide these benefits, and players have been asking. As part of the program, eligible players will receive up to 12 months of paid maternity leave. Players will also have access to grants to cover fertility conception and egg freezing treatments. The WTA said the new policy will benefit 320 eligible players. The PIF WTA maternity fund program is the first and only maternity program in women’s sports to be fully funded and supported by an external partner, the WTA said. PIF declined to comment on how much it is contributing to this program, but the organizations said players will be compensated equally.

• Mastercard research: Women in Saudi Arabia are driving the future of entrepreneurship

  Women in Saudi Arabia are increasingly stepping into the world of entrepreneurship, with 78% considering starting their own business, according to Mastercard’s latest research, released ahead of International Women’s Day 2025. As the country continues its economic transformation under Vision 2030, fostering an enabling environment for women entrepreneurs will further accelerate growth and innovation in the Kingdom. In Saudi Arabia, a significant proportion of men and women identify as entrepreneurs (42% men, 34% women), reflecting the Kingdom’s evolving business landscape. Among those who consider themselves entrepreneurs, 44% of female millennials identify with this role, demonstrating strong ambition among younger generations.

• Saudi women’s football sees 195 percent surge in professional players: NEOM report

  Women’s football in Saudi Arabia has experienced “remarkable transformation” since 2018, with over 70,000 girls now participating at the grassroots level, more than 1,500 registered players nationwide and the number of professional female players surging by 195 percent, according to a new report. The report, “Pioneering Change: Women’s Football in Saudi Arabia,” published by the Kingdom’s mega project NEOM in partnership with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), details the rapid development of women’s football in the Kingdom as part of its Vision 2030 reform agenda. The most significant growth has occurred at the grassroots level, with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation’s (SAFF) Girls’ Schools League seeing participation surge 46 percent year-on-year to reach more than 70,000 players in 2023.

• Saudi Arabian women break into the Rally-Dakar world

  In parallel to the Rally-Dakar 2025 competition, which is being held for the sixth consecutive year in Saudi Arabia, the Arab giant has organised for the first time a training programme for promising young Saudi sportsmen and women called ‘Saudi Next Gen’, in which women such as Merryhan Albaz, an influencer, sports enthusiast and the first female mechanic in the world of motorsport, also took part.  Five pairs of drivers took part in this first edition: four male and one female. The young participants, chosen by the Saudi Automobile Federation, will enjoy a coaching session and will fight for a place in next year's Dakar Rally, which will also be held in Saudi Arabia.

• GASTAT: Saudi Women’s Participation in the Labor Force Reaches 36.2%

  The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) released today the Labor Market Bulletin for the third quarter of 2024. Figures show that the unemployment rate among Saudis in Q3 of 2024 was 7.8%, an increase of 0.7 percentage points over Q2 of this same year, and a year-on-year decrease of 1 percentage point from Q3 2023. The bulletin also shows that the Saudi and non-Saudi labor force stood, in Q3 of this year, at 66.6%, a 0.4 percentage point increase over Q2 of 2024. Among Saudis, the labor force grew by 0.7 percentage points in Q3 2024, to reach 51.5%, marking a year-on-year increase of 0.7 percentage points. The employment-to-population ratio among Saudis went up by 0.2 percentage points, reaching 47.4%, or an annual growth of 1.1 percentage points. The bulletin also highlighted the growth of Saudi women's participation in the labor force, which increased by 0.8 percentage points, to 36.2%, in the mentioned period.

• Women’s football rankings – Africa’s stars step up in Europe and Saudi Arabia

  Africa's women's football stars continue to impress around the world in December, despite the crowd-pleasing NWSL season coming to an end in November. Nigeria has always had tremendous depth in the goalscoring department and this was demonstrated in December as Ifeoma Onumonu, Jennifer Echegini, Gift Monday and Rinsola Babajide all scored for their respective clubs. Given that our rankings are form-based, many of the best African players miss out this month on account of having had little to no playing time, but when the 2025 NWSL season kicks off, the likes of Barbra Banda, Temwa Chawinga and Racheal Kundananji are likely to return.

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