The Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) is implementing 24 active agreements to support employment-related training in high-growth sectors, with a combined value of more than 1.5 billion riyals ($400 million), a source within the Fund told Asharq Al-Awsat.
The entity has concluded important partnerships with major national projects and companies, and is seeking to keep pace with the unprecedented economic movement and the prosperity of the labor market, by forging agreements with promising sectors, such as: tourism, entertainment, transportation, logistics services, manufacturing, and cyber-security, in addition to developing training, qualification, and empowerment programs.
The source pointed to the Fund’s keenness to develop the skills and capabilities of the Saudi youth, raise the level of their participation in the labor market, and stimulate the private sector to contribute to the nationalization goals, in addition to strengthening partnerships with the relevant authorities in training, employing and empowering national cadres.
According to the well-informed source, the HRDF contributed, since the beginning of 2023 until the end of October, to supporting the employment of about 330,000 male and female citizens in private sector establishments. He added that the total spending on training, employment and empowerment support programs during the same period amounted to about SAR 7.5 billion, benefiting about 1.78 million Saudi citizens.
The source also told Asharq Al-Awsat that around 104,000 establishments operating in all vital sectors in the Kingdom have benefited from the Fund’s programs.
The Human Resources Development Fund has launched a new strategy in early 2023, targeting three main goals: enhancing the development of national human capital to meet evolving labor market requirements, improving the alignment of workforce supply and demand, and promoting sustainable employment in the private sector.
“We have reached a package of 8 developed and focused programs, which include a number of products, respond to labor market changes and improve the beneficiary’s experience, as well as cover all aspects of the Fund’s interventions, which consist of providing guidance, training, and enabling job opportunities,” the source noted.
The Unified National Employment Platform (Jadarat), which is managed and supervised by the HRDF, informs job seekers of opportunities available in the public and private sectors.
The Fund has developed its strategy by working with various stakeholders, such as the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, the Human Resources System, the Human Capacity Development Program and the Labor Market Strategy.
