JEDDAH, 19 January — A galaxy of former heads of world governments and experts have started arriving here to participate in this year's Jeddah Economic Forum which begins its three-day session at the Laylati Ballrooms from tomorrow, under the auspices of Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed.
Former German Chancellor Dr. Helmut Kohl is among those already here. He had a meeting with Walid Juffali, chairman, E.A. Juffali & Bros. at the Westin Jeddah. The meeting, although termed "private," generally related to the theme of the event and reflected on the significance of the Kingdom opening up its economy to outside investment, according to reports.
Aside from Dr. Kohl, two other former heads of state, who will be giving keynote addresses, are: Carlos Menem, former president of Argentina, and former French President Valery Giscard d'Estaing.
To ensure smooth proceedings, a Saudi trilingual discussant, capable of speaking Arabic, English and the keyspeaker's language, will lead and facilitate each day's discussions. On day one Walid Juffali will be assisting in German; Abdullah Binzagr, on day two director of Beit Binzagr will assist in French and Kareem Fuad A. Nazir, attorney at law, will be speaking in Spanish on the final day of the event.
Other international speakers include the heads of multinationals like Royal Dutch/Shell, Proctor & Gamble, United Bank of Switzerland, the Carlyle Group, Unilever, Matsushita and Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. The combined annual revenue of these overseas companies is $326 billion, a total bigger than the gross domestic product of Greece, South Africa or Denmark.
Other speakers include a selection of prominent academics and specialists, including the dean of London Business School, who will focus on the challenges that modern business is facing in today's age of information or knowledge.
"Wealth creation in a knowledge-based economy" is the theme of this year's forum, which is being organized by the Jeddah Marketing Board (JMB) and the MIT Sloan School of Management, one of the world's foremost business schools. More than 500 delegates are expected to attend the forum. "The mixture of leading local and foreign personalities at the 2001 forum will provide a potent force for understanding how global trends will affect the Middle East, commented JMB Chairman Amr Dabbagh.
"The Kingdom has an important stake in the global economy and Prince Abdul Majeed and Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority Governor Prince Abdullah ibn Faisal ibn Turki will provide a vital insight into the drive to attract investment in the Kingdom. The businessmen will be able to direct the discussions about how business here is adapting to the 'New World Economy.' It's by interpreting what happens abroad in a local Middle East context that the forum will have its greatest impact. Business here has to learn what to embrace and what to avoid in the new technology-based communications revolution," Dabbagh added.
In its third year, the Jeddah Economic Forum was set up to highlight the vital contribution the city has given to the region as a center of finance and trade. It has provided the Gulf with a challenging and lively opportunity to debate some of the most important business issues affecting the world and the Middle East today.
