JEDDAH: Sept. 26, 2017, was a historic day in the Kingdom, as on this day the ban on women driving was lifted through a royal decree.
“The royal decree will implement the provisions of traffic regulations including the issuance of driving licenses for men and women alike,” the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The move was also announced on TV and through the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “Saudi Arabia allows women to drive,” the ministry affirmed via Twitter.
The decree stated: “The scholars see no reason not to allow women to drive as long as there are legal and regulatory guarantees to avoid the pretexts (that those against women driving had) even if they are unlikely to happen.”
The decree also indicated that the majority of the Council of Senior Scholars agreed that religion did not prohibit women’s driving; therefore, they did not oppose allowing it.
Women around the world rejoiced at the news, from US State Department’s Heather Nauert to global stars like Rihanna and Dua Lipa congratulated Saudi women on the lifting of the ban.
Women will be allowed to drive starting June 24, 2018, said the director general of Traffic Department, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Al-Bassami. He said women can familiarize themselves with traffic regulations by reading the Traffic Law.
After the completion of a 30-hour training course, women can obtain a driving license. Women who cannot drive need to clear a 90-hour or 120-hour training course.
The General Department of Traffic (GTD) signed agreements with several universities such as King Abdul Aziz University and Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University to launch women-only driving schools on their campuses. The Technical and Vocational Training Corp. revealed their preparations of educational and night courses to teach females the know-how to maintain cars.
The traffic department has completed preparations to deploy female officials to tend to road accidents involving women drivers. Women will also be employed at several traffic checkpoints and women-only detention centers to hold arrested females violating traffic laws.
Al-Bassami revealed that Saudi women with international driving licenses could drive without attending local driving schools. He also added that women with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) licenses could obtain Saudi licenses without taking driving tests.
The decision will help boost the number women in the workforce, boost car sales, as well as provide jobs in driving schools and detention centers. Companies like Uber and Careem were among the first to promise to create opportunities for female drivers.
The year the ban on women driving was lifted in KSA
The year the ban on women driving was lifted in KSA
Saudi scientific organization celebrates 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate Omar Yaghi
- King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology honors him with a reception at its headquarters in Riyadh
- Yaghi, the first Saudi recipient of a Nobel Prize, shared the Nobel Prize with 2 other scientists for their pioneering work in molecular chemistry
LONDON: King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology in Riyadh honored Omar Yaghi, the Saudi scientist and recipient of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, with a reception at its headquarters in Riyadh on Thursday.
Yaghi is the first Saudi scientist awarded a Nobel Prize. He received it in December, alongside two other scientists, for their pioneering work in the field of molecular chemistry, and for contributions to energy, the environment and advanced materials.
He is also supervisor of the Center of Excellence for Nanomaterials for Clean Energy Applications, a collaboration between KACST and the University of California, Berkeley.
Munir Eldesouki, the president of KACST, said that the Kingdom is keen to recognize its scientific talents, in keeping with Saudi Vision 2030 and its goals relating to the fostering of scientific research.
Yaghi said he appreciated the support he had received from Saudi leaders during his career, and praised them for creating an enabling environment in which scientists are able to pursue world-class research, development and innovation.
Investment in national talent has created a research ecosystem that positions Saudi Arabia among the leading scientific nations, he added.
Thursday’s event, attended by the organization’s staff and students, also honored the winning teams from the recent “GenAI for Materials Discovery Hackathon,” which KACST organized in partnership with the University of California, Berkeley, and Academy 32, a nonprofit Saudi organization dedicated to research, development and innovation.
The celebration concluded with an interactive discussion session during which Yaghi talked with students and researchers, reflected on key milestones in his scientific journey, and shared insights into the factors that helped shape his career, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
