The number of registrants on the Ministry of Labor’s online self-employment portal has reached 1,750 Saudi men and women since the program’s launch, with self-employment permits issued to approximately 420 young men and women.

This was stated by Khalid Abaalkheil, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Labor and Social Development. Earlier, Minister Dr. Ali bin Nasser Al-Ghafis had presented the first newly issued self-employment program certificates to a group of young men and women, as part of the Self-Employment Program, which the Ministry launched in collaboration with the Human Resources Development Fund (Hadaf).

The Ministry’s official spokesperson said that the Self-Employment Program includes male and female entrepreneurs and self-employed individuals in the labor market, while aiming to support the provision of social protection for self-employed workers to ensure greater stability for the national workforce within a work environment conducive to productivity and development.

Abaalkheil noted that Hadaf’s support consists of paying a percentage of the «optional» social insurance contribution on behalf of self-employed individuals for a period of two years, with the support paid directly to the General Organization for Social Insurance on a monthly basis. He explained that male and female entrepreneurs and self-employed individuals can take the initiative and register for the program through its dedicated portal to obtain their self-employment program documents, while self-employed individuals will benefit from accessing the «Bahar» e-platform to register and take advantage of the services offered.