In the presence of Her Excellency Dr. Inas bint Suleiman Al-Issa, Deputy Minister of Education; Dr. Fahad bin Abdullah Aldossari, President of the General Authority for Statistics; the Ministry’s Undersecretary for Planning, Eng. Saad bin Abdulgh  
 ani Alghamdi; the Secretary-General of Education Departments, Mr. Hamad bin Nasser Alwahaibi; along with several directors of education departments and leaders and staff , the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) held a ceremony to honor the winning education departments in the Statistical Knowledge Competition. The first edition of the competition was organized in partnership with the Ministry of Education in 2024 and witnessed significant engagement, with the participation of 243,245 male and female students from 16 education departments across various regions and governorates of the Kingdom.
The competition results revealed that the General Administration of Education in Riyadh Region had the highest level of participation, with 46,635 students taking part, accounting for 21.0% of the total participants. They were followed by students from the General Administration of Education in Taif Governorate, with 38,953 participants (17.5%), and then by the Eastern Region’s General Administration of Education in third place, with 38,030 students representing 17.1% of the total. Meanwhile, 20,183 students from the General Administration of Education in Makkah Region participated, placing fourth with a percentage of 9.1%. Students from Qassim Region’s General Administration of Education came in fifth, with 17,692 participants, accounting for 8.0% of the total.
For his part, Dr. Fahad Aldossari, GASTAT President, praised the fruitful partnership between the Authority and the Ministry of Education in his remarks. He commended the efforts of the education departments that secured top ranks based on student participation levels in the Statistical Knowledge Competition, noting that these efforts led to outstanding results for this distinguished initiative.

Aldossari added that “The Statistical Knowledge Competition was launched to enhance statistical awareness among students and to develop their skills in critical thinking and informed engagement with data and statistical indicators from reliable sources.” He also expressed his sincere gratitude and appreciation to His Excellency Mr. Yousef Al-Benyan, Minister of Education, for the strong support the program received under his leadership, as this support played a vital role in the success of the first edition. He also expressed his hope that the second edition of the competition, set to launch in the upcoming academic year, will be even more successful and impactful. He noted that it will serve as a renewed opportunity to strengthen awareness of statistical work and highlight its important role in individual lives and the success of various development programs.
It is worth noting that the second edition of the Statistical Knowledge Competition will be launched during the upcoming academic year 1447H. This launch will coincide with the global celebration of World Statistics Day, which is held every five years. The Statistical Knowledge Program includes a variety of activities, such as leveraging school broadcasts to raise students’ awareness of the importance of statistical work and its role in development. It also features field visits by GASTAT staff to schools, where they deliver hands-on and enrichment programs. Additionally, the program provides specialized knowledge guides covering statistical terms, occupational classifications, and number-writing policies. It also explains key concepts such as statistical indicators and trains students on how to use statistical data sources, ultimately supporting sustainable development and advancing the goals of Saudi Vision 2030.
 

The General Authority for Statistics has released the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Publication for Q1 of 2025. According to the results, net FDI inflows reached SAR 22.2 billion, marking a 44% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year, while recording a 7% decrease compared to Q4 of 2024.
The publication also showed that outward FDI flows from the Kingdom’s economy amounted to approximately SAR 1.8 billion during Q1 of 2025, a 54% decrease compared to the same quarter last year, despite a 7% increase compared to Q4 of 2024. Meanwhile, inward FDI flows into the Kingdom's economy reached around SAR 24.0 billion in Q1 of 2025, representing a 24% increase compared to the same quarter last year, when the inflows were approximately SAR 19.4 billion. However, this also represents a 6% decrease compared to the previous quarter of the same year.
It is worth noting that foreign direct investment reflects a long-term relationship and sustained interest by entities resident in an economy other than Saudi Arabia. This typically involves the foreign investor, either individually or jointly with other foreign investors, owning 10% or more of the voting power in the shares of an enterprise.
 

The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) released today the Labor Market Statistics Publication for Q1 of 2025. According to the results, the overall unemployment rate (including Saudis and non-Saudis) stood at 2.8%, while the overall labor force participation rate reached 68.2%. The labor force participation rate for Saudis increased to 51.3%, compared to Q4 of 2024.

The publication showed a rise in labor force participation among Saudi males, reaching 66.4%, accompanied by a decline in their unemployment rate to 4%. It also highlighted the success of women’s empowerment initiatives, which contributed to increased female economic participation and enhanced their role in driving growth and sustainable development. The labor force participation rate for Saudi females rose to 36.3%, while their unemployment rate dropped to 10.5%, compared to the previous quarter.

Among young Saudi women (15–24 years), the employment-to-population ratio increased to 14.6%, and their labor force participation rose to 18.4%. Meanwhile, the employment-to-population ratio for young Saudi males declined to 29.2%, with their labor force participation falling to 33.0%. Their unemployment rate dropped to 11.6% compared to Q4 of 2024. These changes are attributed to improvements in labor market policies, driven by the robust performance and growing attractiveness of the Saudi labor market.
Regarding core working-age Saudis (25–54 years), the employment-to-population ratio rose to 65.9%, and the labor force participation rate increased to 69.6%, while the unemployment rate declined to 5.4%. For Saudis (55 years and older), both the unemployment rate and labor force participation rate decreased compared to the previous quarter of 2024.
 
According to the publication, the unemployment rate among Saudis reached a historic low of 6.3% in Q1 of 2025. Likewise, unemployment among Saudi women has declined by more than 11 percentage points since 2021, reaching 10.5%, reflecting the Saudi labor market’s growing capacity to provide economic opportunities for its citizens amid supportive policies focused on development and employment.
The most common job search method was directly approaching employers, used by 75.8% of job seekers, followed by using the national unified employment platform (Jadarat) at 74.6%, while 64.5% of job seekers reported posting or updating their resumes on professional social media platforms.