RIYADH: Private sector employment in Saudi Arabia reached 11.4 million by the end of June, marking a 1.24 percent increase from April. The National Labor Observatory has released a detailed report on the state of the Kingdom’s labor market, highlighting the robust nature of the private sector and its ability to generate employment opportunities, making it a significant contributor to the national economy. According to the NLO study, the total number of employees in the Kingdom’s private sector has reached 11,409,348, with the number of Saudi nationals standing at 2.34 million – an increase of 16,598 since April. The increase in the Kingdom’s nationals working in private enterprises signifies the effectiveness of government policies aimed at encouraging local employment and reducing unemployment. Of those Saudis working in the private sector, 1.38 million are male and 957,798 are female. In an interview with Arab News before the latest figures were released, Saudi-based economist Talat Hafiz noted that one of the main goals of Saudi Vision 2030 is to reduce the unemployment rate in the Kingdom to 7 percent by 2030 and increase female participation in the labor market to 30 percent. Hafiz added: “Government’s efforts to date are successful in reaching such goals, evidenced by the drop of the unemployment rate of Saudi nationals to 7.7 percent in 2023 from the base rate of 12.3 percent in 2016 and increased female participation in the labor market to 35 percent compared to the original target of 30 percent.” The unemployment rate of females in Saudi Arabia dropped to 15.5 percent in 2023 compared to 33 percent in 2016, according to Hafiz. In order to boost private sector employment numbers in the Kingdom, Saudi Arabia’s Human Resources Development Fund allocated approximately SR8.7 billion ($2.3 billion) in 2023 and an additional SR2.13 billion in the first quarter of this year to fund training, counseling, and empowerment programs. These efforts are also aimed at strengthening private sector enterprises and ensuring sustained job stability. In the first quarter alone, the fund helped nearly 74,000 Saudi nationals get jobs, while also providing advisory, training, and empowerment services to over 1.1 million individuals. Furthermore, the organization extended its services to more than 72,000 private sector firms across various industries within Saudi Arabia. Approximately 88 percent of these businesses were categorized as small and medium-sized enterprises.