RIYADH, 12 October 2004 — The Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority announced a new strategy here yesterday to boost domestic investment by creating a pro-business environment and leveraging the Kingdom’s competitive advantages in terms of its geographical location, abundant energy resources and partnering with the public and private sectors.
Spelling out the salient features of the policy, Amr A. Al-Dabbagh, governor of SAGIA, told a press conference that the paradigm shift would proceed in partnership with the public and private sectors to stimulate economic development in a balanced and coherent manner.
To this end, a Centennial Fund has been launched to help young Saudi men and women run their own businesses through a package of financial support and professional guidance in general management. One of the highlights of the program is that Saudi citizens (including women) and residents have offered to act as mentors for budding entrepreneurs supported by the fund.
Their business acumen, together with SAGIA’s expert guidance, could set the stage for harnessing domestic investments into productive channels ranging from a host of projects in the industrial and energy sectors. The enormous liquidity available in the market following the current wave of buoyancy in the oil market and the SR15 billion deposits from Saudi women locked up in banks could spur a massive industrialization program in underdeveloped regions of the Kingdom, besides facilitating the launch of industrial estates to provide job opportunities for 15,000 women.
Al-Dabbagh said SAGIA would deputize its staff to support the trial program of the Centennial Fund. It will also receive applications and process the data entry for the applicants.
The governor said that in line with its new strategy SAGIA will initiate programs for developing Haqil on Aqaba coast in the northwestern part of the Kingdom.
He pointed out that an important element of their strategy would be to identify opportunities that spring from the Kingdom’s competitive advantages. In providing guidelines to the investors, SAGIA will take into account various factors, including possible threats and opportunities. “It will cooperate to market the opportunities in a targeted manner to maximize the impact,” he observed.
Asked if security concerns could hinder the investment flow, the SAGIA chief said recent investments in the telecom and energy sectors have shown that overseas investors have not been deterred by the recent wave of terrorist attacks. Al-Dabbagh said investment offers worth $4.5 billion from Somitomo of Japan and the $32.5 billion bid from Etisalat of the UAE for the launch of a second GSM firm provided ample testimony to high investor confidence.
In reply to a question, he conceded that the circulation of counterfeit products in the market was a source of concern to investors in manufacturing consumer products.
Providing an insight into the launch of its strategic initiative, the governor said it was developed on the basis of personal interviews with over 100 ministers, senior government officials, local and international business leaders and academics. He said they used Malaysia, Dubai, Singapore and Ireland as models for benchmarking SAGIA’s new strategy.
