Marzouq Bin Tanbak
THIRTY universities and more than 30 specialized colleges will celebrate the graduation of thousands of students who will enter the job market and experience the difficulties of life.
These young graduates have the right to have suitable jobs corresponding with their professional qualifications and degrees. They will be joined by thousands of foreign scholarship students who have completed their higher studies at reputable international universities.
The whole Kingdom looks forward to these graduates with great hopes and aspirations that they would make remarkable contributions to accelerate its growth.
There is a big responsibility on the part of government to provide suitable jobs to these graduates, who are likely to face difficulties to get employed in the areas of their specialization.
Not only the newly graduated young Saudi men and women are seeking jobs but also thousands of others who could not continue their education before or after reaching the secondary level due to family situations. Many graduates of previous years are also still seeking jobs.
The unemployment problem among young Saudi men and women is likely to become more complicated in the coming years. Many countries in the world face difficulty to provide jobs for their youth; although they give priority to solve the unemployment issue to help their citizens lead a decent life.
Providing jobs to citizens is not a charity but a responsibility. Government departments and officials must find a solution for the unemployment problem of citizens at any cost. Traditional administrations of public and private sectors will not be able to find employment for this huge army of graduates like before as they have reached the saturation level.
What is the solution?
Let’s think quietly about possibilities at both public and private sectors. Ours is the only country where half of the population is foreign workers who have come from different parts of the world. Expatriates are not worried about jobs. How can we give jobs to foreigners while ignoring Saudi jobseekers?
We can also find that the existing rules and regulations have contributed to the unemployment crisis. There are certain laws that obstruct free flow of work and prevent flexibility needed by entrepreneurs. The government should encourage individual initiatives of citizens to open enterprises providing them with necessary support and incentives.
In order for citizens to get jobs and create jobs for others we have to provide greater freedom for their small business ventures. Nobody should be banned from practicing any legal jobs or business activity. Women, who account for more than half of the population, should be allowed to work. We should not put unnecessary restrictions on them and discourage them by putting difficult conditions. They face problems from the Labor Ministry on the one hand and from employers on the other.
Any move to block the work of women would undoubtedly waste their energy and capabilities. Women can excel in many areas as women are contributing more than what their male counterparts do. We should also open opportunities before our young men and women removing all obstacles facing their activities. We have to provide financial and technical support to their small ventures.
People should be encouraged to open small and medium enterprises to boost economy and create jobs. This will make citizens more productive. We should reorganize the tourism sector to accommodate more jobseekers. The government should extend all support to those who want to invest in the tourism sector to un-tap huge opportunities in this nascent industry.
Our negligence in developing the tourism sector has resulted in blocking an important source of revenue and employment, especially in the Hijaz region where religious tourism thrives. Unfortunately there are still some people who raise the wand against those who engage in various tourism-related activities, especially at resorts that attract a large number of tourists and foreign pilgrims.
