Unemployment is a major social and economic problem that can cause several negative effects to any society any place around the world. It needs drastic solutions and innovative approaches to handle it. Ignoring it will not make it go away, Al-Sharq daily reported. Although the Ministry of Labor has exerted enormous efforts to reduce the unemployment rate and eventually eradicate the problem, it has not succeeded. Unemployment rates continue to rise, especially among young men and women who account for 60 percent of the Saudi population.
Joining forces Princess Basmah Bint Saud Bin Abdulaziz, a businesswoman and a writer, called for mobilizing local resources and uniting the efforts of public and private sectors to overcome this menace. She said economic experts, businessmen, and businesswomen should be supported and given a chance to participate in solving the unemployment problem. National committees should be formed in conjunction with the Ministry of Labor to create job opportunities for Saudi young men and women, Princess Basmah said. “Businessmen can come up with solutions through developing plans that regulate the market and qualify the Saudi workforce all over the country. I've suggested this before and I'll work on putting it into action in the future in order to contribute to solving the unemployment problem,” Princess Basmah added.
Innovative approach
Dr. Abdulrahman Hayjan, member of the Shoura Council, said this problem should be dealt with in a different way as the Kingdom is not an impoverished country that is facing budget problems. He said the type and nature of the problem is different to that exist in other countries. “Our labor market needs to be regulated in a way that ends this problem permanently. The number of expatriate workers in our market makes one wonder whether we have a real unemployment problem like other countries or the problem lies in the fact that we have plenty of jobs but our youth think they aren't appropriate for them in terms of nature of work and salary,” Hayjan said.
Mega companies Dr. Idrees Abu Hashim, economic analyst, suggested building more technical institutes in the country and enrolling male and female students who have not been lucky to join the university. Technical skills are important and should be taught to middle as well as high school students, he said. “It's a regrettable thing that there is no form of any coordination among private as well as public sectors and universities all over the Kingdom to identify the market needs for human resources,” he noted. The Kingdom should have a Saudi workforce that is able to compete with expatriate workers in trades such as carpentry, plumbing and blacksmithery, Abu Hashim said. “The Ministry of Labor should force big companies and factories to offer internship or apprenticeship opportunities for students and train them on necessary skills and also pay them salaries. Only by doing so will the companies help students be prepared for the labor market and overcome any obstacles that might face them. Total dependency Dr. Miqbel Al-Sulami, economic expert, said the problem of the Saudi market is two-fold. First, most Saudis rely on the government sector to create jobs for them while the private sector does not play any role in that. “The problem is obvious and the results could be catastrophic in the future if the private sector doesn't start offering more opportunities for Saudis,” he explained. Second, the retail sector, the largest in the market, has not been tapped or utilized. This sector can create thousands and thousands of job opportunities for Saudi young men and women. It continues to be controlled by expatriate workers who can work long hours for low salaries, according to Al-Sulami.
