Saudi university to open driving school for women

The Princess Nourah women's university says it is preparing to open the school 'in cooperation with the relevant authorities'

A Saudi woman walks past a car outside a hotel in Riyadh on September 28, 2017. Fayez Nureldine / AFP

A university in Saudi Arabia has said it will open a driving school for women, a first for the country after a ban on women driving was lifted.

"Princess Nourah University is preparing to set up a driving school in cooperation with the relevant authorities," the women's university said on Saturday.

"This is the first such announcement following this week's order by King Salman to allow women to drive."

Saudi Arabia on Tuesday last week said it would allow driving permits for women under a royal decree to take effect in June, sparking euphoria among many women in the country.

Princess Nourah University says it has more than 60,000 female students in Riyadh and other cities.

The decision to lift the driving ban is expected to push women into the workforce and boost car sales, especially in the coming months before a scheduled imposition of a government value-added tax in January 2018.

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