Under the royal patronage of His Excellency, Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdul Aziz, the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, May Allah protect him, the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, Ahmed bin Suleiman Al-Rajhi has participated in the works of the Human Capabilities Initiative 2025 held in Riyadh. Additionally, His Excellency has highlighted that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is witnessing fundamental shifts spearheaded by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the accelerating development of automation within the Fourth and Fifth Industrial Revolutions, demonstrating that these transformations are no longer part of the future but have become a reality reshaping the labour market and its fundamental concepts.
Moreover, His Excellency has clarified that the ultimate challenge is no longer the availability of opportunities, but rather the lack of necessary skills to occupy such opportunities, which calls for redesigning the capacity-building and training models and keeping pace with the accelerating change of the market needs. Although academic degrees are still important, they are no longer the sole path to opportunities, recalling that skills are the major player of opportunities in the new labour market.
Furthermore, His Excellency has announced launching the “National Skills Platform” at the Skills Accelerator Initiative 2025, aiming at qualifying more than 300 thousand trainees in working at strategic sectors, including power, healthcare, financial services and retail, through an integrated educational journey and flexible training models that integrate digital and applied learning, in cooperation with the Human Capability Development Program. This platform also employs artificial intelligence technologies in classifying skills and directing individuals towards training paths that are most compatible with market requirements, stressing that it represents a strategic tool for empowering national competencies.
His Excellency also stated that the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development started the second phase of the national training program “WAD”, designed to provide 3 million training opportunities, after the first phase managed to provide more than million opportunities within half the targeted timeframe, with the participation of 60 entities of both public and private sectors.
The Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, Ahmed bin Suleiman Al-Rajhi, also pointed out that the Parallel Training Initiative exceeded the target of the initiative by 22%, through partnerships with 70 training institutions and more than 45,000 establishments, and achieved a job retention rate of 92% in the private sector.
However, the conference has featured the signing of two Tripartite Memoranda of Understandings between the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development and the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources and the Ministry of Transport and Logistics Services, cooperating with the Human Capability Development Program, under the patronage of the Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor, Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser Abu Thunain, the Assistant Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Dr. Abdullah Al-Ahmari, and the Deputy Minister of Transport and Logistics Services, Dr. Rumaih bin Mohammed Al-Rumaih, with the intention of supporting the implementation of the "Skills Accelerator Initiative” by providing training programs for the targeted sectors, activating digital and media enablers, along with developing studies and indicators related to human capacity development.
At the conclusion of his speech, His Excellency the Minister, emphasized that the development of human capital represents a fundamental pillar for achieving the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030. Additionally, the Minister also stated that the Kingdom relies on three pillars in developing the labor market: flexibility in policies, inclusivity in opportunities, and integration between the government, private, and academic sectors, which ensures an effective response to global changes and the accelerating pace of change in work environments.
Moreover, His Excellency highlighted the organizational efforts led by the Ministry in building a national skills system, through the establishment of 13 sectoral skills councils with the participation of over 240 representatives from relevant entities, along with the development of national occupational standards for 300 professions, to enhance the alignment between training outcomes and labor market needs.
The Human Capability Initiative (HCI) Conference 2025 is being held in its second edition in Riyadh, bringing together more than 300 speakers, including thought leaders and experts from around the world, under the theme “Beyond Readiness.” The conference aims to explore ways to develop human capabilities and advance human capital in alignment with future global transformations.
