Government | Tuesday 17 November, 2015 4:15 am |

Saudi Arabia has been one of the fastest growing G-20 countries in recent years and the leading state in the Middle East and North Africa. In fact, Saudi Arabia’s membership of the G-20 reflects the growing global stature and economic importance of the Kingdom and the broader GCC region. Saudi Arabia holds around 25 percent of the total Arab GDP. The Kingdom now holds a special place on the world economic stage. 

Saudi growth strategy is expected to contribute to the G-20 objectives of strong, sustainable and balanced growth. Saudi Arabia’s growth strategy is based on key growth-generating factors such as investment, employment, trade, competition and competitiveness.
Broad-based investment will contribute largely to the diversification of the economy and generate more job opportunities. Employment generation is expected to raise the standard of living and help improve the quality of life of all Saudis. Foreign trade, competition and competitiveness are expected to increase the contribution of the private sector and improve its productivity.

Saudi Arabia is contributing to the global and G-20 economic growth and stability by continuing the adoption of positive and balanced policies to play its systemic and stabilizing role in the global oil market.
Also, Saudi Arabia provides more investment opportunities in Saudi Arabia for the G-20 countries and profitable opportunities for G-20 investors to take advantage of the free zones planned to be established in Saudi Arabia.

The agenda of the G-20 summit that began Sunday in the Turkish city of Antalya has 10 major topics including investment, employment, trade, financial system, construction, international finance, taxes, combating corruption, development, energy and climate change. The Kingdom has launched a number of initiatives that figure on the G-20 summit agenda. The Council of Ministers recently approved the establishment of a number of commissions for small enterprises, for job creation, for development and improving investment environment. It also approved a national plan to reduce carbon emissions.

The transformation of the Saudi Arabian economy is one of the success stories of the past few decades. The path of its development has been a particularly unique one, which requires rigorous analysis to understand the current situation and the way forward to continue its prosperity.
The factors unique to the Saudi labor market situation have informed the policies contained in this employment plan, where a road map has been laid out to tackle key imbalances in the economy preventing the workforce from reaching its full potential.

Central to the employment plan is the objective of ensuring that Saudi workers have access to employment opportunities while maintaining Saudi Arabia as a welcoming place for all workers regardless of nationality.
Though the public sector is currently providing most employment opportunities for Saudi nationals, the employment plan lays out a map for, on the one hand, developing the private sector as an attractive place to work and, on the other hand, developing Saudi workers as an attractive demographic to hire.
SMEs play a critical role in job creation, particularly in the less populous of Saudi Arabia's 13 regions, where large companies may be hindered by smaller potential markets. Consequently, the Ministry of Labor provides various support programs to new businesses and entrepreneurs. An example of this is the Entrepreneurship Development Program.

The program aims at up skilling entrepreneurs to support the development of SMEs in Saudi Arabia. It supports those intending to start their own business and to create employment in a three-week program. The primary focus is on helping business owners develop key business management and planning skills before starting their new business. The core elements of the program are: feasibility study, financials and accounting, marketing, legislation, franchising and business planning as hard skills. In addition to this, the development of a personal skill set is a key element.