Riyadh: The first batch of 32 female rail drivers, from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, will join in piloting Haramain High-Speed Rail during this year’s annual Haj pilgrimage, local media reported.
On January 1, Saudi Railways Authority announced, the graduation of the first batch of 32 women to drive the Haramain Express, the fastest train in the Kingdom.
“This year, they will participate in transporting pilgrims to all stations,” an SAR official told Saudi-owned television Al Arabiya.
About 72,000 pilgrims per hour will be transported on the express trains as the service will operate at full capacity like before the pandemic hit, he added.
The Haramain High-Speed Rail was launched in 2018, aiming to serve 60 million passengers annually. It works with electricity and travels 460 km between Makkah and Madinah in two hours and 45 minutes.
Since Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman came to power in 2017, he has insisted on opening up the kingdom by diversifying the country’s economy and relaxing many gender-based rules.
In recent years, the Kingdom has witnessed extensive transformations, allowing women to drive by royal order in 2017, followed by unprecedented decisions, including the enrollment of women in the main branches of the armed forces, with different military ranks.
The decisions also allowed equality with men in the right to obtain a passport and leave the country with the abolition of the requirement of the consent of the guardian, as well as equality in the retirement age equivalent to 58 years.
The participation of women in business in Saudi Arabia has doubled in the last six years, with the Kingdom achieving the fastest growth rate in the participation of women in the world.
The percentage of female-led enterprises in the Kingdom jumped from 21.5 percent in 2016 to reach 45 percent in 2022 of the total start-up companies, according to statistics.
Data from the Saudi General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises indicated that the percentage of female-led enterprises in the Kingdom is almost close to the percentage of male-led enterprises.
On January 9, 2023, the Saudi Minister of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) Ahmad Al-Rajhi revealed that the percentage of women participation in the labour market during 2022 has reached 37 percent.
