RIYADH — Around 8,000 Saudi men and women have been employed in the communications and information technology (CIT) sector since the start of implementing the decision of Saudization in this vital sector in October last year. Speaking to Okaz/Saudi Gazette, sources at the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) said that among the total Saudis hired in this sector, 50 percent of them work in large and giant companies and enterprises. The ministry has set more than 30 professions for Saudization in the CIT sector in a decision issued in October 2020. These jobs included communications engineer, computer engineer, network engineer, software development specialist, network technician, technical support specialist, business analysis specialist and programmer. The localization will be applied to all establishments in the labor market where there are five or more workers. By this, the ministry has targeted to create as many as 9,000 jobs for Saudis in this sector. It has set minimum monthly salary of SR5,000 for technical jobs and SR7,000 for specialized professions. According to the ministry sources, the percentage of Saudi workers who have joined this sector recorded substantial increase of 26 percent after the decision for localization last year. Talaat Hafez, secretary-general of the media and banking awareness committee at Saudi banks, said that the CIT sector is one of the most important sectors, in view of the fast transformation of the world, including Kingdom, into a knowledge-based economy that depends on creativity in the use of information. “The localization of the sector effectively provides jobs and contributes to alleviating unemployment while taking into account of the fact that youth make up around 70 percent of the Saudi society,” he added. The ministry aims to stimulate growth in the CIT sector by creating more jobs for young Saudi men and women professionals. The plan to localize CIT jobs was based on a joint agreement concluded by the ministry in 2019 with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the Human Resources Development Fund (HADAF) and the Council of Saudi Chambers, represented by the National Committee for Information and Communications Technology.