New data shows that job advertisements targeting South Africans from Saudi Arabia have almost tripled year-on-year, offering very attractive remuneration packages.
This is according to the latest Pnet Job Market Trends Report, which noted that international recruitment of South African professionals is on the rise.
While international job advertising represents a small share of the overall market, the share of foreign vacancies aimed at South Africans is growing.
According to the report, these adverts increased from 1.6% of all job ads in 2021 to 2.2% in 2025, which shows a stronger international demand for South African skills.
Australia remained the most popular destination for South African professionals in 2025, even though the number of Australian job adverts targeting South Africans declined by 17% during the year.
However, Saudi Arabia has rapidly emerged as the next most active market for South African talent, followed by the Netherlands, Namibia and Botswana.
The report highlighted that Saudi Arabia recorded the largest year-on-year growth in recruitment targeting South Africans, with job advertisements increasing by 174%.
According to Pnet, South African workers remain attractive to international employers for several reasons.
These include relatively competitive labour costs compared with many developed countries, as well as the country’s strong pipeline of skilled professionals in fields such as engineering, information technology and finance.
South African professionals are also valued for their multilingual abilities and experience across a wide range of industries.
These industries range from mining and manufacturing to financial services, giving them transferable skills suited to international work environments.
Saudi Arabia’s strong push to recruit South African talent is closely tied to the country’s long-term economic transformation programme.
As part of its broader development plans, the kingdom is significantly expanding sectors such as healthcare and infrastructure, creating major demand for skilled professionals.
Saudi Arabia is targeting South African medical and healthcare professionals as well as engineers.
The country plans to add roughly 175,000 healthcare workers by 2030, including around 64,000 nurses, to support the construction of new hospitals and medical cities.
Attractive pay packages
South African nursing and engineering qualifications are widely recognised internationally, making them attractive to recruiters.
“Saudi Arabia is increasingly active in recruiting healthcare professionals, particularly nurses, alongside continued demand for engineering talent,” the report said.
“This aligns with the Kingdom’s large-scale healthcare expansion under Vision 2030, which includes major workforce growth targets through to 2030.”
The remuneration packages offered are also a major draw for local professionals.
Pnet highlighted that many vacancies include extensive benefits beyond salary, such as accommodation, relocation assistance, transport and medical cover.
For example, the report pointed to a recent job listing for a registered nurse with two years’ experience working in Saudi Arabia.
The position advertised a tax-free salary of about R55,950 per month, along with a range of additional perks.
The listing included a flight ticket to Saudi Arabia, paid leave, return flights home, free accommodation, free transport, visa and relocation support, overtime pay and medical insurance.
“Lucrative job offers like this can attract professionals since local job offers often can’t compete with the range of Saudi Arabian benefits.” Language skills also play an important role in the recruitment drive.
“South African professionals typically have high English fluency, critical in Saudi Arabia’s multicultural healthcare and engineering environments,” the report added.
Pnet said the trend highlights growing global competition for skilled South African workers.
“Across all markets, competitive salary packages and structured relocation benefits increase the attractiveness of international roles,” the report said.
“From Pnet’s perspective, this reinforces two realities: South African talent is globally respected – and local employers face growing competition for scarce skills.”
The report added that South African businesses will need to strengthen retention strategies and invest in skills development to compete in an increasingly global labour market.
Images of Saudi Arabia
