Speaking to academics, businessmen and media persons who attended a sahour party hosted by Abdul Rahman Fakeeh at his residence in Makkah, Prince Ahmed said the system, which was introduced three years ago, had also led to a crackdown on the number of runaway maids.

He emphasized the need for conducting a study to find out the reasons for maids and other house servants running away from their sponsors.

Prince Ahmed said it was not reasonable to link unemployment among Saudis with the high recruitment rates of foreign workers. “There are about 500,000 unemployed young Saudi men and women and 6.5 million foreign workers in the job market,” he said.

“Even if we employ all those young unemployed Saudis, we’ll have at least six million foreign workers.” He said the late Labor Minister Ghazi Al-Gosaibi, whom he described as a dynamic person, could not find a solution to the recruitment problem.

Prince Ahmed said regional governors have been given permission to approve requests for marriages involving Saudis and foreign men and women.

“The regional governors have the authority to look into such applications,” the prince said. “About 50 percent of applications that come to the ministry are related to exceptional cases as they do not fulfill required regulations and conditions.” In the past, Saudi men needed to be aged at least 30 and women 24 for such marriages, according to the existing law. But Prince Ahmed pointed out the age limits have now been reduced to 25 and 22 respectively.

The minister disclosed plans to implement a number of new projects in Makkah to reduce traffic congestion in the holy city, especially during peak seasons.