Unemployment rate among Saudis nears Vision 2030 target

Achievements at 2025-end

Unemployment

Unemployment among Saudis declines to 7%, reaching the 2030 target

No. of Facilities

The number of SMEs has quadrupled since 2016 to exceed 1.7 mln, employing nearly 9 mln Saudis

SME Employees

SMEs employed more than 8.8 mln

Saudization Rate

More than 800,000 Saudis joined the private sector from 2020-2025

Human Resources Support Systems

More than 2.17 mln beneficiaries from Hadaf

Saudi Women Empowering

Women in middle and senior management hit 43.9%

Year

Unemployment Rate

2016

12.3%

2017

12.8%

2018

12.7%

2019

12.0%

2020

12.6%

2021

11.5%

2022

8.2%

2023

7.8%

2024

7.0%

2025

7.2%

Year

Unemployment Rate

No. of Saudis employed

Up from 1.7 mln in 2020 to 2.6 mln in 2025

Newly Employed (2025)

212,000 Saudis

Flexible Work Contracts

726,800

Remote Work Contracts

339,100

Freelance Work

More than 1.7 mln active freelancers

Support Systems

Over Sar 8.2 bln allocated for Hadaf

Hadaf Beneficiaries

Over 2.17 mln

Saudi Citizens who Entered the Job Market

Over 222,000

Empowering Saudi Women

43.9% women in middle and senior management

Women’s Leadership Training

Over 1,700

Commute Support Programs

Over 370,000 beneficiaries

Qurrah Program (Child Care)

Over 52,000 beneficiaries

Parallel Training Initiative

Over 121,000 beneficiaries

Training Campaign (Waad)

More than 2.8 mln participants

Doroob Program

Over 999,000 active beneficiaries in 2025