Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Female workers contribute to drop in unemployment rate
The decline in the unemployment rate in Saudi Arabia comes as Saudi women join the workforce in record numbers.
The overall Saudi unemployment rate fell to 11.7% in the first quarter of 2021 compared with 12.6% in the last quarter of 2020, the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) said on Wednesday.
Female participation in the workforce rose to 33.6% in the first quarter of 2021 compared to 32.1% in the previous quarter.
According to GASTAT, the joblessness figure is the lowest since the second quarter of 2016 (11.6%).