Undaunted by the middling results of past attempts, Saudi Arabia has undertaken a new campaign in its decadeslong project to replace expatriate workers with Saudis, a process known as "Saudization." The latest initiative arrived at its first benchmark during the week of Sept. 5, when the country's telecom retail sector — comprising anything related to the sale or maintenance of cellphones — reached its deadline for achieving "complete Saudization." Many shops did not fare well during the six-month period allotted for the process; some business owners shuttered their operations, while others were fined. As it investigates how successful the sector was in implementing the new regulations in the coming months, the Saudi Ministry of Labor and Social Development will likely uncover many more cases of noncompliance, despite hefty penalties (up to two years' imprisonment and a $365,000 fine).