diff --git a/.gitlab-ci/local-ci.sh b/.gitlab-ci/local-ci.sh
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..039447ce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitlab-ci/local-ci.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,116 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -e
+
+RED="\033[1;31m"
+GREEN="\033[1;32m"
+YELLOW="\033[1;33m"
+BLUE="\033[1;34m"
+RESET="\033[0m"
+
+export GCL_IGNORE_PREDEFINED_VARS=CI_REGISTRY
+
+BASE_SHA=$(git merge-base HEAD origin/master 2>/dev/null || git rev-parse HEAD~1)
+
+COMMON_ARGS=(
+  --variable "CI_MERGE_REQUEST_DIFF_BASE_SHA=$BASE_SHA"
+  --variable "CI_REGISTRY=registry.gitlab.com"
+  --json-schema-validation=false
+)
+
+check_requirements() {
+  for cmd in docker git gitlab-ci-local; do
+    if ! command -v "$cmd" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+      echo -e "${RED}Missing dependency: $cmd${RESET}"
+      exit 1
+    fi
+    echo -e "${GREEN}Found: $cmd${RESET}"
+  done
+
+  if ! docker info >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+    echo -e "${RED}Docker daemon is not running or permission denied${RESET}"
+    exit 1
+  fi
+}
+
+list_jobs() {
+  gitlab-ci-local --list --json-schema-validation=false | awk 'NR>1 {print $1}'
+}
+
+run_job() {
+  JOB="$1"
+  echo -e "${YELLOW}Running CI job: $JOB${RESET}"
+  gitlab-ci-local "$JOB" "${COMMON_ARGS[@]}"
+}
+
+cleanup_images() {
+  echo -e "${BLUE}Removing libssh CI images only...${RESET}"
+  docker images --format "{{.Repository}}:{{.Tag}} {{.ID}}" \
+    | grep "$CI_REGISTRY/$BUILD_IMAGES_PROJECT" \
+    | awk '{print $2}' \
+    | xargs -r docker rmi -f
+}
+
+usage() {
+  echo
+  echo -e "${BLUE}Usage:${RESET}"
+  echo "  $0 --list"
+  echo "  $0 --run <job-name>"
+  echo "  $0 --all"
+  echo "  $0 --run <job-name> --clean"
+  echo "  $0 --all --clean"
+  echo
+  exit 1
+}
+
+check_requirements
+
+CLEAN=0
+MODE=""
+JOB=""
+
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+  case "$1" in
+    --list)
+      MODE="list"
+      shift
+      ;;
+    --run)
+      MODE="run"
+      JOB="$2"
+      shift 2
+      ;;
+    --all)
+      MODE="all"
+      shift
+      ;;
+    --clean)
+      CLEAN=1
+      shift
+      ;;
+    *)
+      usage
+      ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+case "$MODE" in
+  list)
+    list_jobs
+    ;;
+  run)
+    [[ -z "$JOB" ]] && usage
+    run_job "$JOB"
+    [[ "$CLEAN" -eq 1 ]] && cleanup_images
+    ;;
+  all)
+    for job in $(list_jobs); do
+      run_job "$job"
+      [[ "$CLEAN" -eq 1 ]] && cleanup_images
+    done
+    ;;
+  *)
+    usage
+    ;;
+esac
+
+echo -e "${GREEN}Done.${RESET}"
diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 3c12af73..6c606b9c 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -137,6 +137,33 @@ The script exceeded the maximum execution time set for the job
 Note, that the built dependencies are cached so after successful build in your
 namespace, the rebuilds should be much faster.
 
+## Running GitLab CI locally (optional helper)
+
+For contributors working on CI, build system changes, or adding new CI jobs, it can be useful to run GitLab CI pipelines locally before pushing.
+
+libssh provides a small helper script based on `gitlab-ci-local` that can:
+
+- List all jobs defined in `.gitlab-ci.yml`
+- Run a specific job or the full pipeline locally
+- Automatically pick up new jobs when they are added to the CI configuration
+- Optionally clean up CI Docker images after execution
+
+### Requirements
+
+- Docker (daemon running)
+- git
+- gitlab-ci-local  
+  https://github.com/firecow/gitlab-ci-local
+
+### Usage
+
+```bash
+./.gitlab-ci/local-ci.sh --list
+./.gitlab-ci/local-ci.sh --run fedora/libressl/x86_64
+./.gitlab-ci/local-ci.sh --all
+./.gitlab-ci/local-ci.sh --run fedora/libressl/x86_64 --clean
+```
+
 # Coding conventions in the libssh tree
 
 ## Quick Start