MINISTER of Labor and Social Development Dr. Ali bin Nasser Al-Ghafis emphasized that the programs and initiatives under the National Transformation Program (NTP) 2020 will improve and generate job opportunities in the Kingdom, face future challenges of work in light of fast-paced changes and ensure decent work for Saudi citizens, guaranteeing a bright future as per the Saudi Vision 2030. His remarks were made during the inauguration of the G20 meetings of labor and employment ministers held recently at Bad Neuenahr, Germany. Speaking at the first session titled ‘The Future of Work', Dr. Al-Ghafis clarified the Kingdom works today for the sake of tomorrow, its future challenges and its available opportunities that advance both Saudis and the country, giving special reference to the German government's priority that focuses on two pillars as part of the ministerial meetings' agenda: resiliency and sustainability. The minister, who headed the Saudi delegation to the German G20 ministerial meetings, said "The Kingdom's Vision 2030 is perceptive as the current programs are designed to serve tomorrow and bear the responsibility to our lives, to our work and to our society, as well as pushing forward the economy and boosting growth." Al-Ghafis said: "We benefit from what Allah has bestowed upon us given our geographic location, besides an attractive work environment that has employed millions of Saudi nationals and attracted competent expatriates to invest and work." He stressed the importance to use technology and empower the workforce in the Kingdom that are armed with future skillsets to raise their productivity, which ensures proper and quality job opportunities for all sons and daughters in the country. Dr. Al-Ghafis revealed that a total of 24 government entities, including his ministry, are taking part in the NTP which is one of the executive programs aiming to achieve the objectives of the Saudi Vision 2030. He added these bodies are working together to realize the ambitious objectives of the NTP within five years, which will be implemented by 2020. At the labor and employment ministers' meetings, Dr. Al-Ghafis said: "The NTP contains a number of strategic objectives striving to develop the future of work, diversify job opportunities in the private sector and encourage the non-profit sector. Meanwhile, it includes the eight objective that concerns with providing decent work for Saudi citizens, which is expected to yield 1.2 job opportunities in the private sector." The Saudi labor minister clarified the MLSD's eight-pillar strategy contain two crucial pillars that focus on employment sustainability and protection and integration of Saudi and foreign workforce, youth, women and persons with disabilities. Dr. Al-Ghafis pointed out a challenge that the Kingdom faces and also the G20 member states encounter, but they vary in details and effects, including the Kingdom's vast land, the geographical discrepancies among its regions along with differences in the economic growth of these regions. These factors lead to fluctuating employment rates in the regions, particularly in rural ones. Speaking to the member states, the Saudi labor minister emphasized the Kingdom's keenness to sustain employment through empowering entrepreneurs and providing attractive and productive job opportunities for women with their access to a proper work environment. He added, "It will take into account the competitive advantages of the 13 regions and conduct feasibility studies in order to determine the ‘promising sectors' that can exist in these regions and then establish special points inside these regions to be responsible for offering logistic, tourism, industrial and financial services, for instance." He further clarified that these regions will be subject to ad-hoc commercial regulations that work to enhance investment and employment opportunities and diversification of government income sources. He mentioned the ministry recently unveiled the telework initiative aiming to provide jobs in low-growth regions to Saudi citizens, in particular ladies and persons with disabilities without the need to commute to work, highlighting above 4,200 individuals including 3,300 women have benefited from this initiative last year. Dr. Al-Ghafis shed light on the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises, which are the crucial drivers of economic growth. He added they shape the future of work due to their abilities to generate great numbers of jobs, support innovation and enhance exports, making the Kingdom's government seek to support entrepreneurship, privatization and search for investments in new industries. During the session, Dr. Al-Ghafis said: "The Kingdom formed a general authority for small and medium-sized enterprises in order to be a single entity that regulates, develops and guides the enterprises as well as contributing to their growth." Additionally, the Saudi government continues to encourage young businessmen and women through enacting better regulations and rules, allowing them to obtain leadership certificates and funds, as well as forming more international partnerships and allowing local companies to access more government bids, added Dr. Al-Ghafis. The minister continued that these ambitious aspirations require a comprehensive, strategic planning to determine what working areas need to undergo analysis of their future supply and demand and close gaps through education, training, up-skilling and mobility of laborers between sectors and regions, ensuring harmonization between the education and training system and the requirements of labor market. Dr. Al-Ghafis stressed the Kingdom's undivided attention to aligning the current and future needs of market with education through addressing a number of initiatives that several government sectors take part in, including the national labor gateway (NLG) that currently detect any change in the market's needs. The initiatives also include establishment of national sectoral councils that monitor any market change in the sector and define its needed skills and knowledge compared to other sectors, in addition to offering government incentives and logistics support for workers and investors in the sector in order to boost work and investments, which tips the balance of sustainable growth. With continuing the march, the minister mentioned the Kingdom issued this month 10 programs to achieve the Saudi Vision 2030 and offered detailed description for the governance model, including serving pilgrims, improving lifestyle, strengthening national identity, increasing national partnership, general investment fund, strategic partnership, developing national industries and logistic services, housing, developing financial sector and specialization. He said: "Despite the multiple initiatives at the national level, they are in harmony with the comprehensive strategy that ensures full coordination among them and facilitate their implementation as per the Saudi Vision 2030." The G20 adopted the emblem of ‘Toward A Compressive Future: A World of Work' focusing on a number of topics, such as enhancing labor policies, increasing percentage of woman in the workforce, generating quality jobs and among others. The high-ranking G20 labor and employment ministers were engaged at multiple sessions to discuss sustainable development in global supply chains in terms of wages and occupational safety and health (OSH). Additionally, they addressed labor rights and principle, highlighting the future of work, in particular youth employment, social dialogue and social partnership.
