Riyadh Global Industry Summit Positions Women as Drivers of Industrial Transformation

The third day of the UNIDO General Conference in Riyadh placed women’s empowerment at the heart of global industrial dialogue, focusing on expanding their leadership roles in industrial transformation while addressing persistent barriers to their full participation across sectors.

In a keynote address delivered by H.E. Dr. Abdullah Ali Al-Ahmari, Assistant Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources for Planning and Development, during the high-level panel titled “Empowering Women and Transforming Industry: Leadership for a Sustainable Future,” he emphasized the Kingdom’s commitment to expanding women’s participation across diverse industrial sectors and enhancing their leadership roles in driving innovation and advancing sustainable industrial development.

Dr. Al-Ahmari explained that the Kingdom is working to build a more inclusive and future-ready industrial environment that enables and strengthens women’s participation.

He noted: “Today, we have more than 100,000 women working within the Saudi industrial sector across over 12,000 licensed factories. Our current efforts focus on upgrading and expanding the capabilities of industrial facilities and infrastructure to accommodate additional female talent. We have already begun coordinating with partners in both the public and private sectors to rehabilitate and modernize these facilities, alongside collaboration with local and international stakeholders committed to supporting women’s empowerment and skill development.”

The third day of the Global Industry Summit began with a session titled “Introduction to Women’s Empowerment,” which outlined the role of inclusive industrial policies in creating fairer working environments for women, particularly in technology-intensive and heavy industrial sectors. This was followed by the session “Ambition and Impact: Women Shaping the Future of Industry,” which explored practical strategies to increase women’s participation across industrial value chains, alongside discussions on strengthening resilient industrial development in emerging economies.

The conference also hosted three parallel sessions forming the core of discussions on women’s empowerment at both national and global levels. The session,“Bridging the Gap: Global Challenges and Solutions for Women in Industry” examined barriers hindering women’s participation in industrial sectors. The session,“Advancing Women in Industry: Regional Insights with Global Impact – The Experience of Saudi Arabia and the GCC” highlighted the Gulf region as a replicable model for expanding women’s presence across industrial value chains.

Meanwhile, “From Cotton to Fashion: Advancing Global Gender Equality Across Value Chains” addressed the role of creative industries and supply chains in reinforcing more equitable participation across the global economy.

These discussions underscored the importance of industrial policy reform, building inclusive leadership pathways, investing in scientific and technical skills, and designing industrial policies that respond to diverse social needs. The Saudi experience was highlighted as a scalable regional model, showcasing national programs that expand women’s presence in manufacturing, mining, logistics, and advanced technology in alignment with Vision 2030’s objectives.

Day three also featured the session “Mentorship, Networking, and the Future of Women’s Leadership in Industry,” which emphasized mentorship as a tool for accelerating women’s advancement in industrial career pathways and for building cross-border networks that support female participation in high-growth sectors. Participants outlined actionable strategies to expand structured mentorship programs, strengthen gender-responsive industrial policy frameworks, enhance leadership pathways, and ensure women’s representation in industrial decision-making systems both nationally and internationally, transforming gender-equality commitments into measurable and actionable programs.

During the day’s closing session, senior officials discussed ways to “Mobilize Recognition of Women in Industry”, focusing on transitioning from rhetorical commitments to practical mechanisms, including the development of performance indicators and the documentation of replicable success stories in both developing and developed countries.

The day concluded with the “Orange Hour” event, led by the Assistant Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources for Planning and Development, held in conjunction with UNIDO Women’s Empowerment Day and the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Representatives of more than 170 Member States reaffirmed their commitment to advancing women’s safety, ensuring equality, and expanding empowerment opportunities across economic and social sectors.

The outcomes from Day Three of the Global Industry Summit in Riyadh confirm a crucial realization. Sustainable industrial growth fundamentally requires women’s full integration across leadership roles, production processes, and innovation ecosystems. Participants demonstrated that through strengthened collaboration between governments, international organizations and private sector partners, the vision of women driving global industrial transformation is already becoming reality in factories, research centers and value chains worldwide.