RIYADH: Some 1.1 million new jobs have been created in Saudi Arabia in the past year as the Kingdom’s economic diversification policies continue to bear fruit, according to a government minister.

At a special press conference to mark the announcement of Saudi Arabia’s 2024 budget, the Minister of Human Resources Ahmad Al-Rajhi said no other nation in the world had seen such an increase over the period.

The minister also said that initiatives by the government to support the private sector have led to 361,000 new workers in the job market. 

The press conference came a day after Saudi Arabia approved the state budget for 2024, with revenues projected at SR1.17 trillion ($312.48 billion) and expenditure at SR1.25 trillion, leading to a deficit of SR79 billion. 

In its announcement, the Finance Ministry projected the Kingdom’s gross domestic product growth at 4.4 percent in 2024 an increase from the estimated 0.03 percent in 2023. 

It predicted the Kingdom’s public debt for the next fiscal year to stand at SR1.10 trillion, or 25.9 percent of GDP. This represents a 7.71 percent increase from the re-estimated 2023 figures of SR1.02 trillion, constituting 24.8 percent of the GDP.