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RIYADH: The fifth Global Cybersecurity Forum opened in Riyadh on Wednesday and announced major initiatives to scale cohesive advances in cyberspace as well as strengthen online resilience.

Majed bin Mohammed Al-Mazyed, the governor of the National Cybersecurity Authority, spoke of the annual forum’s focus on advancing collective action, and the road map set by previous editions over the five years.

He said the GCF and the World Economic Forum had established the Centre for Cyber Economics to work together for inclusive and secure cyberspace.

The GCF and the WEF in January this year signed an agreement to establish the CCE in Riyadh, aimed at increasing knowledge and understanding of the economic challenges and opportunities emerging in the rapidly evolving cyber landscape. The agreement was signed at the WEF Annual Meeting 2025 in Davos.

Al-Mazyed said: “The global economy depends on cyberspace, yet our collective understanding of the economic dimensions of cybersecurity remains limited.”

The CCE will focus on the economic dimension of cybersecurity, driving research, fostering cross-sector collaboration, and developing robust, evidence-based frameworks to enhance global cyber resilience, economic stability, and prosperity.

“In this spirit, I am pleased to announce that the Kingdom is launching a global initiative for capacity building in cyberspace in partnership with the UN,” said the NCA’s governor.

By harnessing the expertise of a wide range of international stakeholders, this initiative will deliver accelerated capacity development in the areas of greatest need, from training and education to research and development, he added.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivered a video address to the GCF community at GCF 2025, emphasizing how working together will secure cyberspace.

He said: “We must act together to ensure cyberspace serves the common good.

“The United Nations remains committed to advancing a vision of cyberspace that is open, secure and anchored in international law. To achieve this vision, we are working to ensure all countries have the capacity to maximize digital opportunities while minimizing risks.”

Opening the annual forum, Riyadh Gov. Prince Faisal bin Bandar expressed positivity, saying: “We are quite confident that global experts and specialists who are attending the forum will contribute in scaling cohesive advancement in cyberspace and together we will achieve cybersecurity.”

The opening session emphasized scaling progress in cyberspace. Key initiatives announced included the Child Protection and Cyberspace Initiative, launched with DQ Institute, to safeguard children online, and the CPC Index framework.

The Child Protection in Cyberspace Index at the GCF marks a groundbreaking milestone in the global effort to safeguard children online. The CPC initiative, instated by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, underscores a global commitment to promoting the digital well-being of children worldwide.

Bridging the gender gap, the GCF aims to bridge the 2.8 million workforce gap in cybersecurity, focusing on women’s participation, with joint research from Duke University and leadership training programs.

In addition, a new knowledge community on aviation cybersecurity was launched, in partnership with Riyadh Air.

The two-day GCF 2025, being held with the theme “Scaling Cohesive Advancement in Cyberspace,” and under the patronage of King Salman, brings together global leaders, senior decision-makers, policymakers, industry experts and other international stakeholders for action-oriented collaboration around key challenges and opportunities in cyberspace.

It aims to scale the cohesive advancements accomplished by the GCF community, elevating their scope, capacity, and impact to advance toward a more secure and resilient cyberspace for all.

It focuses on five sub-themes: “Beyond the Inflection Point,” “Cyber Economics Redefined,” “Strengthening Cyber Inclusion,” “Behavioral Lens in Cyberspace,” and “Opportunities at the Cyber Horizon.”

Across the sub-themes, the GCF 2025 advances dialog toward building a secure and reliable cyberspace that supports economic growth, societal prosperity, individual security, and national stability.

Within this framework, it will address shared priorities such as fostering alignment in a rapidly evolving global landscape; advancing cyber economic cohesion to enable scalable growth and shared prosperity; strengthening collective action for a human-centered and inclusive cyberspace; leveraging behavioral insights to influence actions, counter manipulations, and foster safe cyber environments; and harnessing technological advancements to tackle fast-evolving challenges in cyberspace.

From its inception as an annual event in 2020, the GCF has evolved into a platform that works year-round to strengthen the safety and resilience of cyberspace.

RIYADH: ������Ƶ’s overall unemployment rate stood at 3.2 percent in the second quarter of 2025, down 0.1 percentage point year on year, underscoring ongoing labor-market resilience. 

According to the General Authority for Statistics, the yearly decline came even with a slight 0.4 point rise compared with the preceding quarter. 

The data also showed the total labor force participation rate reached 67.1 percent, up 0.9 points year on year, indicating that more people are engaged in work or actively seeking jobs.

The year-on-year improvement in headline unemployment, alongside higher overall participation, aligns with the Kingdom’s broader diversification push under Vision 2030, which seeks to expand private-sector opportunities and sustain non-oil growth. 

A central pillar of this strategy has been Saudization policies, designed to increase the share of nationals in the workforce, especially in sectors traditionally dominated by expatriates. These efforts have been reinforced by record gains in female participation, which has nearly doubled over the past decade and remains a critical driver of labor-market expansion. 

Among Saudi nationals, the unemployment rate registered 6.8 percent, improving by 0.3 points year on year. The employment-to-population ratio for Saudis came in at 45.9 percent, while Saudi participation stood at 49.2 percent, both lower on a yearly basis, reflecting a temporary easing in engagement after strong gains in recent periods. 

In its latest release, GASTAT stated: “The results showed that 95.8 percent of unemployed Saudis are willing to accept job offers in the private sector.” 

By gender, Saudi women saw an unemployment rate of 11.3 percent in the second quarter, up 0.8 percentage points compared to the preceding quarter. Female participation eased 1.8 points to 34.5 percent, and the female employment-to-population ratio slipped 1.9 points to 30.6 percent, moves consistent with the broader quarterly cool-down. 

The report added: “Additionally, 61.1 percent of unemployed Saudi females and 45.1 percent of unemployed Saudi males are willing to commute to work for at least one hour.” 

For Saudi men, participation declined 2.4 points to 64 percent, and their unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3 percent during the same period. 

While quarter-on-quarter easing in participation and a slight rise in unemployment reflect normal variability during a heavy project delivery cycle, the annual trend remains favorable. 

Youth indicators offered a mixed but generally stabilizing picture quarter to quarter. The unemployment rate for Saudi female youth, aged 15 to 24, edged down 0.1 points to 20.6 percent, with participation at 17.4 percent and an employment-to-population ratio of 13.8 percent. 

Saudi male youth unemployment also dipped 0.1 points to 11.5 percent, with participation at 31.6 percent and employment-to-population at 28 percent. 

Among core working-age Saudis aged 25 to 54, participation was 67.3 percent and unemployment 5.9 percent in the second quarter, reflecting a quarter-on-quarter softening from elevated first quarter levels. 

The survey also shed light on job-search behavior. Unemployed Saudis used an average of 3.6 active methods, led by direct applications to employers at 72.4 percent, use of the national platform Jadarat at 56.3 percent, and tapping friends or relatives at 50.5 percent, a snapshot of how jobseekers are engaging with both formal and informal channels. 

Furthermore, the findings noted that 68.1 percent of unemployed Saudi females and 85.7 percent of unemployed Saudi males indicated that they are willing to work for eight hours or more per day. 

Globally, the average unemployment rate across the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries is just 4.9 percent as of mid-2025, according to the OECD’s latest data, underscoring how Saudi is performing below many advanced economies. 

������Ƶ’s 3.2 percent positions it well below many advanced economies. 

Within the Gulf Cooperation Council region, unemployment rates and labor dynamics vary significantly. ������Ƶ’s joblessness remains higher than some Gulf peers with small national populations and high migrant ratios, such as the UAE or Kuwait, whose official unemployment rates are often reported in the low single digits.