JEDDAH, 13 February 2006 — The Labor Ministry is weighing prospects of reducing the Saudization rate for some sectors as they were unable to meet their targets due to lack of talented Saudi workers required for their projects.
“The ministry has set up a panel to study the reasons for the failure of some companies to meet their Saudization targets and the prospect of reducing the Saudization rate of some sectors,” an informed source said yesterday.
Commercial and industrial firms have been asked to Saudize at least 30 percent of their jobs while contractors and operation and maintenance firms should have 10 percent Saudization, Al-Watan Arabic daily reported quoting the unnamed source.
According to Ahmed Al-Zamil, deputy minister for labor affairs, the ministry has found jobs for 74,000 young Saudis in the private sector during the past few months after holding a nationwide campaign to register job-seekers.
He said there are 1,768 job vacancies in the travel and tourism sector in Makkah and Riyadh regions and urged qualified Saudis to apply for them. He commended Saudi businessmen for providing on-the-job training to young Saudi men and women.
Green Light for Recruitment
The Labor Ministry has given industrial firms, which have met Saudization conditions, permission to recruit skilled Indian workers, Al-Watan Arabic daily reported quoting high-level sources.
The ministry took the decision in response to requests by many industrial establishments that required experienced professionals. Saudi chambers of commerce and industry also pressed for recruitment from India.
Private companies have to achieve 30 percent Saudization to qualify for recruitment from India, the paper said.
Many private companies, especially banks, Saudi Aramco, Saudi Electricity Company and Saudi Telecom have made remarkable strides in their Saudization drive with some of them exceeding the 30 percent target.
The ministry’s decision comes after many Indian companies and businessmen received licenses from the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority to investment in the Kingdom. Some investors had complained that they were not having adequate skilled workers to carry out their projects.
The recent visit by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to India, the first by a Saudi king in 50 years, have taken bilateral relations to new heights.
More than 1.6 million Indians work and live in the Kingdom.
Missing Indians
The number of Indian expatriates who went missing in the Kingdom stood at 84 last year, down from 109 in 2004, the Indian Embassy said yesterday.
However, an embassy spokesman clarified that the reduced number last year does not necessarily indicate an improvement in the situation. “Sometimes the friends or relatives of those missing notify the embassy after a long time. At other times, the person reported missing returns to India without informing us,” Murlidharan, welfare wing attaché at the Indian Embassy, told Arab News.
Indians from the southern Indian state of Kerala, with a tally of 33, topped the list of those reported missing. Other regions representing on the list were: Tamil Nadu (17), Andhra Pradesh (12), Rajasthan (7), Maharashtra (6), UP (4), Karnataka (3) and Gujarat (2).
The embassy spokesman said the number of women who went missing was only 10 who included nurses and housemaids.
The official appealed to the non-resident Indians to help in the investigation process by informing the embassy as soon as the missing case comes to light.
Anyone who reports missing persons to the Indian Embassy or consulates should provide as many details of the missing person as possible and other relevant information.
