Forbes Middle East Top 20 Arab Women in Government: 4 Saudis Stand Out
Four Saudi women have featured on the Forbes Middle East Top 20 Arab Women in Government 2025 list, in a strong testament to the growing role of Saudi women across all sectors under the revolutionary Vision 2030.
The Forbes list gives recognition to women with the most profound impact in leading positions across government institutions, with the exclusion of ministerial and parliamentary posts. The positions on the list vary from diplomacy and ambassadorship to sectors such as culture, technology, media, and environment.
The UAE dominates the list with 11 entries, followed by Saudi Arabia with 4 and Egypt with 3. Qatar’s Al Mayassa Bint Hamad Al-Thani tops the list. She is the Chairperson of Qatar Museums, Doha Film Institute, Reach Out to Asia, and Qatar Leadership Center.
All women on the list deliver an empowering message and highlight the influential role of women across all sectors. The list takes into account years of experience, the leader’s number of years in her role and level of impact, and initiatives during 2024.
Princess Rema Bandar Al Saud
The Saudi Ambassador to the US, Princess Rema Bandar Al Saud, ranked 2nd on the Forbes Middle East Top 20 Arab Women in Government 2025. Princess Rema assumed her position in 2019, to be the first female ambassador in Saudi Arabia’s history.
Her career in the public sector started in 2016, when she became vice president of women’s affairs at the Saudi General Sports Authority and president of the Mass Participation Federation in 2018.
Princess Rema also assumes other important roles, including president of the women’s committee, a board member of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee, and head of the executive committee for the Fashion Commission. Moreover, she launched several initiatives promoting environmental sustainability, including Catmosphere, which focuses on big cat conservation, and WAVE, which focuses on ocean regeneration in one human generation.
Shihana Alazzaz
In the 9th place came Shihana Alazzaz, the Chairwoman of the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property (SAIP). In May 2024, a royal decree appointed Alazzaz in her current role, and another royal decree appointed her as an advisor to the Royal Court in the same month. Under her term, SAIP launched a campaign against counterfeit goods across the Kingdom, in collaboration with the Saudi Food and Drug Authority.
During her career, Alazzaz assumed several roles, including the deputy secretary-general of Saudi Arabia’s Council of Ministers. From 2017 to 2022, she held several positions at the Public Investment Fund (PIF), including General Counsel and Secretary to the Board of Directors.
Haifa Al Jadea
Ambassador Haifa Al Jadea secured the 11th position of the Forbes list. She is the Ambassador and Head of Mission of Saudi Arabia to the European Union (EU) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), assuming her role in March 2023.
Previously, Al Jadea was the managing director of SRMG Think. She also held roles in the Saudi Ministry of Tourism, including an international affairs advisor and the general supervisor of international cooperation. Furthermore, Al Jadea assumed positions in the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UN headquarters in New York.
Basmah Al-Mayman
The Regional Director for the Middle East at the UN Tourism, Basmah Al-Mayman, ranked 18 on the Forbes Middle East Top 20 Arab Women in Government 2025 list. Al-Mayman became the first GCC national to hold a key post at the UN Tourism when she assumed her current role in 2018. As part of her current position, she oversees 13 member states, one observer country, and 51 affiliate members.
Moreover, UN Tourism collaborated with Jordan’s Tourism Ministry in May 2024 to launch tourism investment guidelines for Jordan. The organization also partnered with the UAE in June 2024, integrating an e-platform for governing body meetings.
Al-Mayman is the representative of the UN Tourism in the Arab Ministerial Council for Tourism meetings at the Arab League. Previously, she was a board member of the UN Tourism’s Sustainable Tourism Eliminating Poverty Initiative for the Middle East.
Saudi Women Impactful Role
Launched in 2016, the transformative Vision 2030 paved the way towards women empowerment, opening avenues for Saudi women across all sectors. The objectives of this grand reform plan advocate boosting female participation in the labor force and investing in new sectors to diversify the economy.
Under Vision 2030, women assume leading roles across the government and private sectors, with 1,707 Saudi women holding key positions. Moreover, Saudi women’s share in the labor market increased from 21.2% to 34% from 2017 to 2023. These promising figures prompted Saudi Arabia to set an ambitious target of raising female participation in the workforce to 40% by 2030, after exceeding the initial target of 30%.
Furthermore, Saudi women now assume key positions in the diplomatic service, such as ambassadors, leaders in international organizations, negotiators, and diplomats representing the country in foreign missions.
