The Future Investment Initiative Forum in Riyadh was a new milestone to underscore the importance of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 economic transformation initiatives, with a focus on the optimal use of modern technologies and addressing the challenges of global economies. It was an occasion for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz to hear South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol praise for the achievements made to date, when he said that Saudi Arabia has been able to transform itself into a hub for advanced industries.
The forum, which opened its seventh edition on Tuesday under the theme “The New Compass”, is attended by a large international crowd. Nearly 6000 participants from more than 90 countries, and 500 speakers from different sectors from inside and outside the Kingdom, will participate in the event, and it will last for 3 days. It highlights possible solutions to meet economic challenges and rely on the optimal use of new technologies, including artificial intelligence, to advance global economies.
Saudi Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih said, “We will turn challenges into opportunities by investing in our human resources and resources,” while Saudi Public Investment Fund Governor Yasser Al-Rumayyan said that the fund focuses on 13 sectors to achieve continued development and diversification in the economy, “where we have created 90 new companies, and there are more than 560,000 jobs that have been created thanks to this.”
The Minister of Economy and Planning, Faisal Al-Ibrahim, revealed that Saudi Arabia has reached the stage of reviving sectors and achieved economic diversification, while Tourism Minister Ahmed Al-Khatib predicted that the Kingdom will register about 100 million tourists this year.
World Bank President Ajay Banga warned that geopolitical risks in the Middle East are putting pressure on global growth, noting that the war in Gaza could cause “serious” economic consequences.
The Future Investment Forum is a platform for major companies, as rooms have been allocated for exchanging views among themselves and signing many agreements.
South Korean Crown Prince and President
In front of the crown prince, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol said during a dialogue session that Saudi Arabia has been able to transform itself into a center for advanced industries and is ready for it, explaining that his country shares experience with Riyadh to achieve the experience in a shorter time as part of the efforts to achieve this solid cooperation.
He said the volume of trade exchange between South Korea and the Kingdom reached about $29 billion in the fields of energy, defense and infrastructure construction.
Yoon Suk-yeol said that through his current visit to Saudi Arabia, he had the opportunity to deepen his understanding of the country’s projects, indicating that he has a sense of passion for the NEOM project.
Saudi Investment Environment
In one of the sessions of the Future Investment Initiative, the Saudi Minister of Investment, Eng. Khalid Al-Falih, stressed that the Kingdom has been able to turn global economic crises into strengths, indicating that his country has factors that attract foreign investors and capital.
Al-Falih indicated that high interest rates are still influential, and that the Kingdom has a good financing structure compared to other countries with the presence of financial institutions that can provide loans at low interest rates, stressing that the country’s currency has been pegged to the dollar for a long time and will continue.
According to the Minister of Investment, his country is moving towards achieving the welfare of society and raising the quality of life despite the crises in the region, and has been able to overcome global crises due to the presence of sufficient wisdom from the leadership to withstand security, economically and financially, in addition to ensuring supply chains.
He continued that the world is facing many challenges, starting with interest rates, supply chain disruptions, the effects of the pandemic, inflation, and others, but Saudi Arabia has been able to overcome them and turn them into strengths with political and economic stability and a long-term investment outlook.
Al-Falih pointed to the Kingdom’s efforts to turn challenges into opportunities through investment in youth, entrepreneurship, innovation and modern technologies in partnership with friendly countries and foreign companies, and that investment is available and diversified in all fields, with an attractive investment environment.
He also touched on the Public Investment Fund’s recent efforts to make the Saudi economy among the top 10 economies in the world.
Economic Multilateralism
For his part, Minister of Economy and Planning, Faisal Al-Ibrahim, revealed that Saudi Arabia has reached the stage of reviving sectors and achieving economic pluralism, in addition to moves to empower youth, who represent more than 63 percent.
In the dialogue session within the activities of the Future Investment Initiative, Al-Ibrahim said that the non-oil sectors have begun to contribute and support growth, and have continued to expand for 6 consecutive quarters, thanks to Saudi Arabia’s long-term vision.
He pointed out that despite the global economic slowdown, the Kingdom has been able to move on to become a global center and an attractive market for investment and attracting capital from all over the world.
The Minister of Economy and Planning added that the Kingdom has clarity in policies and transparent performance, and is focusing on mega projects in sectors such as export services, tourism services, and construction and reconstruction.
He disclosed the bold movement in the country, represented by the “Vision 2030”, to implement the plans at an accelerated pace and reach the stage of recovery of all sectors.
He stressed that the Kingdom has plans to create car factories, noting that it has logistical and economic zones, characterized by pluralism, and the human element of young people who deserve more investment opportunities.
Non-oil GDP grew by 6.1 percent in the second quarter of this year, driven by new sectors such as export services and tourism services, which grew by 135 percent, Ibrahim said.
According to the minister, there is room for cooperation between different countries of the world and the Kingdom, not only at the level of goods and services, but also in terms of the exchange of ideas, innovation and culture, as Vision 2030 works to be a global center and a comprehensive economic platform that works to attract cash and human capital, and use this platform to access energy sources from clean hydrogen, and find solutions to remove carbon emissions.
Tourism Targets
For his part, Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khatib indicated that the country seeks to be economically, socially and environmentally sustainable to reach net zero in the sector, explaining in a dialogue session that Saudi Arabia may record the visit of about 100 million tourists this year, bringing the sector’s contribution to about 6% of GDP.
He said that under the guidance of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, all constructions on the Red Sea are environmentally friendly, indicating that the government aims to increase the contribution of the tourism sector from 3 to 10 percent by 2030.
According to Minister Al-Khatib, “Our reach of 30 million tourists in Saudi Arabia represents 40 percent of the Kingdom’s goals, and we are investing more than $800 billion in building the travel and tourism-related part of mega projects, such as NEOM, Trojena, the Red Sea, Qiddiya, and private sector projects.”
Source:
Asharq Al-Awsat Newspaper