I once overheard a comment that offended me even though I saw some truth to it. The comment was “Innovation begins where a Saudi ends” it was of course referring to the letter ‘I’. A lot of discussions revolve around how Saudis consume but never produce, manufacture but never invent even though they supposedly have everything.

I had many discussions when I was a college student with intelligent individuals from the US, the UK and Australia and still have similar discussion with all kinds of people from many different countries, in person and also on the Internet. What I have tried to do here is to come up with a list of reasons of why most Saudis don’t invent or innovate. I have combined points of view from both Saudis and non-Saudis and here are the results:

Education: Our educational system is based on memorization and not on acquiring cognitive abilities. Even in college, I only came across 8 out of 60 subjects that challenged my ability to ‘think outside the box.’ In order to pass the test, all you had to do was memorize the book or the questions and problems set in the previous years. Someone I knew in high school learned Braille (the writing system for the blind) and cheated on exams by reading the underside of the desk with his hand. He is considered a genius but a failure within our educational system.

Peer Pressure and Everyday Distractions: When you have groups of 15-25 year olds doing nothing every day but watching TV, playing games, and cruising the streets, there is hardly any time left to do research.

If any of them had any idea how to do research in the first place. And believe it or not, it is for this reason that you find girls are more innovative then boys; not being able to drive and roam the streets is somewhat of a blessing in disguise for them.

The Community: I don’t encourage wasting time and recklessness, but people should be able to pursue their dreams if they feel reasonably confident of their success. Here, however, the second people talk about business projects, they become the target of a scare campaign from family and friends — as if a low-paying job were the best they could ever hope for.

I know the family and friends think they are looking out for their loved ones who should be thankful for even having a job, but the willingness to try something new should be set above our inability to imagine.

The Business World: Getting a patent is a long and tiring process and I have only one question I’d like answered: Why is it that whenever a Saudi invents something, he files for a patent in the US instead of here?

In the end, it all really comes down to incentive. It is said that in Saudi Arabia unless you have the talent to be a singer, poet or a football player, then you are on your own. Try to invent anything and all you get is a few “wows” and “nice words” from friends and family. If you try to get a patent, then God help you. And if you market your invention and it shows a hint of success, then cheap knock-offs from the Far East will soon flood the markets and drown any hopes of profit.

Fortunately, things are looking up. Some businessmen are giving back to the community in the form of grants and no-interest loans to sponsor feasible projects by young Saudis who have no other means of funding their dreams.

Maybe in the near future, university labs will get enough funding to pull them out of the sorry state they are in.