Tag Archives: women

FHS Saudi Arabia, taking place in Riyadh from 29 April to 1 May, has a strong female focus this year, reflecting the rise of women in the Kingdom’s hospitality and tourism industries, and encouraging more to embark on a career in the sector. With International Women’s Day (8 March) just around the corner and FHS Saudi Arabia less than two months away, female forces in the Middle East’s hospitality sector share their thoughts on what women already bring to the industry, and how hospitality and tourism businesses can turn KSA’s young women of today into the leaders of tomorrow. As part of its commitment to recognise the important role of women in the sector, FHS Saudi Arabia organiser, The Bench, has launched #FHSWomenPower, a new campaign for this year’s event. Under the initiative, The Bench is offering female Saudi nationals who hold leading positions in the country’s hospitality sector to attend FHS free of charge. Read on for insight and expert opinion from Marie-Louise Ek, Vice President Human Resources Middle East and Africa, Hilton; Shaikha Al Nowais, Corporate Vice President of Owner Relationship Management, Rotana; Marloes Knippenberg, Chief Executive Officer, Kerten Hospitality; Eng. Orobah Filfilan, Architect, Saudi Icon; Norah Al Tamimi, Chief Executive Officer, Baheej Company, and Aseel Bondagjy, Hotel Talent Development Manager, and Maryam AlQahtani, Brand Experience Professional, NEOM. What is your organisation doing to champion gender diversity and women empowerment in the hospitality industry in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and the region’s social and economic aspirations? Marie-Louise Ek, Vice President Human Resources Middle East and Africa, Hilton: At Hilton we are in a business of people serving people. We lead with culture and we are committed to creating …

H.E Ahmed Al Khateeb, Minister of Tourism of Saudi Arabia, said: “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia continues to play a major role in investing in the talent required to meet the needs of this thriving sector. This is strategically aligned with Saudi Vision 2030 goals in relation to youth empowerment and women. As an illustration, we have increased female labour force participation by 64% since 2021. Providing insights and data on the sector’s status quo, the report allows countries and regions to set clear goals to empower women and engage youth. ” According to the latest research from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and Sustainable Tourism Global Center (STGC), initiated by the Ministry of Tourism of Saudi Arabia, reveals that the global Travel & Tourism sector is delivering soaring employment opportunities to women and young people around the world. The report shows that the Travel & Tourism sector directly employed a rapidly rising number of women between 2010 and 2019, increasing from 38.6 million to 47.8 million, an increase of 24%. It also found hospitality to be the leading employer of women within the sector, accounting for more than half of female employment. Young workers are shown as an important component of the sector’s workforce, representing 15% of all jobs in the sector in both 2010 and 2021. By contrast, the share of young workers in overall global employment fell from 16.5% in 2010 to 12.5% in 2021, highlighting the importance of Travel & Tourism to youth employment. Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, said: “As part of our Environmental & Social Research, we are incredibly proud to have worked alongside the Sustainable Tourism Global Center and to be releasing this incredibly …

Travel metasearch website WayAway has recently introduced a new category on its maps and listings called ‘female traveller approved points of interest’. According to research by WayAway shows 87% of female travellers would give preference to a ‘female-led’ hotel and almost half would pay more. Over 100 listings are included for launch with target of low thousands for year end – with over 200 on-the-ground representatives around the world looking out for more already. These points of interest could include the fact that the owners, founders, or senior management of a hotel or restaurant or shop are females – or simply that the point of interest has a female focus, for example a museum or monument celebrating women. Over 100 points of interest were included for the recent launch and WayAway aims to increase this into the low thousands by the close of the year.

The UNWTO Women in Tech Startup Competition: Middle East, calls for women entrepreneurs from all over the world and based in the Arab region willing to grow their tech startup in the tourism industry, and provide sustainable solutions to the sector. Startups must be led, owned or managed by women in the Middle East, residing in any of the following countries: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen. Be an Idea Stage, Early Stage or Series A startups with a minimum viable product or idea that is ready to be developed and funded. Have a full-time team, a tested pilot and business plan. Be scalable with potential for international growth. According to the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), women make up most of the tourist workforce in major parts of the world. UNWTO is always committed to gender equality, as mandated in Sustainable Development Goal 5, referring to women empowerment by supporting women’s rights and improving their participation in the business realm. UNWTO’s global report on tourism found that more than 54% of people employed in the tourism are women, while in the Arab world, women represent 8% of the regional tourist workforce. UNWTO is continuously seizing opportunities to highlight the role of women in the tourism sector, and particularly Arab women. Technology has become a driven tool for all travelers and tourism businesses. In the Arab region, 34% of tech focused startups were founded by women, and 57% of science technology, engineering, and math (STEM) graduates are women. UNWTO is committed to support Arab entrepreneurs, boosting their tourism business careers. Hence, the industry is always searching for businesswomen with …

Etihad Airways has marked Emirati Women’s Day by announcing that more than half the UAE nationals employed by the airline are women, including almost 50 pilots. Of the more than 3,200 Emiratis employed by the airline, 1,661 are women – or 51 per cent. This includes the 137 at the all-female Al Ain Contact Centre, reflecting the appeal of Etihad as an employer of Emirati women. Aisha Al Mansoori recalls being mesmerised by the aerial activity at Al Ain Air Show in 2007. Nowadays, she is one of those pilots, flying the largest passenger jet in the world. “I fell in love with aviation during the 2007 Al Ain Air Show and joined Etihad the following year as a cadet. After qualifying, I started as a Second Officer on the Airbus A320 and now I’m a First Officer on the A380. I hope to become Captain so I can train other aviators,” she said.   A total of 11 Emirati women are fully operational as pilots with the airline, while 38 others are navigating their way through cadet pilot training. Etihad has been holding a series of events to mark the second year of Emirati Women’s day, a government-led initiative now held annually on 28 August to recognise the role of Emirati women in the development of the UAE. This year’s theme is Emirati Women and Innovation. The most symbolic of the events was a visit to Etihad Airways’ Training Academy by ten longstanding members of the UAE General Women’s Union (GWU). The delegation met some of the airline’s Emirati female pilots, engineers and business leaders – bringing two generations together in a powerful illustration of the journey of Emirati …