Significant Focus on Empowering Youth and Equipping Them with Essential Skills for Future Jobs

The Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Bandar bin Ibrahim Alkhorayef, emphasized the ministry’s commitment to empowering youth and equipping them with the necessary skills for future jobs. This came during his participation in a dialogue session titled “Human Capabilities: The Key Driver for Industrial Transformation” at the second edition of the Human Capabilities Initiative conference in Riyadh.

Alkhorayef explained that the ministry works collaboratively with the Human Capabilities Development Program and related entities to provide educational and training programs for young people. He also mentioned that the ministry has established effective partnerships with research and innovation institutions to empower innovators and entrepreneurs in the industry and mining sectors, providing them with all the necessary tools to create added value and support sustainable development in both sectors.

Regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the industry and mining sectors, Alkhorayef highlighted the significant role of Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies, including artificial intelligence and robots, in improving production efficiency for manufacturing and mining operations and ensuring their sustainability.

“In the industrial sector, the Kingdom is investing qualitatively in developing digital infrastructure to support the adoption of artificial intelligence practices in manufacturing processes,” he said. “We have also launched the Future Factories program, which aims to automate factories and transform them into smart facilities that focus on artificial intelligence and robots in their operational processes. We provide all the necessary resources to investors in these factories, with a focus on training the workforce to handle modern technologies. We also help factories assess their level of digital maturity through the Siri index.”