Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Tourism recently revealed that the localization rates for jobs in the tourism sector in Makkah reached 40 percent. The ministry also noted that the number of Saudi workers in activities licensed by the Ministry of Tourism recorded an increase of up to 14 percent.
Notably, the total number of workers in hospitality facilities and travel agencies has exceeded 5,000 so far this year.
The localization rates of jobs in Makkah’s hospitality facilities exceeded 38 percent year-on-year in 2023. In addition, the ministry noted that the number of Saudi women working in the sector saw a 37 percent increase in 2024.
As Saudi Arabia moves forward with its economic diversification plans, it seeks to raise the contribution of Saudi citizens to the economy. In particular, the Ministry of Tourism aims to empower both Saudi male and female workers in the tourism sector and improve the quality of services the sector provides to visitors and pilgrims by promoting the localization of jobs.
In addition, the ministry is actively working with the younger generation, which is fluent in international languages including English, to raise the quality of its services and cater to the growing number of visitors and pilgrims, particularly during the Haj season.
Read: Saudi Arabia’s tourism sector contributing record $118.4 billion to GDP: Report
The Ministry of Tourism has also actively inked agreements with local and international companies in addition to local governing bodies to promote the localization of jobs in Saudi Arabia’s tourism sector. This further aligns with the Kingdom’s Saudization goals, which support progress and development under the Saudi Vision 2023.
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