W20 ‘sherpa’ Salma Al-Rashid champions gender equality and female empowerment

“We’re living in an extremely exciting time in Saudi Arabia,” Al-Rashid said. (Supplied)
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Updated 20 October 2020
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W20 ‘sherpa’ Salma Al-Rashid champions gender equality and female empowerment

  • Prominent Saudi social worker relishes the opportunity to bring together diverse voices from across the globe for a common goal
  • The first ever virtual Women 20 Summit will bring together experts and leaders from a variety of disciplines over Oct. 20-21

RIYADH: Salma Al-Rashid has represented Saudi Arabia at the Women 20 (W20) — the official G20 engagement group on women — since 2018, first in Argentina then last year in Japan. Now, as Riyadh prepares to host the 2020 summit in November, Al-Rashid is delighted to have been named this year’s “sherpa” tasked with undertaking preparatory work for the conference.

Since Oct. 2019, Al-Rashid has been the chief advocacy officer of the Alnahda Philanthropic Society for Women, a Saudi charity that champions female empowerment and participation. At the helm of the W20 Riyadh edition, Alnahda will help facilitate discussions among a network of delegates representing non-governmental women’s organizations, female entrepreneurs and think tanks from across the G20 member states.

The aim is to ensure gender considerations are placed firmly on the table and are included in the G20 Leaders’ Declaration as policies and commitments that foster gender equality and women’s economic empowerment.

“I take the task of head of delegation and sherpa very seriously,” Al-Rashid told Arab News in the run-up to the summit. “I have the responsibility to bring forward the voice of Saudi Arabian women in all their shapes, forms and experiences. I serve as the mechanism to project the voices of women of Saudi Arabia in this global forum.”




Salma Al-Rashid has represented Saudi Arabia at the Women 20 (W20) first in Argentina then last year in Japan. (Supplied)

Recalling her long association with Alnahda, Al-Rashid said she had always been passionate about social and development issues. “Throughout my career, I have firmly believed that by building a global and an inclusive culture, where all voices are heard, regardless of age, sex, race, religious beliefs and political affiliation, we can make the world more just and equitable for all,” she said.

Alnahda, which means “the awakening,” was founded in 1962 to help empower Saudi women economically and socially through targeted development projects.

As a sherpa, Al-Rashid is responsible for the operational management of this year’s W20, its advocacy and communications, and for providing overall support to the W20’s Saudi chair, Dr. Thoraya Obaid. She relishes the opportunity to bring together diverse voices from around the globe for a common goal.

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“The W20 this year allowed us to create a bridge between global and local conversations that is meaningful, and at times challenging, with the different perspectives of various sectors of the community on what matters most to women and how we can ensure women’s economic empowerment,” Al-Rashid said.

“The W20 has provided us with an opportunity to contribute to the local advancement of Saudi women.”

Al-Rashid started out with Alnahda as a volunteer. She went on to found a volunteer service program and later shifted to managing academic guidance and career-development programs to give young girls from underprivileged backgrounds a leg up on the competition as well as access further education.

“After that, I co-managed a nationwide campaign to enhance civic education among Saudi men and women during the municipal elections of 2015, when women were allowed to run and vote. So that was an exciting point in my career,” she said.




“The W20 has provided us with an opportunity to contribute to the local advancement of Saudi women,” says Al-Rashid. (Supplied)

Al-Rashid’s interest in the development and social issues started at an early age thanks to her mother, who has been an Alnahda member for over 25 years.

“I've had the privilege and experience of listening to the realities and experiences of Saudi women,” she said. “So, I would sit with my mom and just listen to conversations with social workers, beneficiaries, and the leaders and employees of Alnahda.

“I grew up listening to the various experiences, struggles, challenges and obstacles that women face, regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds. I think that’s most probably what sparked my passion.”

With such an impressive background in women’s advocacy work, Al-Rashid seemed like the obvious candidate for the sherpa role, appointed to it in December last year. She is excited to see all the months of planning and discussion come together for the upcoming summit.

“Jointly with our delegates across the G20, we formulate concrete, actionable policy recommendations to further advance gender equality within the G20 negotiations,” she said.




Al-Rashid: We did not ignore this pandemic that hit women the hardest. (Spplied)

“One thing we did this year as W20 Saudi Arabia was an in-house analysis, before January. We wanted to understand how effective the W20 has been in the past five years and how efforts have been reflected at the G20 level, through additionally consulting with international organizations and experts who we call our knowledge partners,” she said.

Based on this analysis, the delegates have settled on this year’s framework. “W20 delegates have agreed that we have three main areas of focus: Women’s financial inclusion, labor inclusion and digital inclusion. And every year a presidency introduces a fourth focus area. We wanted to continue the legacy of past presidencies, and build on their work.”

This year’s presidency proposal was to promote inclusive decision-making, a position jointly agreed by the summit’s 20 delegates. “We need to ensure that women are represented at every level of the decision-making process,” Al-Rashid said.

“If we look across the G20, we have only one female leader among the G20 leaders. We don’t see many women in leadership positions, but W20 goes beyond that. It’s not just women on boards and as CEOs. We recognize that the decision-making process is very complex and there are different stages. We need to ensure that at every stage there is representation of women and that representation is diverse.”

An ongoing challenge the W20 delegation wants to see the G20 address is the lack of women being hired to leadership positions.

“We only recently celebrated the appointment of the first woman CEO at Citigroup. And we know that Wall Street suffers from not having enough women. So, it is a challenge across the globe,” Al-Rashid said.

This is a challenge that Saudi Arabia has risen to meet in recent years, with a raft of new reforms designed to bolster women’s participation and empowerment.




Al-Rashid: We see a lot of reforms and advancement to push for women’s participation in the economic development of Saudi Arabia. (Supplied)

“We’re living in an extremely exciting time in Saudi Arabia,” Al-Rashid said. “We see a lot of reforms and advancement to push for women’s participation in the economic development of Saudi Arabia. One of the goals of Vision 2030 is to accelerate women’s representation in the labor market and in leadership positions.

“We’ve celebrated the appointment of the first Saudi ambassador to the US, Her Royal Highness Princess Reema bint Bandar, and we’ve celebrated a number of appointments of women in both the private and public sector.

“Are we there yet? Are we even close to where we hope to see ourselves? Not yet. It’s a very long journey, but we are on the right track.”

As a result of the global coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the G20 Summit and all engagement groups are being held remotely. Al-Rashid says the virus and its consequences have laid bare the economic vulnerabilities of women and the vital role of the W20.

“Despite the difficulties and challenges that we were faced with this year, we are privileged and honored to be able to respond to the question of what we can and have done this year,” she said.

“We did not stay quiet. We did not ignore this pandemic that hit women the hardest. We look at it as an opportunity to build back better.”

Al-Rashid sees an opportunity for world leaders to take concrete action in further advancing women’s economic participation. She puts it this way: “Only through empowering women, and through addressing the impact of COVID-19 on women, will we be able to further advance and sustainably recover from this pandemic.”

Twitter: @LujainBenGassem


Turaif traces historical, cultural mosaic to pre-Islamic era

Updated 12 min 4 sec ago
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Turaif traces historical, cultural mosaic to pre-Islamic era

  • Evidence of Stone Age settlements in the region
  • Has Tapline, Kingdom’s first industrial heritage site

TURAIF: Located in Saudi Arabia’s Northern Borders region, Turaif governorate stands as a crossroads of ancient civilizations and a gateway to Iraq and the Levant.

The governorate is home to a range of rich cultural and heritage sites, many of which date back to pre-Islamic times.

Heritage Commission sign board at the archaeological site of Qasr Duqrah, located 40 kilometers southwest of Turaif governorate. (SPA)

Among the most prominent heritage landmarks is the archaeological site of Qasr Duqrah, situated 40 km southwest of the governorate.

Adjacent to it lies a mountain known as Aqran, also referred to as Duqrah Mount, which has been recorded under the Comprehensive Archaeological Survey Program.

Zahi Al-Khalawi, a member of the Saudi Historical Society, said the site is among the Kingdom’s most significant archaeological locations because there is evidence of human settlements dating to the Stone Age.

He said habitation at the site continued through the later Roman period (2 to 6 centuries C.E.) and persisted into the Umayyad era (661 to 750 C.E.).

Another landmark is the Trans-Arabian Pipeline, or Tapline, one of Saudi Arabia’s most significant industrial heritage sites.

The pipeline stretches from the east of the Kingdom to its north, passing through Turaif, and has been registered in the National Industrial Heritage Register.

Known as the Tapline, this oil pipeline stretches from eastern Saudi Arabia to the northwest, passing through Turaif. (SPA)

It is the first documented industrial heritage site in the Kingdom, representing the early stages of Saudi Arabia’s oil industry and its developmental and economic significance.

Also noteworthy is the culturally significant site of Qaru Turaif, a water source developed by the Tapline Co. in the 1950s to help settle nomadic communities by order of the late King Abdulaziz.

To the east of Turaif, about 25 km away, stands Jabal Umm Waal, a historic landmark and northern gateway into the Arabian Peninsula.

The mountain tells the stories of Bedouin life and the passage of trade caravans and pilgrims traveling from the Levant and Iraq. For centuries, it served as a safe route for travelers making their way southward.

 


Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli minister’s call for sovereignty over occupied West Bank

Updated 02 July 2025
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Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli minister’s call for sovereignty over occupied West Bank

  • Kingdom’s foreign ministry said the move would violate international laws

RIYADH: A government minister’s threat for Israel to apply full sovereignty over the occupied West Bank was strongly condemned by Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Kingdom “condemned and denunciated” the statement made by the Israeli official calling for the imposition of sovereignty over the Palestinian territory.

Such action would be a violation of international law, the statement said. Saudi Arabia rejects any attempts to expand settlements on Palestinian land, the ministry added, while reiterating the Kingdom’s position on the importance of Israel abiding by international resolutions.

The statement followed comments from Israel’s Justice Minister Yariv Levin saying “the time has come” for Israel to apply sovereignty across the West Bank.

Israel occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967 and has built dozens of settlements, deemed illegal under international law, across the territory.

The Saudi foreign ministry offered its support for the Palestinian people in restoring their legitimate rights and in establishing a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

 


Saudi ministry recalls faulty chargers over fire risk

Updated 02 July 2025
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Saudi ministry recalls faulty chargers over fire risk

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Commerce has announced the recall of 88,518 Anker portable chargers across multiple models due to a potential internal electrical short circuit that may cause overheating and pose a fire risk.

The ministry urged consumers to immediately stop using the affected products and contact Anker at the toll-free number 8008500030 to arrange a replacement or full refund, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday.

Consumers can check if their device is included in the recall and start the replacement or refund process by visiting anker.com/mmrc2506.

Users are also advised to verify the model number of their charger against the list of affected products on the Defective Products Recall Center website ecalls.sa.

The ministry reaffirmed its commitment to consumer safety and stressed the importance of promptly addressing product defects to prevent potential hazards.


GCC passports departments chiefs hold meeting

Updated 02 July 2025
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GCC passports departments chiefs hold meeting

Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Jasem Albudaiwi participated in the 39th Meeting of the Directors-General of Passports of the GCC countries, held on Wednesday at the headquarters of the General Secretariat in Riyadh.

During the meeting, he reviewed the latest developments, including the Gulf visa project.

The passport departments of the interior ministries of GCC countries, through a series of joint meetings, are making efforts to launch a unified tourist visa project in the near future, the General Secretariat said in a report.

“Everyone is working as one team to keep pace with technological developments and security requirements in a world characterised by rapid change,” Albudaiwi said.


Saudi FM discusses regional developments in call with US secretary of state

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan held a phone call with his US counterpart State Marco Rubio on Wednesday. (AFP)
Updated 02 July 2025
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Saudi FM discusses regional developments in call with US secretary of state

RIYADH: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan held a phone call with his US counterpart Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday, Saudi Press Agency reported. 

During the call, Prince Faisal and Rubio reviewed US-Saudi relations and ways to enhance the strategic partnership between their countries. The latest regional and international developments were also discussed.