JEDDAH King Salman issued a royal decree ordering the allocation of SR9 billion ($2.4 billion) to compensate citizens working in facilities affected by repercussions of the pandemic. The royal decree exempts Saudis working in the affected private sector facilities from Articles 8, 10 and 14 of the Unemployment Insurance (Sanad) scheme. Said employees are to be given a monthly compensation of 60 percent of the registered wage in social insurance for three months with a maximum of SR9,000 monthly, reports Arab News. Finance Minister and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Organization for Social In surance Mohammed AlJadaan said that the support mechanism will work as stipulated in the Sanad scheme for facilities included in the royal decree. This covers 100 percent of Saudis working in facilities employing five or less and up to 70 percent in facilities that employ more than five. The employer will be exempted from paying the monthly salary for beneficiaries during the compensation period as per the decree. The facility is not entitled to force employees to work during the compensation period. The number of people qualified to benefit from the compensation exceeds 1.2 million citizens. Citizens can apply for compensation in the current month of April. Payment will start at the beginning of May. The decree requires that facilities resume paying employees as soon as the compensation ends. The facilities should also continue the payment of salaries for employees (Saudis and non-Saudis) who are not included in the compensation. Meanwhile, Commerce ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council held a virtual meeting to discuss the economic impact of the coronavirus disease outbreak. Overseeing the provision and smooth flow of necessary basic commodities to citizens of their countries was highlighted as one of the key roles of the ministries. The meeting was chaired by the UAE’s minister of economy, Sultan bin Saeed Al-Mansoori, and was attended by his GCC counterparts along with the council’s secretarygeneral, Dr. Naif bin Falah Al-Hajraf. Ministers reviewed initiatives taken by GCC countries to provide support for their private sectors, particularly smalland medium-sized enterprises, and other economic activities affected by the pandemic.
