By:
Ghaith Albahr: CEO of INDICATORS
Anas Attar Sabbagh: Research officer in INDICATORS

UNEMPLOYMENT IN SAUDI ARABIA
The unemployment percentage has reached its lowest in 2019 compared to the previous years, which indicates the economic recovery in Saudi Arabia due to the efforts of the government exerted in the programs of the Saudi Vision 2030

In 2020, there was a noticeable increase in the unemployment rate due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic

In the first half of 2021, we notice that there was a noticeable decrease in the unemployment rate among Saudis, as the unemployment rate reached its lowest since 2017, and the recent data shows a recovery from the repercussions of COVID-19 on the economic activity in the country and confirms the ability of the Saudi economy to accommodate thousands of job seekers

In view of the above, we notice that the decrease of the unemployment rate was faster among females than among males at the beginning of this year, which shows the role of the Saudi government in supporting and empowering Saudi women.
And it also shows that the programs of Saudi Vision 2030 for employing Saudis which aim to reduce the unemployment rate to 7% by 2030 have started to yield results

Distribution of unemployment by age in the second quarter of 2021

There is a noticeable increase in the unemployment rates among the youth between 25 and 29 years old, who supposedly have completed their educational attainment and received education and expertise required for employment, however, the unemployment rate among this age group has almost reached 18%, and it drops with the increase of age, which shows that the unemployment crisis is concentrated among the youth

Unemployment rate by the province in the second quarter of 2021

Source: General Authority for Statistics – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia