RIYADH — Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Eng. Ahmed Al-Rajhi said that the total number of Saudi men and women who have been employed during the first five months of 2021 crossed the figures 420,000. The number of new entrants to the labor market who had not been previously working reached more than 200,000 male and female citizens, he said while noting that the rate of women's participation in the labor market reached 35 percent while the target during 2025 was 30 percent. Al-Rajhi said that the ministry seeks to achieve the aspirations and directives of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman in making the Saudi labor market one of the best labor markets in the world. According to the minister, the ministry's plan for this year aims to make available more than 203,000 jobs. "More than 13,000 engineers have benefited from the decision to localize engineering professions, and more than 84 percent of those entering the labor market are Saudi engineers. More than 4,281 male and female pharmacists have benefited from the decision to localize the pharmacy professions, and over 15,000 male and female accountants have benefited from the decision to nationalize the accounting professions," he said. The minister noted that the Kingdom has succeeded in confronting the coronavirus pandemic and protecting jobs, as the number of Saudi men and women entering the labor market is higher than what it was before the pandemic. "Due to our proximity to the labor market we witness many success stories of our sons and daughters in the private sector and their effective contribution in upgrading its activities and sectors. Hence we believe that we have national human cadres with the ability and aspiration. "There is no doubt that their economic contribution is a national wealth that must be activated, and we will work on enabling the supervisory government agencies to manage Saudization for the activities and sectors they supervise in order to expand the Saudization programs to raise the level of contribution of Saudi men and women in all professions, activities and sectors," he pointed out. Phases of implementing Saudization in 6 sectors Al-Rajhi has unveiled details of implementation of Saudization in six major sectors. Saudization of these sectors aimed to create over 40,000 jobs. As for the legal consultancy sector, the decision will be implemented in two phases; the first phase by 50 percent and the second phase by 70 percent. It targets the following professions: legal advisor in public and private systems; contract specialist and legal affairs clerk. This sector expected to generate more than 5,000 job opportunities with a minimum salary of SR5,500. As for the localization of real estate activities and professions, it will be 7 percent. Saudization in the real estate brokerage, the real estate market, the owners' union, sustainable construction and real estate control will be 100 percent, and that aims to provide more than 11,000 jobs. With regard to driving schools, the percentage of Saudization will be 100 percent, and these include the following activities: Vehicle driving instructor; educational aid specialist; vehicle traffic controller, and industrial professional trainer. It will provide more than 8,000 job opportunities with a minimum salary of SR5,000 for a driving instructor. In the cinema sector, 100 percent of Saudization will be carried out, targeting supervisory professions, retail sales, ticket sales, beverages and food. This sector expected to create more than 3,000 job opportunities. With regard to customs clearance activities, Saudization rate will be 70 percent. In the following positions, there will be 100 percent Saudization: general manager, government relations official, translator, customs broker, customs agent, and customs clearance broker. It will generate more than 2,000 jobs with a minimum salary of SR5,000. As for technical and engineering professions, 25 percent of all private sector establishments that employ five or more workers in the targeted professions will be localized, provided that technicians obtain professional accreditation from the Saudi Council of Engineers. It will provide 12,000 job opportunities with a minimum salary of SR5,000. Meanwhile, Saad Al Hammad, spokesman of the ministry, said that the decision to Saudize engineering professions targeted 7,000 job opportunities. However, 13,463 citizens were employed so that the ministry achieved 192 percent in achieving the goals of the Saudization program. Al-Hammad said that Saudization of accounting professions achieved the goal by 161 percent with hiring of 15,035 citizens while the targeted job opportunities were 9,500. Saudization of tourist accommodation sector achieved 129 percent of the localization rates; with creation of 9,323 jobs for citizens as the targeted jobs were 7,200. Al Hammad added that the goal was also achieved to localize the outlets of 21 sales activities by 100 percent with creating a total of 30,000 jobs. It is noteworthy that since the beginning of this year, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) had issued several decisions with regard to Saudization of more sectors, and that included Saudization of malls, restaurants and cafes, central catering markets, and educational professions in the private sector. The ministry issued Saudization decisions to support establishments and jobseekers in line with the organized mechanisms and a specific period of time, and target specific professions in vital sectors, such as dentistry, pharmacy, engineering, and accounting. It includes targeted specific jobs, leadership and supervisory jobs, sustainable jobs with growth and development, and jobs for which high level technical skills are required.
