Tuesday, 7 June 2011

Replacing Expats - Zawya

Creating jobs is central to the new Saudi economic strategy. After unleashing a $130-billion investment programme, the Kingdom has now unveiled its accompanying job creation plan with a renewed push for Saudiization. Can it solve Saudi Arabia's unemployment problems, or hurt the economy and drive talent foreign labor away from the country?

Saudiization has been given a new lease of life. Worried about domestic unrest and the political fallout of unemployed Saudis, the Kingdom has recently made a concerted push to embark on an unusually aggressive drive to encourage companies to recruit Saudis and "compete with one another in employing Saudis in order to qualify for the various incentives offered by Labour ministry," according to the minister Adel Fakieh.

The speed and earnestness with which the Kingdom has moved on "Nitaqat" has taken analysts by surprise.

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