Abdul Ilah Saati Okaz newspaper THE figures released by the Ministry of Labor showed that there are 2.5 million jobless young Saudi men and women registered under the Hafiz program. Among them, an overwhelming majority of 2 million are women. They make up nearly 90 percent of the total unemployed in the Kingdom. This huge number of jobseekers and high rate of unemployment among women is a major challenge facing the country. I do not say that the ministry is only responsible for this. On the other hand, this is a national issue that requires concerted efforts of all government institutions and individuals in society. Perhaps one problem is the limited fields women can find employment in. In the government sector, for example, job opportunities for women are concentrated mainly in the education and health sectors. According to the projections of the current 9th Development Plan, nearly 95 percent of job opportunities are available in the private sector where about seven million foreigners work. I say this with full appreciation for our expatriate brethren. It was in this context that King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, issued a decree to replace foreigners with Saudi women at lingerie and women's accessory shops. According to the ministry's regulations, saleswomen must take up jobs replacing their male counterparts at these shops. The ministry gave a sufficient grace period for women's accessory shops before enforcing the royal decree, and that deadline ended on June 30, 2012. During Ramadan, I went to a leading shopping mall in Jeddah to do some Eid shopping. I saw that some lingerie and women's accessory shops had implemented the directive by appointing Saudi saleswomen. But I also saw some shops selling women's accessories that had not implemented the directive. This is a blatant challenge to official decisions and the ministry's explicit instructions, and therefore, it is imperative that stringent punitive measures, including the closure of shops, are imposed against those who perpetrate such violations. It is obvious that many business owners refuse to abide by the royal decree unless it is followed by mandatory enforcement. Finally, I would like to say that the issue of employing women and the presence of more than two million jobless Saudi women is a matter that requires initiatives to be taken by all parties, especially when our universities and education institutions are sending hundreds of thousands of women graduates into the job market each year.
