Turfah Al-Mutairi, first Saudi woman to obtain a license from GAMI

Turfah Al-Mutairi

Turfah Al-Mutairi is the first Saudi woman to obtain a license from the General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI) for a military outfit factory.
Al-Mutairi has a bachelor’s degree in arts and design from Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, where she majored in textile design. She has also attended training programs on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) at Leipzig University, Germany, and on promoting industrial innovation and technological facilities from the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). She has also received qualifications from UNIDO in industrial policies and planning strategy.
From 1999 to 2009, she worked as an educationalist at Al-Riyadh Schools.  She is now the founder and CEO of the Sondos Al-Dibaj Trading Co., the Sondos Advanced Manufacturing Co. and the Sondos Al-Dibaja Factory for Civil and Military Textile Industries. She also has a factory producing medical products and equipment.
Al-Mutairi’s military outfit factory is among the first of five companies to receive licenses from GAMI. The factory works with international companies specialized in localizing production of military equipment.
Al-Mutairi, who is the deputy head of the businesswomen’s committee at the Riyadh Chamber, is planning to build partnerships with more international companies to develop the field, quoting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who said: “The sky is the limit.” She has had meetings with Chinese and Greek industrial companies, and said she will work with any company that wishes to enter the Saudi market.
According to Al-Mutairi, she employs some 170 workers in her factory, most of whom are women, and will hire a further 213 new employees as part of its expansion strategy.