Jadwa expects further decline in Saudi unemployment in 2023

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Jadwa Investment estimates Saudi Arabia's unemployment rate to decline further to 7.8% in 2023.

The significant decline in unemployment reflects the broad growth witnessed by the Saudi economy, Jadwa said in a report.

"With further growth expected, we expect unemployment rates to continue declining in 2023 and 2024," the report added.

The significant improvement in the labor market during the last few years is associated with the overall healthy growth in the Saudi economy, with the non-oil sector expected to continue growing.

"Looking ahead, we expect more employment opportunities for Saudis as a result of the growth in several sectors," Jadwa said.

It added that the continuous growth in tourism activities around the Kingdom have attracted many Saudi job seekers to work in various venues such as hotels, restaurants, entertainment companies, museums and others.

Intensified localization efforts will support Saudi employment in sectors such as “wholesale and retail”.

During the past three years, female labor force participation saw tremendous improvement, rising from 20% to 36%, reflecting the overall improvement in labor policies, such as expanding childcare and transportation services and new job opportunities provided by the developing sectors such as tourism, which have incentivized more females to join the labor market.

However, there is still more room for improvement in the labor force participation for both genders, especially for females, as the current rate of 36% is still below the G20 average of 50%.

Accordingly, Jadwa expects female participation rate to continue rising in the years ahead.