Saudi Arabia Hosts Ministerial Roundtable Of Global Labor Market Conference 2026

Riyadh: Riyadh will host the Ministerial Roundtable on Monday, January 26, as part of the third edition of the Global Labor Market Conference (GLMC), which will be held under the patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, under the theme “Future in Progress”. The event will take place at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center, with the participation of 40 labor ministers from around the world, aiming to strengthen practical responses to the most pressing issues facing labor markets today.

In its third edition, the Ministerial Roundtable will focus on moving from dialogue to implementation. Ministers will discuss actionable and immediately applicable employment pathways, exchange international best practices, and explore ways to enhance multilateral international cooperation in skills development, technology adoption, job quality, and social protection, contributing to strengthening labor market resilience.

Eng. Ahmed bin Sulaiman Al Rajhi, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, said: “The Ministerial Roundtable represents a unique and important opportunity to harness the accumulated knowledge and expertise of participating countries and translate them into tangible and practical cooperation. By bringing together ministers and international partners, we strengthen collaboration, exchange successful policy models, and work to develop regulatory frameworks that improve work environments, enhance competitiveness, and support labor market resilience. The impact of these efforts will not be limited to advancing the Saudi labor market alone but will also contribute to creating positive and sustainable impact on labor systems worldwide.”

The Ministerial Roundtable will be chaired by Eng. Ahmed bin Sulaiman Al Rajhi, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, with the participation of Gilbert F. Houngbo, Director General of the International Labour Organization, as part of the Global Labor Market Conference, which will be held in Riyadh from 26 to 27 January. The conference is organised by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, in strategic partnership with several international organisations. The Ministerial Roundtable serves as a strategic global platform for the exchange of insights and expertise on the future of labor markets, building on the outcomes of previous editions of the Ministerial Roundtable, which resulted in eight pathways for reshaping labor markets.