Campaign to boost Saudization

Ibrahim Al-Muaiqel, general director of the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF), said Sunday that a number of initiatives will be launched soon to support Saudi youth in the local job market. The programs will be implemented in coordination with government bodies and the private sector.
In his speech at the inauguration of the Jeddah Human Resources Forum 2013 here, Al-Muaiqel said: “We will initiate a program called the National Employment System that will create and maintain a database for Saudis who are enrolled in the public and private sectors and are looking for jobs.
The program aims to create a labor market for Saudis who need to be hired according to their qualifications.”
He said that there are also a number of Saudization programs under way which will provide on-the-job-training that will help Saudis gain hands-on experience in private companies. This program will be implemented under the supervision of the HRDF which will coordinate with private companies. The HRDF will also pay transportation costs to the enrolled Saudis who need to travel to other cities for job interviews.
Al-Muaiqel stated that Saudis are at a disadvantage when it comes to salaries. Expatriates are willing to work for much less and are therefore more in demand by companies. That said, at least 76 percent of Saudi women offered to work in the public education sector which does not pay much.
But many qualified Saudi women can’t work owing to social restrictions.
Talaat Hafez, secretary-general of the Media and Banking Awareness Committee of Saudi Banks, told Arab News on the sidelines of the forum: “The local labor market will take time to organize itself and to replace the expat workers who have left the Kingdom with Saudis.”
Hafez, who presided over the second session on the first day of the forum added: “There will a vacuum in the local labor market because of the inspection campaign. However, there are many Saudis who are qualified enough to be hired by private companies and many firms will be obliged to hire them.”