Changes and Challenges in Society of Saudi Arabia - Essay Example

Various countries are blessed with natural resources that drive the economy such as Saudi Arabia. These resources act as the primary source of income to the government that enables the government to take care the countrys population without any problems. However, this might not be the case since nations that could be having zero rates of unemployment or well enhanced social amenities to their people as a result of having natural resources such as oil are the one struggling to provide for their citizens.

Having natural resources such as oil does not guarantee the economic and social success of an economy as it is in Saudi Arabia. Some factors can hinder the growth of an economy. Overwhelming of the population in urban centers can be a challenge to any given country. A lot of people around cities means that social amenities such as healthcare provision, building school and good transport and communications should be put in place for proper management of people. It becomes even more challenging when the 50 percent of the population is made of youths who are seeking employment while there are no opportunities. It is evident that the Saudi Arabian government has struggled to take care of the overwhelming urban population in major cities across the countries (Lust, 2014). Rapid urbanization can also lead to increased drug consumption, sexually abuse and the widespread of petty delinquency. Such insecurities can occur especially when they realize that vital inequality of the structures of opportunities, which is an inequality that contradicts the official development.

Furthermore, various governments have failed in their mandate to protect public resources, and as a result, the lower class in the society are people that suffer a lot. The government might be receiving a lot of revenues from its natural resources, such as Saudi Arabia after exporting its oil, however, when there are some loopholes, such as mismanagement of funds, you will realize that the money will not benefit the ordinary citizens. Also to influential individuals within the society are the ones that do take a lot of public funds, and this is the primary reason why the inequality gap has expanded, the richer are becoming more richer and poor are becoming poorer.

Currently, the women rights and freedom in various societies including Saudi Arabia appear to be violated. Most countries seem not to realize that that thing has changed and discrimination other basing on genders is the thing of the past. For instance, women in Saudi Arabia are not allowed to drive, and when most of them show their displeasure through demonstration, they are arrested (Lust, 2014). Furthermore, the institutions that have formed to support women in our current society have not been empowered, and in some countries, they do not exist. This has made it difficult for women to articulate their grievances properly. In Saudi Arabia for example, women use local institution such as charities and schools to express their concern (Lust, 2014).

Lastly, the issue of immigrants continues to dominate most of the debates nowadays. Countries that lack unified immigration policy experiences a lot of immigrants, such as Saudi Arabia. The problem is that these immigrants bring more harm than good to the host country. Immigrants are perceived to flood the labor market; therefore, most of the local firms end up hiring them since they provide cheaper labor; hence the local citizens are overlooked, and this lead to social discontent.

Reference

Lust, E. (2014). The Middle East (13th ed.). California: Sage.