28,000 candidates applied for 30 train driver positions

Women will be able to drive trains in Saudi Arabia. To be precise, these are brand new high-speed trains that since 2018 have been connecting Mecca to Medina via Jeddah International Airport. A stretch of 450 kilometers increasingly frequented by Saudis. Its operator is Renfe, a Spanish railway company, which employs local staff. Today Renfe needs additional drivers. Or rather drivers. The recruitment operation launched in January only targets women. To allow them better access to the labor market, 30 positions are specifically reserved for them.

However, in just one month, 28,000 Saudi women between the ages of 22 and 30 registered for the online selection tests, intended to assess their academic record and their level of English. 28,000 for 30 seats. Half of them passed this first stage. They will have to do other tests, interviews and at the end of the day, in mid-March, the 30 finalists will be trained for a year while being paid. Once graduated, in 2023 they will become the very first female train drivers in the history of Saudi Arabia. And this is far from being an anecdote in a country where women have only been allowed to drive cars for three years.

In recent years, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has lifted some restrictions. Ten years ago, for example, women were not allowed to work anywhere other than in offices, far from the eyes of men. In 2018, only two in 10 Saudi women had a job or were looking for one. It was one of the lowest female participation rates in the world. We went to just over three out of 10. The change is extremely rapid. The kingdom remains governed by a rigorous and patriarchal Islam but it is in the process of being modernized, it is also an economic necessity. Getting out of all-oil and an income society cannot be done without women who represent about 45% of the population.

According to Rosalina Reyes Ges, representative of Renfe, the success of this job offer is explained by the “desire of Saudi women to be part of the economic and social change taking place in their country. They saw there the possibility of doing a different job. A job that is usually done by men.” From a more prosaic point of view, Saudi women also want “gain economic independence and contribute to their household income.” Except that in terms of rights, there is still progress to be made. In particular on the system of male guardianship which persists in part and relegates adult women to the legal status of minors. An online campaign has just been launched by Saudi activists. With #PrisonnièresChezSoi, women tell about all the social restrictions that transform their homes into “jail”. Far from the advances of facade. In this context, 30 drivers is good. But obviously a lot more would be needed. That said, France is far from being exemplary: a train driver is 95% a male profession.