KSA This Week: Engineering Saudisation hits 30%, unemployment at 3.1%, Riyadh Air takes off
This week from the Kingdom: the engineering Saudisation quota rises to 30% from 30 June, unemployment falls to 3.1%, services exports climb on travel, the water sector pulls in over $16 billion, and PIF-backed Riyadh Air takes flight. Here is what matters for employers and businesses in Saudi Arabia.
Labour & Saudisation
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Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) has raised the Saudisation target for engineering professions to 30%, up from 25%, and lifted the minimum qualifying wage to SR8,000. The decision was issued on 31 December 2025 with a six-month grace period, so enforcement begins on 30 June 2026.
The rule applies to private-sector and non-profit establishments employing five or more engineers across 46 specified roles, from civil and mechanical to industrial and power-generation engineering. Only engineers who hold valid accreditation from the Saudi Council of Engineers count toward the quota. A parallel decision raised the Saudisation target in procurement professions to 70%.
Non-compliant firms risk penalties including frozen work-permit renewals and exclusion from public-sector tenders, while support is available through the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF).
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Source: MEP Middle East
Jobs & Employment
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Saudi Arabia's overall unemployment rate fell to 3.1 percent in the first quarter of 2026, down from 3.5 percent in the previous quarter, as the labour market stayed resilient, the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) reported. Unemployment among Saudi nationals dropped to 6.4 percent, a 0.8-percentage-point fall quarter on quarter.
The rate among Saudi women fell 1.3 points to 9 percent, while the rate among Saudi men eased to 4.9 percent. The Kingdom has already beaten its Vision 2030 target of a 7 percent Saudi unemployment rate, well ahead of schedule.
Notably, 95.8 percent of unemployed Saudis said they would accept a private-sector role, and more than half used the Jadarat national employment platform in their job search.
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Source: Arab News
Economy & Trade
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Saudi Arabia's services exports rose 7.9 percent quarter on quarter to SR71.3 billion ($18.96 billion) in the first three months of 2026, driven by strong travel receipts, GASTAT reported. Travel services were the largest category at SR44.3 billion, about 62 percent of the total, with personal travel making up the bulk.
Transportation services followed at SR10.9 billion, of which air transport accounted for nearly 40 percent. Communications, computer and information services, government services and business services made up most of the rest.
The figures underline the Kingdom's progress in diversifying away from oil under Vision 2030. GASTAT separately confirmed that real GDP grew 3 percent year on year in the first quarter, with both oil and non-oil activities expanding 2.9 percent.
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Source: Arab News
Energy & Water
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Saudi Arabia's water sector has attracted investment exceeding SR60 billion ($16 billion) as the Kingdom widens private-sector participation and strengthens water security, Environment, Water and Agriculture Minister Abdulrahman Al-Fadhli said at the inaugural Saudi Water Week in Jeddah.
Daily desalination capacity has risen from 9 million cubic metres in 2016 to 16 million in 2025. The Saudi Water Partnership Company, the Kingdom's main water offtaker, now manages a privatisation portfolio worth about SR56 billion across 48 water and wastewater projects.
The minister said clearer regulation and expanded partnership models had unlocked the investment, shifting the sector from a focus on raw expansion toward efficiency and financial sustainability. Saudi Water Week also serves as a build-up to the 11th World Water Forum, which Riyadh will host in 2027.
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Source: Arab News
Projects & Real Estate
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Saudi Arabia signed six agreements with Chinese entities and awarded housing projects worth more than SR1.9 billion ($506 million) in Riyadh and Dammam, announced during an official Saudi visit to China from 13 to 16 June.
The Al-Ruba residential project in Riyadh — 2,010 housing units worth about SR875 million — went to China Architectural Construction Corporation, while the Al-Rasha Al-Faisaliah project in Dammam — 2,426 units worth roughly SR1.06 billion — was awarded to China State Construction Engineering Corporation. Together the two schemes deliver more than 4,400 homes.
The wider deals cover investment in construction, modern building technologies, knowledge transfer, human-capital development and support for public-private partnerships, as the Kingdom races to expand housing supply under Vision 2030.
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Source: Arab News
Aviation
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Riyadh Air, the new flag carrier wholly owned by the Public Investment Fund, has begun commercial operations, opening its long-haul network on the Riyadh-London Heathrow route with Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners. It quickly added Jeddah, Dubai and Cairo — the Cairo route launching on 25 June — with Madrid and Manchester to follow.
The airline aims to serve around 100 destinations by 2030 and to turn Riyadh into a global connecting hub, leveraging Saudi Arabia's position between Europe, Africa and Asia. It is a centrepiece of the Kingdom's plan to triple annual air traffic and diversify the economy away from oil.
The launch adds a major new employer to the Saudi aviation market, alongside airport, ground-handling and hospitality expansion across the Kingdom.
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Source: Zawya
Finance & Capital Markets
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Three local industrial companies are preparing initial public offerings on the Saudi stock market, with some targeting a listing by the end of 2026, Al-Eqtisadiah reported. 3P Gulf Group, which makes plastics for aircraft and automotive use and has invested more than SR800 million while exporting to about 40 countries, plans a main-market listing. The Sarudi Factory for Drums is targeting early next year, and Rfufco is exploring a listing on the parallel market, Nomu.
The Capital Market Authority said 33 listing applications were pending at the end of the first quarter of 2026 — 10 on the main market and 23 on Nomu — down from 45 a quarter earlier. The moves reflect a growing trend of Saudi industrial firms using capital markets to finance expansion and strengthen governance.
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Source: Arab News
TASC in Saudi Arabia
Hitting your engineering Saudisation target by 30 June
With the engineering quota now 30%, a SR8,000 minimum wage and mandatory Saudi Council of Engineers accreditation, employers need compliant Saudi hiring, screening and payroll — fast. TASC helps you build a Saudi-ready workforce and stay onside with the latest labour rules.
TASC Outsourcing — People for Tomorrow. Contract staffing, permanent hiring, payroll and EOR across Saudi Arabia.
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