Over 176,000 Saudis employed in past year: Minister

Over the last 12 months, more than 176,000 Saudis found employment through the Nitaqat Mutawar Program, Ahmad Al-Rajhi, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, said during the 13th Social Dialogue Forum.

This development elevated the total number of Saudis employed through the program to 480,000, exceeding the initial target.

There has been a significant increase in the number of Saudis benefiting from targeted Saudization decrees, particularly in engineering professions, Al-Rajhi highlighted. Saudis in engineering roles reached 70,000, a substantial increase from the previous 40,000 before the issuance of the decree, he added.

In accounting professions, the number of Saudis reached 107,000 compared to 39,000 before the decree, and in marketing professions, the number reached 104,000 compared to 35,000 before the decree.

The minister highlighted the launch of the Skills Accelerator and Training Vouchers initiatives, aimed at training over 322,000 employees in the private sector across 126 occupations to develop high, medium, and low-level skills for national cadres.

Al-Rajhi also noted an increase in the compliance rate of private sector facilities with labor system regulations and decrees to 92%, and compliance with Saudization decrees to 98%.

The number of electronically documented employment contracts on the Qiwa platform exceeded five million. Additionally, there was an increase in the rate of amicable settlement of labor disputes to 73%, along with accelerated growth in modern work patterns.