His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz, Governor of the Eastern Province, today inaugurated the “Wa’ad” Skills and Training Forum, organized by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development. The two-day event was attended by His Excellency Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser Abuthnain, Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor, and a group of experts and specialists in the field of skills and training. The forum is being held at the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) in Dhahran.
His Highness emphasized the importance of training and developing the capabilities of the nation’s youth, empowering them and providing them with training opportunities through government supervision and distinguished training institutions.
He noted that the government of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and the follow-up of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister – may God protect them both – have placed at the forefront of their priorities the care of the nation’s young men and women, providing them with all possible means to train and develop their skills, and achieve greater contribution and growth to serve their country and improve the quality of life.
His Excellency Dr. Abdullah Abuthnain, Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor, expressed his gratitude to His Highness the Governor of the Eastern Province for his patronage of the forum and his continued support for all initiatives that serve the youth of the region.
In his address at the forum, he emphasized that skills and training are a crucial pillar in supporting the Kingdom’s labor market. He reviewed the efforts of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development in developing skills, training, and implementing programs and initiatives that have contributed to enhancing the growth, career development, and professional performance of Saudi nationals working in the labor market. These initiatives include the National Program for Stimulating the Private Sector, the National Professional Standards Initiative which aims to develop 500 professions and skills, and the establishment of 12 sectoral skills councils in key economic sectors. He also highlighted the Ministry’s launch of the “Wa’ad” National Training Campaign, which aims to provide more than one million training opportunities by the end of 2025, noting that the campaign has already achieved 50% of its training targets in less than a year since its launch.
At the conclusion of the forum, His Royal Highness the Prince of the Eastern Province witnessed the announcement of a commitment from the “Wa’ad” program and its partners to target and provide more than 100,000 training opportunities for young men and women in the region.
The forum aims to highlight leading initiatives in training and skills development designed to enhance the capabilities of national talent, encourage the private sector to contribute to their empowerment, and increase their participation in the labor market.
The forum’s activities include a number of training and skills development initiatives, workshops, training opportunities, skills development opportunities, and a meeting between the heads of sectoral skills councils and employers in the region.