Cybersecurity, IT jobs on the rise in Saudi Arabia: Report

Employment opportunities in Saudi Arabia continue to grow across several sectors, especially due to Vision 2030 projects such as NEOM and The Red Sea gearing toward completion with full steam ahead.

A recent report by Qrator Labs, a DDoS mitigation service provider that offers continuous network availability and network security services, shows that sectors of cybersecurity and Information Technology (IT) in the Kingdom have witnessed a sharp rise in jobs over the last five years, and that the technology job market in Saudi Arabia will expand further in the coming future.

The Kingdom’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) strategy for 2023 offers the creation of over 25,000 jobs in the sector, increasing the size of the IT industry and emerging technologies by 50 percent and elevating the sector’s contribution to overall GDP by $13.3 billion, according to the report.

The demand for network engineers and cybersecurity analysts is particularly high.

The position for Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) has witnessed a 100 percent growth rate in Google searches in Saudi Arabia. Similarly, the report states that cybersecurity work-related searches have increased by 353 percent in comparison with last year.

The report attributes the rapid development of the technology sector to various government initiatives and expansion of other industries.

“Growth is primarily being driven by digital transformation efforts in the government, telecom, finance, and oil and gas sectors, with an increased focus on giga-projects, smart cities, and e-governance,” the report said.

With the Saudi government’s commitment to progressively invest in cybersecurity and initiatives focused on protection of digital assets from cyber threats, the IT sector is projected to grow more and more in the future, offering increased jobs and investment opportunities in the Kingdom.