RIYADH, 26 December 2002 —The flow of foreign investments into Saudi Arabia has dropped sharply since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) Governor Prince Abdullah ibn Faisal told Al-Jazirah newspaper yesterday.
Investments approved by SAGIA since the terror attacks reached only $3.5 billion, he said. The value of investments between April 2000, when SAGIA was established, and early September 2001 was $9.2 billion, he said, adding that the drop was a direct result of the attacks on the United States.
SAGIA was set up to promote foreign investment in the Kingdom. Sectors like telecommunications, insurance, oil exploration, security, retail and wholesale, education, and land and sea transport are among 19 activities still barred to foreign investors.
