How does one become a business woman in Saudi Arabia?

Jeddah / Saudi Arabia

Segregated in college, restaurants and the office, women in Saudi Arabia have a long way to go to be able to work in business. They are content with any small change. Some even believe in the construction of women-only roads, as long as they are able to drive. Annemarie van Geel spoke with a series of Saudi women and their struggle for independence. 

The prophet’s wife
‘Khadijah bint Khuwaylid is my role model’, Noura - one of the women employed at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce – tells me. ‘Khadijah was a business woman. She hired Mohammed to accompany the trade caravans that she sent abroad. She always sent a supervisor to check if he managed well. Eventually she married him. Khadijah was independent, rode her own camels but was also a mother and wife. She was a strong woman’. Noura is 27, has yet to marry and is determined to follow in the steps of her role model. ‘These past few years have been dedicated to my education and career. I’ve also been abroad to follow courses. But now I’d like to have children. The balance between work and family life seems tough but I’m determined to continue working once I’m married.’

I tell Noura that I lecture at Dutch universities about the Middle East. ‘Oh, that’s nice!, I’ve also lectured for one semester’, she replies. ‘I tell my girls about my role model Khadijah bint Khuwaylid . In high school they’re only taught the religious role she had. I’d like to show them that Khadijah is a strong woman who’s also a perfect role model.’

Ikhtilaat
In college boys and girls are taught separately, a bank even has separate offices and the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce has separate floors for men and women. Restaurants have separate sections for families and sometimes even separate queues. Ikhtilaat, the mixing of men and women in public spaces, is currently being discussed both in the street and in the media.

‘I tell my students that there’s nothing wrong with ikhtilaat,’ says Noura. ‘As long as you respect yourself,  behave professionally in the workplace and don’t trespass boundaries, it’s possible to collaborate with men. The girls that I taught come from families that are against ikhtilaat. I thought it was important to show that there are good sides to it. But you have to keep in mind that Jeddah is different from the capital Riyadh. Jeddah is a port, we call the city Arousa al bahr, the Bride of the sea. Here in town we’re used to different nationalities. Many pilgrims arrive here before continuing their journey to Mecca and Medina. As a result Jeddah is more open.'

Changes
‘Saudi society seems to be progressing. Especially since 2005, with the reign of King Abdallah, things started to change’, Noura says. It’s an assertion that keeps recurring in almost all of my conversations. ‘Take the Chamber of Commerce’, Noura says. ‘Three years ago only three women were employed here. Now there are 58. Back then there was no female general manager, now there is’.

Noura elaborates on how the Chamber of Commerce attempts to attain change in society. ‘Today’s youth sees on television how other countries try to effect change. In these countries it’s often achieved through confrontation. That doesn’t work here. If I try to achieve something I do so by means of the Ministry, I don’t create havoc through the media. One simply has to collaborate with the authorities. Lobbying works really well.’

Noura learned negotiation skills from her father at an early age. ‘You have to show them that your interest is their interest. That way we’ve managed to have women run their own business. They no longer require a mahram (male guardian).'

Mahram
Mona who is 24 and started her own business as graphic designer, refers to this amendment of the law. ‘I knew the law had been changed, it was mentioned in the newsletter of the Chamber of Commerce. With that knowledge I convinced a male government official that I didn’t need a mahram’. However, Mona finds working in these typically Saudi circumstances annoying at times. I could have gone to New York or London to study and build my life there but I wanted to show that it’s possible to be successful here when studying in Saudi Arabia. I wanted to contribute to the development of my country. But it’s quite hard sometimes. It’s two steps forward and one step back. Sometimes I wish I had been born 15 years later but at the same time it’s some kind of privilege to be part of this period of many changes for our country.’

The necessity of mahram seems one of the most important issues for women. Hadeel, a 21 year old student at one of Jeddah’s women universities, informs me that that system is rather difficult for her. ‘My father passed away when I was young. I don’t have any brothers and my uncles live abroad. I recently had to renew my passport. It took me five months to convince my uncle to sign a document of approval’. I inquire if she and her friends have any ideas how this could be solved. ‘Wow, that’s a difficult question,’ Hadeel says. ‘Maybe an age limit needs to be installed of, let’s say, 21? At that age one really is capable to take responsibility for oneself.’

According to Hadeel’s friend Nada (21) the problem isn’t so much Islam but traditions and customs. ‘Islam has provided us all rights’ Nada says. The girls claim to be praying and performing religious duties such as handing out alms. ‘A lot has changed here these past few years. But we’ve done it from within the framework of Islam. Western concepts such as feminism, empowerment and liberalism don’t work here. You disqualify yourself from society when you adhere to such ideas. Ofcourse we’d like to advance but in our own way’. Nada emphasizes that it’s the traditions and customs that obstruct their way to claim the rights that were given to them by Islam. Hadeel interrupts: ’Do you know what we actually need? Women who interpret the Koran. I’m not against men but the existing interpretations are from their perspective. It’s about time that women do the very same!’

Highway for women
Of course driving is being addressed. The girls initiate the topic themselves. About half of them don’t mind not being allowed to drive. They have a chauffeur and don’t need to bother about traffic and parking. But for the remaining half it is an issue. Najla (27) has an unusual opinion: ‘I don’t mind being able to drive but not with men around. They’d have to build separate roads for women or allow women to drive exclusively at certain hours of the day. And if men and women are used to the fact that we are able to drive, we can all use the same roads simultaneously.' Even with this topic ikhtilaat recurs.

‘You know,’ Malak (21) says, ‘Our generation experiences a special period of time, here in Jeddah. In Riyadh it’s different, people are more conservative there, we enjoy a kind of Renaissance. Here the glass is half full, not half empty!’

Note:
*A mahram is a person a woman or man cannot marry. In this case a mahram has some kind of legal custody of an unmarried female.

All names in this article are fictitious, in order to protect the identities of the interviewees.

Photos: Annemarie van Geel