The Saudi passport office has began training its first female recruits.

The two-week program is set to begin on Sunday and will be rolled out across cities including Makkah, Madinah and Riyadh.

The programme will see 290 women familiarise themselves with the world of work as well as procedures related to examining travel documents.

More than 100,000 women had applied for jobs in the passport office. Currently, there are only 140 roles available.

Just this week, the Kingdom held its first ever go-karting race, with ten contestants competing for prizes worth over $2,500 in Jeddah.

Saudi Arabia has marked a number of milestones for women’s rights over the past year, symbolising a new era for the kingdom.

In November, KSA appointed its first female speaker in its national council and a month later, opened its elections and candidates to women.

In June, the ban on women driving, which had been in place since 1957, came into effect.

SOURCE : ALBILAD