RIYADH: Camilla, wife of Britain's Prince Charles, yesterday toured a women's charity that promotes education and employment as she met with Saudi women in her first visit to Saudi Arabia.

The second wife of the heir to the British throne, officially known as Duchess of Cornwall, is accompanying Charles on a three-day official trip to the conservative oil-rich kingdom. She spent much of the day at the Al Nahda Philanthropic Society for Women in Riyadh, which helps to train and employ women from needy families in places such as factories. The charity was founded and is led by Princess Sara Al Faisal, daughter of the late Saudi King Faisal and sister of Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al Faisal.

Camilla appeared to take a keen interest in the activities of the charity, which runs a heritage center that produces the long handmade dresses representing various regions of the kingdom, manages an institute for training and development and oversees a school for women with Down Syndrome.

She stopped to chat with a graduate of the Down Syndrome school, 23-year-old Heila, who works at the society and eagerly greeted the royal guest and her entourage. A ruling family member said Camilla seemed impressed by a presentation on the school. A group of young girls learning hair-cutting at a beauty training section did not hide their excitement after the duchess queried them about their pursuits, saying she had struck them as "modest" and likeable.

The visit was "excellent. She is extremely sweet and was interested, mainly, to get to know us," Princess Sara said. As a gift, Camilla received a traditional embroidered dress from the Saudi heartland of Najd, which was made by women at the heritage centre.

"All my favourite colors," Camilla said of the purple and pink "thob" as she opened a gift box presented by Princess Sara. Sporting an off-white trousers suit and a beige and blue scarf, Camilla, who like other prominent women visitors to Saudi Arabia has been exempted from wearing the long black robe known as abaya, inquired in detail about the making of the embroidered dresses, each of which takes between a month and a year to complete. Prices start at 3,000 riyals, and the velvet outfit offered to Camilla would normally sell at around 26,000 riyals and take two months to make, according to society officials.