General Supervisor

epresenting 4,7% of the number of registered establishments at the Chamber
of Commerce and Industry in the Kingdom (Eighth Five-Year Plan, 2005-2009,
p. 375). The number of ladies that have a current bank account amounts to
12%, those owning investment funds amount to 20% of the total number of
funds, and those owning real estate amount to 40%. Businesswomen own
approximately 20,000 small or medium companies or institutions. The size of
female investment reaches SR8 Billion representing 21% of the size of overall
investment of the private sector in the Kingdom. The value of investment in real
estate for ladies amounts to approximately SR120 Billion (he Middle East, 2007).
Social changes and their impact on the Saudi family
The various changes that occurred in the Saudi community have had their
direct and indirect impacts on the Saudi family. As a social system, the family
has greatly impacted and been impacted by the changes that occurred to
the social structure. This section will show the most important changes that
occurred to the family structure, functions, and interrelations between its
members.
Changes in the style of houses and their equipment
The economic boom that invaded the Saudi community led to a change in
the size and shape of houses, so they changed from mud houses to modern
concrete ones, built according to the most modern Western and Eastern
styles. Furniture has witnessed a change from being simple consisting in rugs
and straw mats mostly made by Bedouin women, to being imported from all
over the world.
House ownership
With the changes witnessed in the Saudi community, ownership has changed
from a collective to an individual form of ownership. The most important
causes of the fragmentation of property are: the spread of education,
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emergence of individual jobs for children, emigration of many citizens from
pastoral and rural areas to urban areas, as well as the shift from an extended
to a nuclear family. All these factors have encouraged the fragmentation of
property and the emergence of individual property. Several families divided
inheritance among their children, which resulted in many “big,” deeply-rooted
families in the past losing their economic positions in the contemporary Saudi
community. Wealth has come to be in the hands of a group of individuals that
own wealth and power.
Emergence of domestic servants
The financial boom that occurred in the Saudi community has helped the
emergence of domestic servants (house maids). In the traditional Saudi
community, the phenomenon of domestic service was not common. After the
discovery of oil, owing to the size of the houses and the fact that women work
as educators, it was possible for many families with financial means to bring in
house maids from some Arab countries such as Egypt, Morocco, and Ethiopia
or from some East Asian countries such as India, Indonesia, Philippines, Sri
Lanka, Bangladesh, and others. Having maids is not restricted to the rich only,
but extends to the various social layers: in the countryside, in rural areas, and
in cities.
Change in the family’s form
The changes that occurred to the Saudi community led to a change in the form
of the family. The most common type of family in the past was the extended
one. The most common type now is the nuclear family made up of father and
mother and unmarried children.
Rate of fertility in the family
The rate of fertility is still very high in the Kingdom if compared to other countries.
The population of the Kingdom went from 7 million inhabitants in 1974 to 27,136
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