In this country, foreign investors find themselves in a whirlwind of interconnecting, clashing and unclear responsibilities of unparalleled proportion.
“Routine” (the basis on which we work) must be clear and unambiguous. It must be applied to the letter and should be subject to serious questioning in order for it to be acceptable to foreign investors. Multi-national companies usually have major investments all over the world and in order to oversee and administer those regional investments they will set up regional offices.
I know of certain companies who applied for a license to open an office in the Kingdom and after two years of repeated visits to the concerned government department were refused.
Another company, after setting up a regulatory framework for supervision and administration of its investments in the region, met with objections from officials because the company employed a foreign regional director. The company packed up and moved to a different country. A third example is a company that went to the notary public to register an investment partnership agreement and was surprised to find him insisting on changes to be made in the clauses of the contract and his refusal to register the contracts which had already been approved by the concerned government department. Competition on the world stage in increasing, and we can never hope to invigorate the national economy with these kinds of difficulties and challenges for foreign investors. We must specify and clarify the rules in a manner that allows us to maintain our identity and our standards while giving the investor peace of mind and freedom to work within the rules and regulations.
A seminar was held in London last month dealing with investment risks. Those present collectively agreed that the risk for investors in Saudi Arabia is 40 percent more than what they are used to — this negatively affects our economy. It may also be the result of misinformation. In any case, we must agree that we need to provide the foreign and for that matter the national investor with support services in order to invigorate the economy and confront unemployment.
We do acknowledge the efforts to reform governmental functions and but we also know that people are tired of all the delays and impediments they face. e must demand our rights, but in a manner that ensures we don’t intrude on others’ rights. While leadership undertakes economical and social development we also need to play a part in economic growth.
We must set up programs for mutual investment, and training programs in remote areas, and support small projects as part of the development program to achieve balance within the country. Achieving balance results in social and economic justice and reduces the monopoly on profits that is so blatant in certain economic activities. Equality and social justice are two of the most important objectives of the country’s last seven development plans.
