Women in Saudi Arabia can now work by driving taxis. This was decided by the government of Saudi Arabia, underlining a change that represents one of the last steps in Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s vision of the country towards 2030, to diversify the Saudi economy from the past. Saudi women, reports the online newspaper The National, will now be able to attend one of the 18 driving schools dedicated to granting the license to drive a taxi at the end of the exam: the schools are in the main Saudi cities, from Riyadh to Jeddah, up to Jazan, Asir, Najran, Jouf, Hail and Taif.
The government’s announcement was welcomed with joy by women who see their job opportunities widening. In 2017 alone, they were allowed to simply drive their family car and since then over 174,000 Saudis have obtained their driving license. The political strategy of Vision 2030 aims to increase the role of women in public life: the participation of women in work has risen from 19% in 2016 to 33% in 2020, underlines the Saudi institute for statistics.