RIYADH: Saudi women will be trained to work as air traffic controllers, the Saudi Air Navigation Services (SANS) has announced.
SANS said it was offering theoretical and practical training to 80 women per year to prepare them for work in the air traffic control sector.
“The applicants began taking admission exams on Sunday for the Saudi Academy of Civil Aviation and will undergo a number of editorial tests,” the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said in a report.
Applicants must have a high school diploma with high marks and be between 18 and 25, it said.
Saudi Arabia seeks to create more jobs for women as part of a reform push to wean the economy off oil.
Its Vision 2030 plan aims to increase employment and diversify revenue sources.
Some of the planned changes, like increasing the number of women in the overall workforce to 28 percent from 23 percent and quadrupling their presence in senior civil service roles to 5 percent, would transform society.
Most employed women work for the Kingdom’s vast public sector, primarily in health and education, but authorities say they seek to encourage more hiring by private firms as part of the Vision 2030 plan.
Last year, a senior scholar said women should be allowed to work as paramedics and opticians, and last month women staffed an emergency call center at the Hajj pilgrimage for the first time.
Saudi Arabia trains first women air traffic controllers
Saudi Arabia trains first women air traffic controllers
Saudi initiative to host ‘dialogue’ between southern Yemeni factions widely welcomed
- Conference in Saudi capital requested by Rashad Al-Alimi, president of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council
- Kingdom urged all factions to participate “to develop a comprehensive vision” that would fulfill the aspirations of the southern people
RIYADH: The Saudi Foreign Ministry’s move to invite factions in South Yemen to hold a dialogue in Riyadh has been widely welcomed.
A statement by the ministry said the conference in the Saudi capital had been requested by Rashad Al-Alimi, president of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, and the Kingdom urged all factions to participate “to develop a comprehensive vision” that would fulfill the aspirations of the southern people.
Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit welcomed Al-Alimi’s call to convene a comprehensive conference to discuss just solutions to the southern issue.
He also expressed his appreciation for Saudi Arabia’s swift response to the request and its readiness to host and sponsor the conference with the participation of southern factions.
The situation in southern Yemen, Aboul Gheit said, has “well-known historical dimensions and includes legitimate issues that must be addressed at the negotiating table within a comprehensive Yemeni framework.”
He stressed that attempts to impose a fait accompli did not serve the southern cause but instead caused serious harm by exposing the country to further fragmentation and disintegration.
He reiterated the Arab League’s consistent position, as reflected in its repeated resolutions on the Yemeni crisis, which is based on full commitment to Yemen’s unity and the preservation of its territorial integrity.
Commending the Saudi announcement, Sheikh Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, the Muslim World League’s secretary-general, said that the step “reflected the Kingdom’s steadfast and sincere approach to supporting the Yemeni people in all their diversity.”
It also highlights the Kingdom’s continued efforts to preserve peace and stability in Yemen by addressing the southern issue through inclusive dialogue among all parties, Al-Issa added.
Meanwhile, Qatar has expressed its appreciation for Saudi Arabia’s hosting of the inclusive conference to explore fair solutions to the southern issue.
In a statement, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the efforts exerted by the legitimate Yemeni government to support the Yemeni dialogue track and address the southern issue.
The ministry underlined the importance of the constructive participation of all southern stakeholders, prioritizing the interests of the Yemeni people at the anticipated conference in Riyadh.
It emphasized adherence to the outcomes of the national dialogue as the consensual framework and comprehensive mechanism for reaching an inclusive political solution that meets the aspirations of the Yemeni people in all their segments and preserves Yemen’s unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
The ministry warned that unilateral declarations and measures taken without consultation and consensus among Yemeni parties, and without engaging in serious and responsible dialogue, could lead to a descent into chaos, harming the interests of the Yemeni people and undermining prospects for reaching a sustainable political settlement.
The ministry reaffirmed Qatar’s full support for all regional and international efforts aimed at advancing the political process, contributing to ending the Yemeni crisis through dialogue and peaceful means.
