Saudi Human Resources and Social Development Vice Minister, International Labor Organization (ILO) Director-General Gilbert F. Houngbo Open Second-Day of the Inaugural Global Labor Market Conference

• National Private Sector Training Program Pledge, ‘Waad,’ already 50% Toward its Target

14 December, Riyadh –
H.E. Dr. Abdullah Nasser Abuthnain, Vice Minister of the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development welcomed over 6,000 guests and 150 participants back to second day of the inaugural Global Labor Market Conference (GLMC).

After welcoming guests and highlighting the previous’ days successes, H.E. Vice Minster Abuthnain discussed the Kingdom’s focus on two critical areas: skills development and new forms of work.

“The Kingdom has prioritized skill development to support economic diversification toward a more productive and knowledge-based economy,” said the Vice Minister. He pointed to Saudi Vision 2030 programs such as the Human Capability and Development Program, and the Labor Market Strategy, which have been established to drive skill development and address skill mismatches.

H.E. Vice Minister Abuthnain continued “We in the ministry have adopted a demand driven approach to skill development by forming partnerships with private sector and other stakeholders.” Successes he highlighted include the establishment of 12 sectoral councils with over 150 participating members and the creation of an overarching skill framework that has resulted in a complete standard definition for 300 occupations covering 2,000 skills.

H.E. the Vice Minister also highlighted the success of the National Private Sector Training Pledge Program, ‘Waad’ under which the private sector has committed to training 150,000 individuals by 2025, a target already 50% achieved.

The morning also featured a keynote address from International Labor Organization (ILO) Director General Gilbert F. Houngbo. Speaking specifically to the path forward for young people in labor markets, Director-General Houngbo set the tone, saying “we all must double down on our effort to ensure that our next generation can flourish as productive members of society.” The Director-General framed the potential for youth cohorts, calling them “not mere beneficiaries, they are key stakeholders and the architects of the future labor market.” He went on to say of youth “They represent the driving force for change and innovation particularly as the world stands on the brink of unprecedented challenges exacerbated by climate change, rapid technology advancement, shifting demographics, and geopolitical tensions.”

Director-General Houngbo emphasized the stakes for young people, sharing a number of datapoints: the global youth unemployment rate exceeds 3 times that of adults; more than 3 out of 4 young people are informally employed, 1 in 3 youth are working, yet still living in poverty. Imploring the audience, Director-General Houngbo declared “This cannot be the statistical reality of the future.”

Among possible solutions, Director-General Houngbo called for investments in internet infrastructure, policies to encourage inclusivity, a focus on digital literacy, and the potential of the green and blue economies, which by 2030 could create up to 8.4 million new jobs for young people.

Director-General Houngbo concluded with a message addressed directly to youth, calling on young people to “take the lead, to actively participate in your communities and make your voices heard in public fora, and on the issues that you care about, and the changes you want to see, the future we know belongs to you.”

In addition to speakers, GLMC Day 2 witnessed the unveiling of ‘Rayan,’ the first ever AI tool specifically concerning global labor markets. Trained on trillions of datapoints within billions of parameters, ‘Rayan’ is capable of providing up-to-date information and responses on all queries related to global labor markerts. Introducing the tool, GLMC CEO Ohoud Al-Shamikh, demonstrated Rayan’s capability, asking “Tell me Rayan, with declining populations across the globe how can AI be used in the labor market to help adapt to these new realities?”

The morning’s activities followed the opening day of the inaugural global labor market conference, and continued its program of over 40 unique keynote addresses, informational panels sessions, fireside chats, and auxiliary events all aimed at addressing current challenges, future uncertainties, and opportunities for global labor markets.

Day 2 features an equally impressive line-up of speakers and participants, including Saudi officials such as H.E. Dr. Hala bint Mazyad Al-Tuwaijiri, President of the Saudi Human Rights Commmission, H.E. Dr. Abdullah bin Sharaf Al-Ghamdi, President of the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority, and Takamol Holdings CEO Dr. Ahmad Al-Yamani.