DAMMAM, 26 November 2007 — Saudi Arabia’s plans for economic and industrial expansion and its requirements for the development of education, infrastructure, real estate and tourism were the topics of intense discussion at the Saudi Investment Forum here yesterday.
On the second day of the three-day forum, the panel of speakers, which included senior government and private sector representatives, highlighted the country’s strategic plans for mid-term and long-term growth and discussed the plusses and minuses associated with a booming Gulf economy.
The focus was on the industry’s needs to meet growth forecast and current and future plans to fulfill them. Speakers talked about how mega-projects could lead to the creation of real estate projects and what was required from the real estate sector in order to ensure that the economic cities all over the Kingdom were successful.
Education and speeding up the process of hiring nationals also came in for interesting discussions. As always, Dubai was mentioned as a successful economic model by some and rejected by others. Among those who rejected the Dubai model was Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority’s Economic City Manager Omar H. Al-Madhi. “We don’t want to follow the Dubai model which essentially revolves around the concept of ‘If you build it, people will come.’ That is not true for us. We are learning from the creation of each economic city. King Abdullah Economic City has taught us a lot. It is a unique experience. We will follow the needs of our industry,” he said in response to a suggestion from a delegate to follow Saudi Aramco’s “Lessons Learned” project, which essentially means take the good and leave the bad.
Al-Madhi said Saudi Arabia was looking at a regional rather than a local focus. “We will go by clear studies and clear reports. We don’t want to create something that we later realize was not required. We will follow our own model and we are seeing the good results of this policy.”
One of the delegates asked Al-Madhi how these economic cities could be successful when there was no infrastructure. “The Internet connection is appalling. The transportation facilities are next to nothing. The focus should have been on infrastructure first before these cities came into being,” said the delegate. Al-Madhi said economic cities were smart cities. “They will have all kinds of facilities that are not ordinarily available to everybody. These cities will have special transportation facilities. They will have broadband connections,” Al-Madhi responded.
He agreed, however, that there was a great need for more low-cost airlines and other modes of transportation. “That is where this kind of forum can help. To come up with solutions or directions,” he said.
Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Mojel of Al-Mojel Projects Co. said the focus should be on creating an extensive road network. “We are talking about promoting tourism. Well, very good. But provide roads so we can reach those spots,” he said, and called for creating a number of rest houses along the routes to tourist places. “If you don’t have a good rest house along the way, people will not take that road. There is a need for massive infrastructure development.”
Also on the panel was King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) Interim Provost Ahmad Al-Khowaiter. He was asked whether the new research university would be a mirage or an oasis. “Why should this university get special treatment when other universities are doing a commendable job with all the constraints?” asked Dr. Mohamed Ramady of King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM). “It will turn into a ghetto where external researchers will have all they wish. How will it benefit Saudi society?” he wondered, adding, “It will be a bubble.”
Al-Khowaiter agreed that it would be a bubble. “Universities everywhere are bubbles because they think ahead of their times. KAUST aims to break the status quo. Innovation will come only when we go for something drastic. And this university will be directly integrated into Saudi society because we see the undergraduate population from Saudi universities as the base of the new university. Yes, it is challenging. But it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take it up,” he said.
Al-Khowaiter reminded the delegates of how, when Stanford University was created, there was a similar campaign at the time. “’Why create this in the middle of nowhere?’ was the question frequently asked at the time,” he said. “Look now how the whole Silicon Valley is where it is because of Stanford,” he said. “Such pioneering projects require a special environment and we are creating that for KAUST.”
The three-day forum, organized by Asharqia Chamber and CWC Associates Ltd, has attracted a huge number of foreign participants who are interested in launching joint ventures. Among them was Anderson Homer of Piranha Technology Asset Management Ltd. Homer is a software development manager based in Trinidad. His company specializes in what is called end of life electronics management, which is electronic waste management as well as software development.
“We came to Saudi Arabia to get a feel for the business as we realize there is much room and opportunity for the services that we offer. I don’t think it is coincidental that the day we landed in Saudi Arabia, going through Arab News, that there was a comprehensive article about electronic waste being shipped to China. Electronic waste is a growing problem worldwide and the Middle East is not exempt from the problem. But there is a solution, and that is what our company is seeking to do,” said Homer.
He said he and his business partner had already had meetings and were in the process of partnering with some Saudi companies.
“With the current growth in information technology and technology as a whole in the Kingdom, we see the need to have systems and processes in place to manage IT assets as they become outdated or reach their end-of-life.”