Saudization rate in local tourism sector hits 26%: official

Ministry of Tourism Logo

The number of Saudis working in the local tourism sector amounted to almost 189,000, accounting for 26% of the 726,000 employees working in the sector, Al Eqtisadiah newspaper reported, citing Bandar Al-Safeer, general manager of nationalization and training at the Ministry of Tourism.

The ministry set 15 programs for localizing jobs in the sector, including six programs for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Al-Safeer said, noting that some of these programs were launched and the other are still being prepared.

He also said the ministry aims to raise the gross domestic product (GDP) of the tourism sector to 5.3% by 2022 and almost 10% by 2030.

In addition, the ministry targets to increase the number of inbound visits to 32.5 million by 2022 and 43 million by 2030 and the number of outbound visits to 29.5 million and 55 million by 2022 and 2030, respectively, Al-Safeer noted.