Is Saudi Arabia’s Opening Like China’s? Yes and No
The pace of cultural change is eerily similar, though the two nations started from very different places.
The pace of cultural change in Saudi Arabia is eerily similar to China’s.
Photographer: Fayez Nureldine/AFP/Getty Images
Saudi Arabia’s unprecedented attempt to diversify from an oil economy to something more sustainable seems to be churning along nicely. The female labor participation rate has nearly doubled to 36% from 2016, the year Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman laid out his Vision 2030. Unemployment is at a record low. Last year, the number of domestic and foreign tourists exceeded 100 million for the first time.
Headline statistics aside, what’s Saudi Arabia really like? Curious, I did some sightseeing myself in early November, taking advantage of a new route between Hong Kong and Riyadh. The two financial centers have been strengthening economic ties, cross-investing and offering exchange-traded funds on each other’s bourses. Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. started a direct flight late last month.