Saudi Arabia has appointed its second female ambassador to represent the Kingdom in Norway.
Amal Yahya al-Moallimi is the second female to represent her country at such a senior diplomatic post.
Moallimi took the oath of office virtually on Tuesday before Saudi Arabia’s King Salman, according to the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
“We have witnessed many developments that affected all aspects of society in Saudi Arabia. Perhaps the most notable positive impact is what has been achieved for women,” Moallimi told Asharq Al-Awsat.
She said that her appointment coincides with women also achieving progress on the economic front.
The rate of women in the Saudi labor market has reached 27%.
This exceeds the goal set by Kingdom Vision 2030, which set the expected rate at 20% in 2020.
“The presence of two female ambassadors from Saudi Arabia at the western level is good, and we aspire to empower more in the future,” Moallimi told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Moallimi’s appointment reinforces the presence of women in high-ranking diplomatic positions. Last year, Riyadh appointed Princess Reema Bint Bandar as its ambassador to Washington.
Saudi women have previously represented the Kingdom at international levels in several positions.
Princess Haifa Al-Mogrin was appointed as Saudi Arabia’s permanent representative to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Thoraya Obaid, the first Arab woman to head a UN agency, was appointed head of UNFPA in 2001 with the rank of Under-Secretary-General of the UN.
Moallimi holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Mass Communication and Journalism from the University of Denver in the US.
She got her Bachelor of Arts in English language from Princess Noura Bint Abdul Rahman University in Riyadh, in addition to a Fellowship from the Oxford Center for Islamic Studies at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.
Moallimi is the general manager of international collaboration at Saudi Arabia’s Human Rights Commission (HRC). She previously held the position of assistant secretary-general at Saudi Arabia’s King Abdulaziz Center for National Dialogue.
