Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development.. Integrated Efforts and Strategic Partnerships to Empower Orphans

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development is the entity responsible for overseeing all aspects of orphan care, through the development of policies and programs that ensure their empowerment and integration into society, and the preservation of their rights as guaranteed by Islamic law. Based on this role, the Ministry has been keen to adopt best social practices, whether in care institutions or with foster families, to ensure the provision of a natural family environment that contributes to the proper upbringing of orphans in social, psychological, and intellectual aspects.

In its continuous endeavor to develop its services and achieve a sustainable positive impact, the Ministry has launched several qualitative initiatives, most notably the "Modeling and Assignment of Social Care Services for Orphans" initiative, in partnership with the non-profit sector, to achieve best practices in empowering orphans. The Ministry has also developed a comprehensive strategy to support the foster care system, which included precise criteria for selecting families to ensure a safe and stable family environment for the orphan. This strategy contributed to raising the foster care index to 100%, with the number of applicants on the waiting list reaching more than 4,000. The Kingdom's experience in foster care is considered a pioneering model that has been shared with the Gulf Cooperation Council countries to benefit from it as one of the leading and distinguished programs.

Within the framework of digital transformation, the Ministry has worked to automate a range of orphan services through its electronic platforms to facilitate access to them quickly and efficiently. As part of enhancing government integration, the Ministry has worked to develop services provided to orphans and foster families, and to link with external entities – Health, Justice, Housing, and Interior – and to develop its services through government integration to enhance and develop services (such as issuing identification documents, guardianship and breastfeeding certificates, issuing passports, and linking with Absher for foster families and renewing them) in line with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030 in integrating efforts between sectors. The Ministry has also concluded more than 35 agreements and memoranda of understanding with various educational and training entities to develop empowerment paths in the fields of education, rehabilitation, training, and independence, which contributed to providing job opportunities for about 80% of orphans seeking employment, in addition to training and qualifying 3,261 orphans, whether on the job or seeking employment. To complete the empowerment system, the Ministry has been keen to involve orphans in volunteer programs in cooperation with relevant entities to enrich their experiences and enhance their community skills.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development continues its efforts to develop its programs directed at orphans through multiple paths that include rehabilitation, training, entrepreneurship, and social integration, to achieve its strategic objectives that are consistent with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 in empowering individuals and enhancing their quality of life.