Unemployment among Saudis reaches 8.6% in Q3 2023

28/12/2023 Argaam Special
Riyadh city

Riyadh city


The unemployment rate among Saudis rose to 8.6% in the third quarter of 2023, compared to 8.3% in the second quarter of the year, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) labor force survey. 

 

The employment-to-population ratio of Saudis declined to 47.2% on a sequential basis in Q3 2023. 

  

The participation rate of Saudi women increased to 35.9% in the three-month period. 

  

Unemployment for the Kingdom’s working age population reached 5.1% in the third quarter, compared to 4.9% in Q2 2023.

 

The following table illustrates unemployment rates in Saudi Arabia: 

 

Unemployment Rate in Saudi Arabia

Period

Unemployment rate

Unemployment rate among Saudis

Q1 2017

5.8 %

12.7 %

Q2 2017

6.0 %

12.8 %

Q3 2017

5.8 %

12.8 %

Q4 2017

6.0 %

12.8 %

Q1 2018

6.1 %

12.9 %

Q2 2018

6.0 %

 12.9%

Q3 2018

6.0 %

 12.8%

Q4 2018

6.0 %

12.7%

Q1 2019

5.7 %

12.5 %

Q2 2019

5.6 %

12.3 %

Q3 2019

5.5 %

12.0 %

Q4 2019

5.7 %

12.0 %

Q1 2020

5.7 %

11.8 %

Q2 2020

9.0 %

15.4 %

Q3 2020

8.5 %

14.9 %

Q4 2020

7.4 %

12.6 %

Q1 2021

6.5 %

11.7 %

Q2 2021

6.6 %

11.3 %

Q3 2021

6.6 %

11.3 %

Q4 2021

6.9 %

11.0 %

Q1 2022

6.0 %

10.1 %

Q2 2022

5.8 %

9.7 %

Q3 2022

5.8 %

9.9 %

Q4 2022

4.8 %

8.0 %

Q1 2023

5.1 %

8.5 %

Q2 2023

4.9 %

8.3 %

Q3 2023

5.1 %

8.6 %

 

 

Saudis accounted for 52% and 47.3% of the labor force in the public and private sectors, respectively. Non-Saudis employed in the private sector represented 70.1% of total labor force. 

 

Employees by Nationality and Sector in Saudi Arabia

Sector

Saudis

Non-Saudis

Total

Public Sector

52 %

3.6%

27.1 %

Private Sector

47.3 %

70.1 %

59.01%

Other Sectors

0.3 %

26.1 %

13.6 %

Unspecified

0.34%

0.2%

0.3%

Total

100 %

100 %

100 %

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