RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is doing its best to maintain a low inflation rate, said Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf while speaking to newsmen on the sidelines of the Third Global Competitiveness Forum in Riyadh.
Al-Assaf said the forum is being held at a time when the world’s economy is in crisis, adding that the banking system is a core element of competitiveness.
The forum began on Sunday and was inaugurated by Municipal and Rural Affairs Minister Prince Miteb on behalf of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah on Sunday.
The conference’s technical session yesterday was addressed by Jean Pascal Tricoire, chief executive officer of Scheneider Electric Company, an energy management company with branches across the world including Saudi Arabia.
Tricoire said the world is facing several challenges such as global warming, and that there is a dire need for clean energy. “The best way to provide clean energy is to save energy which would eventually help achieve the purpose,” he said.
He added that 40 percent of emissions come from buildings such as offices, homes and factories, and that switching over to electric cars is not going to solve the problem of saving energy. “What we need at the moment is environment friendly energy,” he said.
Mark Fuller, chairman of the board of directors of Monitor Company, said that with the change of times, the stress has been shifted from money to human capital and technology. He also noted that there should be a package of incentives from governments to overcome financial crises. “Infrastructure development should include both large and medium size enterprises,” he said.
Willhelm Bender, chairman of Fraport, a company specializing in developing airports, said, “We have contributed a great deal to develop the Frankfurt Airport and we are interested in taking part in the development of the Kingdom’s airports too.”