DUBAI/RIYADH: Gender inequality is still a worldwide issue, and while some organizations say they are trying to rectify the situation, it requires genuine social acceptance if policies surrounding female empowerment are to make any real difference, a leading Saudi executive has warned.
“Samba has all the right policies supporting the inclusion of women in terms of the pay grade and mentorship programs,” Samba Financial Group CEO Rania Nashir said on Tuesday on the first day of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) 2019 conference in Riyadh.
The majority of female employees at Samba work at its head office, and “Samba has no pay gap,” she said. “Promotions aren’t based on gender. They’re based on competency, skills and qualifications.”
But these policies “won’t be as effective” if “social acceptance and family support isn’t there,” Nashir said.
“There are two main challenges for women inclusiveness in the workforce: Men in leadership to believe that women can add value, and for women themselves to believe that they have a role to play.”
Nashir, who said she was supported by her family in her decision to not marry, said women are CEOs by nature, being able to multitask and “manage chain, human resources, diversity, education — they’re project managers.”
Although she lauded current government efforts, including investing in women’s education and health, “this hasn’t been reflected in their contribution to the economy,” Nashir said.
“Women are contributing 23 percent to the economy. This looks low, but if we compare it to two years ago, it was only 17 percent,” she added.
“This shows accelerated growth of women inclusiveness in the workforce, but we have to do more. We have to have more role models.”
Economists estimate that more women in the workforce could generate up to $28 trillion in global gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025.
Also on the panel discussing the “She economy” was Dr. Sahar Nasr, Egypt’s minister of investment and international cooperation.
She said Egypt had managed to enable an environment for women to play an active role economically, and provide equal access to finance, capacity-building and training.
According to the UN, women’s economic empowerment is good for the economy — it is estimated that gender gaps cost the economy 15 percent of GDP.
The UN also states that economic equality is good for business. It is widely documented that companies that increase employment and leadership opportunities for women perform better, are more profitable and experience greater growth.
Citigroup CEO Michael Corbat said: “The benefits of a diverse workforce far outweigh any costs that come with the course of a natural lifecycle.”
He added that Citigroup already provides emergency childcare facilities to help parents when their child is unable to attend school.
The three-day FII, held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh, is being attended by heads of state, government leaders, and decision-makers from the business and finance communities.
Gender equality is essential, so why isn’t it happening?
Gender equality is essential, so why isn’t it happening?
- Economists estimate that more women in the workforce could generate up to $28 trillion in global GDP by 2025
- According to the UN, women’s economic empowerment is good for the economy
Savvy Games, NEOM team up to boost Saudi gaming startups
NEOM: Saudi Arabia's Savvy Games Group and NEOM have signed a memorandum of understanding to support the Kingdom's gaming startups throughout their journey from incubation to acceleration.
The partnership aims to strengthen the nation’s end-to-end gaming ecosystem and advance the objectives of the National Gaming and Esports Strategy under Saudi Vision 2030.
The agreement formalizes a coordinated approach between Savvy’s Nine66 Incubator Program and NEOM’s “Level Up” Accelerator, ensuring that startups graduating from Savvy’s Incubator have the training, resources and support required to progress efficiently into NEOM’s Accelerator.
This Savvy-NEOM collaboration builds upon the rapid evolution of both programs and shall ultimately support a stronger pipeline of investable gaming studios.
Savvy’s Nine66 Incubator Program has helped early-stage studios validate prototypes, build foundational capabilities, and prepare for investor engagement.
Through this initiative, Savvy aims to help startups achieve readiness to move into the subsequent stages of development and scaling.
NEOM’s Level Up Accelerator provides funding and mentorship to scale incubated studios into self-sustaining businesses. Since 2023, it has grown into a multiphase platform supporting more than 45 Saudi startups, deploying 15 investments, and achieving a 100 percent survival rate within its portfolio — outperforming many global benchmarks.
With 17 international partners offering publishing and support, Level Up has enabled more than 170 jobs and facilitated a historic milestone: the Kingdom’s first international publishing deal for a domestic gaming start-up, signed between Fahy Studio and UK-based publisher Kwalee.
Chief of Staff at Savvy Games Group Amr Sager said: “As the games industry continues to grow at a rapid pace in Saudi Arabia, there is an increasing number of programs and initiatives designed to help emerging studios and entrepreneurs to build, run, and scale their businesses.”
Sager added that this momentum is encouraging, and the next step would be to create stronger synergy and alignment across these efforts, so that the journey is smoother and clearer for startups to identify and source the support they need.
