Saudi Nationals’ Unemployment Rate Remains Stable, at 11.3%

Unemployment rate among Saudi nationals stabilized in Q3-2021, at 11.3%, the same as in the previous quarter.

Results released in the General Authority for Statistics’ report  showed a decrease in the unemployment rate of Saudi males (15 years and over) dropping to 5.9%, compared to 6.1% in the previous quarter.

The labor force participation rate for the whole domestic population, Saudis as well as non-Saudis (15 years and above) increased to 61.2%, up from 60.8% in the previous quarter.

Labor force participation rate for the whole male unemployment population stood at 78.3%, while the labor force participation rate for the total female population “15 years and over” was 35.9%.

The labor force participation rate for total Saudis “males and females 15 years and above” increased to 49.8% in Q3, up from 49.4% in the previous quarter.

Saudi females (15 years and older) participated in the labor market, at a higher rate in the third quarter, reaching 34.1%, up from 32.4% in the previous quarter.

Unemployment rate for the whole working-age population “Saudis and non-Saudis 15 years and above” was 6.6% in Q3-2021, unchanged from the second quarter, and down 1.9% from Q3-2020, according to statistics’ figures

Unemployment rate, based on data from the General Authority for Statistics, has remained stable, despite a drop in male unemployment to 3.3%, the lowest in a year and a half, specifically since Q1-2020, when it went down to 2.5%, which was lower than in the previous quarter.

But Q2-2021 has posted a rate of 3.5%, which is lower than the 4.4% rate, posted in the same quarter of 2020.

While the female unemployment rate steadied at 17.1% in Q3, the same as in Q2-2021, it fell dramatically on an annual basis, from 24.6% in Q3- 2020 to 17.1% in Q3-2021.

On looking at the unemployment rate by gender, nationality, and educational level, we find that those with a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent have the highest unemployment rate, with a rate of 10.1% for the total population of the Kingdom, owing to the high rate of this percentage among females, at 26.4%, while it was only 2.7% for males.

The data reveals that people without a high school diploma and those with a master’s degree or its equivalent or a PhD are the least unemployed, with unemployment rates of 1.9% in the first group and 2.6% and 1.3% in the other two categories, respectively.

On unemployment rates by gender, nationality, and administrative domains, we find  that the Eastern Province had the lowest rate at 4.53%, followed by Riyadh at 5.01%, and Tabuk had the highest rate at 10.38%.

The Eastern Province and Riyadh had the lowest unemployment rates,  across the Kingdom, at 8.58% and 9.18%, respectively, while Madinah and Al-Jawf had the highest, at 16.21% and 15.75%, respectively.