Northern Chamber hosts the General Manager of HRDF in an open meeting
Yesterday, the Northern Chamber hosted an open meeting that brought together businessmen and businesswomen from the region with the General Manager of the Human Resources Development Fund, Turki bin Abdullah Al-Jawini, in the presence of the Chairman of the Northern Chamber, Ahmed Al-Suwailem, at the Chamber's headquarters.
During the meeting, Al-Jawini discussed the Fund's new strategy, along with indicators and results related to the region, emphasizing the importance of strengthening partnerships with the private sector. He highlighted the necessity of focusing efforts on enhancing the skills of national human resources, providing them with knowledge, qualifications, and aligning them with the needs of the labor market and jobs. He underscored adopting an approach that places achieved results for beneficiaries at the core of designing and delivering services and initiatives.
The General Manager of the Human Resources Development Fund explained that product and services support had been redesigned according to the Fund's strategy, focusing on "empowerment, training, and guidance" to meet market needs and supply qualified and trained national cadres to contribute to the development and enrichment of the national economy. He emphasized the importance of working hand in hand with the private sector to understand establishments' job opportunities through genuine partnerships to provide sustainable jobs for the country's sons and daughters, enhancing their skills and competitiveness in the market.
The meeting also reviewed many achievements and results of the Fund in the Kingdom during the past year (2024), contributing to the employment support of 437,000 citizens through programs and initiatives to work in private sector facilities during 2024, with a growth rate of 17% compared to 2023. Additionally, the number of beneficiaries of training, empowerment, and guidance services and programs provided by the Fund during the past year exceeded two million beneficiaries, with a growth rate of 5% compared to 2023. The number of establishments benefiting from the Fund's services during the same year also exceeded 179,000 facilities in various sectors of the labor market and from different regions of the Kingdom, with a growth rate reaching 49% compared to 2023, including 95% small and medium-sized enterprises. The total amount expended on training, empowerment, and guidance support programs during the past year reached SAR 7.74 billion, while the sustainability index of the national workforce in the labor market after one year of employment or completion of their programs reached 81%.
For his part, the Chairman of the Northern Chamber emphasized the importance of enhancing partnership and integration with the Fund to develop the private sector and raise its performance and productivity, which will reflect in achieving higher localization and empowerment rates among the region's residents. He highlighted that the Human Resources Development Fund is a key supporter for businessmen and businesswomen in the region, enabling national cadres to access job opportunities.
The meeting was attended by the Deputy General Manager of the Fund for Operations, Firas bin Abdulaziz Aba Al-Khail, and a number of Fund leaders.