Updated Version of Saudi ‘Nitaqat’ Program Aims to Provide 340,000 jobs by 2024

The second version of Nitaqat has been launched with a goal to provide 340,000 jobs by 2024. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The second version of Nitaqat has been launched with a goal to provide 340,000 jobs by 2024. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Updated Version of Saudi ‘Nitaqat’ Program Aims to Provide 340,000 jobs by 2024

The second version of Nitaqat has been launched with a goal to provide 340,000 jobs by 2024. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The second version of Nitaqat has been launched with a goal to provide 340,000 jobs by 2024. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The second version of Nitaqat, the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development’s Saudization program, has been launched with a goal to provide 340,000 jobs by 2024.

Inaugurating the program, Minister of Labor and Social Development Ahmad al-Rajhi revealed that it aims at developing and increasing the efficiency of the labor market and providing job opportunities to Saudis.

The latest version of the Nitaqat program boasts three new features.

The first is a localization plan with a clear and transparent vision for the next three years, with the aim of increasing the organizational stability of private sector institutions.

The second part of the updated program will use a linear formula that is properly associated with the number of employees at an institution, instead of current localization rates that rely on classifying institutions into certain and fixed sizes.

The third update simplifies the design of the program and improves the client experience by merging activities with similar characteristics into 32 choices instead of 85.

Nitaqat was launched in 2011 to encourage the localization of jobs and set a minimum wage for Saudis in the private sector. The program’s first step was increasing the minimum wage to SAR3,000 ($800).

It was later raised to SAR4,000 ($1,000) during the beginning of the second quarter of this year.



Saudi Energy Minister: Two Billion People Worldwide Suffer from Energy Shortages

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman (OPEC website) 
Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman (OPEC website) 
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Saudi Energy Minister: Two Billion People Worldwide Suffer from Energy Shortages

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman (OPEC website) 
Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman (OPEC website) 

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman has warned that the global energy transition must not come at the expense of economic growth and the cost of living. He highlighted that nearly two billion people around the world are currently facing energy shortages.

Speaking at the opening session of the 9th OPEC International Seminar in Vienna, the minister stressed that the path toward energy transition must be realistic and practical. He emphasized that this shift should not be viewed as a threat to oil producers, but rather as an opportunity for technological innovation.

Despite the growing use of renewable, nuclear, and hydrogen energy sources, Prince Abdulaziz maintained that oil and gas will remain essential and irreplaceable components of the global energy mix. He welcomed the fact that an increasing number of countries are adopting a more pragmatic view of the transition.

Also speaking at the seminar, UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei said on Wednesday that oil markets have been able to absorb OPEC+ production increases without a rise in inventories, indicating that global demand still requires more crude.

Al Mazrouei explained that the group is not concerned about oversupply and has seen no significant stockpile build-up, even after recent production hikes.

OPEC+, which supplies around half of the world’s oil, has been cutting production for several years to support market stability. However, the group recently began easing these cuts in response to rising global demand, particularly during the summer.

OPEC+ began unwinding its 2.17 million barrel-per-day production cut in April, increasing output by 138,000 barrels per day. That was followed by monthly hikes of 411,000 barrels per day in May, June, and July. On Saturday, the group approved a further increase of 548,000 barrels per day for August.

Al Mazrouei pointed out that the absence of a significant buildup in inventories despite these steady increases suggests that the market needed those barrels.

He added that stability - not just price - should be the focus, stressing that short-term thinking based solely on price is insufficient. He noted that oil prices must remain attractive enough to draw in new investments, warning that countries with large oil reserves still are not investing at the necessary levels.