Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) announced on Thursday that the first and second phases of the ‘Updated Nitaqat’ Saudization program were instrumental in raising the number of Saudi citizens working in the private sector to more than 2.23 million.

The ministry stated that the program, which aims to stimulate private sector establishments to localize jobs and ensure the stability of work for citizens in the labor market, achieved positive results since the first year of its launch.

The number of Saudis working in the private sector reached more than 2.1 million by the end of 2022, bringing the number of Saudis who joined the labor market that year alone to over 277000, which is equivalent to 80 percent of the program’s target.

The ministry noted that the program, after launching its second phase in January 2023, aimed to achieve the ministry’s strategic goals to absorb about 35,000 Saudis the labor market during the first quarter of this year, bringing the total number of Saudis working in the private sector to more than 2.23 million citizens. The program has contributed, along with the rest of the ministry’s programs and initiatives, to reduce the unemployment rate to the historic level of 8 percent.

The ministry announced in mid-2021 the launch of the Updated Nitaqat program, and gave all private sector establishments sufficient time to respond to changes and improve their human resources plans to comply with the requirements of the program before it came into force.

The ministry started applying the first phase of the program on all private sector establishments effective from Dec. 1, 2021. This came in line with the localization decisions, and the ministry’s plan in increasing the opportunities for Saudi participation, in addition to strengthening the private sector establishments’ stability.

The updated Nitaqat program is considered as one of the most important pillars and initiatives of the strategic transformation, which aims to improve the performance of the labor market, provide suitable job opportunities, and a secure an attractive work environment for Saudis.

MHRSD said that the program offers many advantages, represented by a clear and transparent localization plan for a period of three years, in order to raise the organizational stability in the private sector.

In conjunction with the launch of the first and second phases of the program, the ministry also supported private sector establishments with a set of incentives and facilities to employ Saudis, the most prominent of which was subsidizing wages in cooperation with the Human Resources Development Fund (HADAF) and activating instant account for employing Saudis in all establishments.