The minister inaugurated a workshop on "The Role of Young Entrepreneurs in Managing Family Businesses in the Kingdom" at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) on Saturday. Researchers, academicians and young businessmen and women were present at the workshop.

There are some 800,000 family businesses in the Kingdom with a working capital of SR250 billion.

Emphasizing the importance of protecting family businesses, Alireza, who is from a business family in Jeddah, said that such businesses were playing a predominant role in the economic development of the country. He added that a convention was being drafted by the ministry in cooperation with the consultations of reputed business houses to ensure a smooth transfer of power from one generation to another.

The minister pointed out that he was the head of his family business, while the deputy is his sister. It proves,he said that women should also be given an opportunity to participate in such ventures.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is also preparing a directory to guide family businessmen and to advise how the young generation should inherit from their parents, the minister said. "The best way to help continue family businesses is to make the venture a joint stock company," the minister noted.

Saad Al-Moajil, vice chairman of the RCCI said that 90 percent of the businesses in the Kingdom were owned by families. He pointed out that RCCI had introduced a directory for such businessmen to help continue their venture after the deaths of the founders of their establishments. " It also advises them as to how they should face the challenges in an open economy and how to compete with big companies under the present context," he said, indicating that the third generation would face such challenges in their respective businesses.