The Saudi Ministry of Commerce revealed the effective efforts of women’s empowerment programs in facilitating their participation in economic activities which yielded an exponential increase in the number of commercial registrations that were issued for businesswomen by 112% during the past six years (2015-2021).
The records revealed the largest growth rate of commercial registrations issued to women in the Kingdom, as the ministry issued 139,754 commercial registrations during 2021 compared to the 65,912 commercial registrations in 2015. This massive leap amounted to a total of 817,930 commercial registrations issued for businesswomen.
Women's activities focused on several sectors, most notably: wholesale and retail trade, information and communication technology, administrative services, professional, scientific and technical activities, transportation and logistics, real estate activities, and contracting.
This aligned with the objectives of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, and fulfilled the Ministry of Commerce’s goal to implement initiatives that enhance women’s economic participation. Other targets that were reached included: empowering women with the autonomy to start their own business ventures easily without the permission of a male guardian, achieving equality and eliminating discrimination in business practices.
The ministry also enabled women to request to register records, trademarks, agencies and trade names, and to practice liberal professions. It also took care of its services to the business sector by establishing business centers for women within a new and advanced work environment that relies on modern technologies that facilitate procedures that save time for businesswomen.