By Abdullah Al-Dahhas

Okaz/Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH — The Department of Education in Makkah has started training as many as 770 women security coordinators in all girl schools in the three educational levels on safe driving.

The department has chosen 22 training programs for the coordinators who in turn will train the women staff in schools and girls in the third secondary school year.

The training programs will cover training on driving, the traffic laws, safety precautions and road manners.

The programs are designed to teach women holding educational and administrative jobs in the Ministry of Education the best methods of achieving traffic safety when women start driving in the Kingdom from June.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transport has invited Saudi women to its "Safe Driving Environment" forum to test driving simulations using the ministry's smart transportation system.

The ministry has provided an opportunity for women drivers to experience safe driving in preparation for the implementation of the royal order lifting the ban on women driving in the country.

The official account of the ministry invited women via "Twitter" on Saturday to visit their pavilion to attend the "Safe Environment for Driving" forum, which is organized at King Saud University for female students using the ministry's smart system.

The ministry has partnered with King Saud University to organize the "Safe Environment for Driving" forum for the first time, which is the largest platform to support women drivers in the Kingdom yet.

Dr. Inas Al-Issa, vice dean of students affairs at the university, said the cultural forum was a response to the royal decree allowing women to drive.

She added it revitalizes the university’s role in society as it helps to raise awareness and disseminate the regulations and laws issued by the state’s bodies.

The change in the law on women driving comes into effect in late June.

Driving opens the door to unparalleled mobility and freedom for Saudi women. Now, they can get to jobs more easily without relying on anyone for transportation. This is especially important in areas without easily accessible public transport.

As of last year, the unemployment rate in Saudi Arabia was 12.7 percent, which meant 906,552 people were without jobs. About 75 percent of that number were women, which hopefully will drop drastically, with more women becoming mobile.