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Saudi Arabia: 66,000 new jobs on the way

JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has ordered the creation of 66,000 new jobs in the public sector for graduate teachers as well as for health diploma holders.

Among the new jobs in the education sector, 39,000 are reserved for women and 13,000 for men, said a decree issued by the king approving plans for employment of jobless Saudis.

The official statement pointed out that there are 28,552 jobless health diploma holders. Among them 14,000 have passed the professional classification test of the Saudi Authority for Health Specializations.

Of the 14,000 qualified Saudis, 4,000 will be employed in the Health Ministry , 4,000 others in other government departments and the remaining 6,000 in the private sector within six months.

The remaining 14,552 diploma holders will be asked to continue their education at community colleges or health institutes and will be given a monthly stipend of SR1,000.

After their education, for not more than two years, they would be accommodated in the private sector. Those who could not qualify for the health sector would be given administrative jobs in the private sector and the Labor Ministry should ensure their employment.

The decree urged the Saudi Authority for Health Specializations to review the status of health institutes and close them gradually and the Higher Education Ministry should provide their graduates special programs to enhance the quality of their education. They will also get priority for higher studies under King Abdullah Foreign Scholarship Program, it added.

The detailed Saudization program approved by the king on Saturday also included opening of women sections at all government departments within two months. The plan also includes employment of more women in private institutions.

"Measures should be taken to set a minimum salary for Saudis in the private sector and present that proposal to the Council of Ministers for approval," the decree said.

It also called measures to restrict employment of Saudi women at lingerie shops, within a month.

Other proposals included fixing working hours in the private sector to eight hours daily and limiting weekly working days to five within a month to encourage Saudis to work in private firms.

The decree emphasized the need to establish women-only industries and urged concerned authorities to allocate land for the purpose within a month. Foreign companies licensed by SAGIA should also follow Saudization regulations.

Labor Ministry has been asked to conduct a survey of private sector jobs that can be done by Saudi men and women and the survey should be ready within a month. The government will support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by providing them with soft loans as well as technical and marketing support.

More women should be employed in pharmaceutical companies in the Kingdom by providing them with necessary training, the decree said. Of the 2,472 employees currently working in the sector 1,793 are now non-Saudi. Women should also be appointed in other factories after training.

Saudi teachers working in private school should be given a minimum salary of SR5,000 in addition to SR600 transportation. Fifty percent of the salary will be given by the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) for five years. The decree urged measures to Saudize 39,943 jobs in private schools.

The detailed plan calls for raising the cost of employing non-Saudis by increasing charges for issuing and renewing iqamas to raise money for HRDF. It also called for making foreign workers to undergo a professional qualification test before issuing iqamas. A study will be conducted on jobs that are mostly held by expatriates. Another study will be conducted on jobs required by the market. Specialized institutes will be set up to train Saudi men and women. Government departments carrying out new projects should train Saudis to take up jobs generated by the new projects, within a month.

© Arab News 2011