DUBAI: The number of Saudi nationals employed under the Nitaqat or Saudization program has reached about 1.8 million, from the 800,000 Saudis when it was launched in 2011.
Nitaqat is a nationalization scheme implemented, which requires Saudi companies to fill up their workforce to certain levels with Saudi nationals to increase their employment in the private sector.
Saad Al-Hammad, spokesman of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development told local media outlets that 1.6 million establishments in the Saudi employment market are registered under the program.
He said the ministry launched the new version of the ‘Updated Nitaqat” Saudization program, which is an important part of the initiatives aimed at integrating economic classifications to 32 activities instead of 85 activities.
The new version, he added, will simplify and bring more clarity in the program. Also, under the new version, 340,000 more jobs are expected to be created by 2024.
The minimum wage level, first set at SR3,000, was increased to SR4,000 at the beginning of the second quarter of 2021.