RIYADH, 7 January 2004 — The Ministry of Culture and Information has licensed CNBC Arabiya to open a news bureau in Riyadh. It is the first international news channel to be granted a business license for reporting from the Kingdom.
Zafar Siddiqui, CNBC Arabiya chairman and CEO, said Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Prince Turki ibn Sultan had expedited the processing of the application. “The Saudi economy is growing and diversifying and there is a wealth of news and information about business and economic developments that CNBC Arabiya will report,” Siddiqui quoted the deputy minister as saying.
CNBC Arabiya is an affiliate of the American satellite channel, CNBC. As a gesture to the Kingdom’s business community, CNBC-Arabiya will be one of the sponsors of the 2004 Jeddah Economic Forum at the Jeddah Hilton from Jan. 17-19.
Siddiqui said the Arabic service of CNBC would broadcast to the Kingdom from Dubai Media City where its regional office is located. Coverage will be mainly economic news involving the stock market and the banking and investment sector. There will a daily one-hour program devoted to Saudi Arabia and its economic news.
Siddiqui said that a major priority would be to attract Saudi talent to the editorial section. “We want to train young talented Saudis, including women, for a career in broadcast journalism. We have held discussions relating to this with the Department of Mass Communications at King Saud University.”
Asked about the capital that CNBC Arabiya would bring into the Kingdom, he said that over $500,000 had already been invested as the initial capital required under the Kingdom’s investment regulations. The operational cost could go as high as $15 million over a three-year period.
Spelling out the corporate goals, Dr. Waleed Kurdi, CNBC Arabiya chief editor, said: “CNBC Arabiya is committed to bringing our viewers across the region a clear understanding of regional and international business news as it happens. We strive to meet the demand for on-time information by building our newsgathering infrastructure and resources. Our presence in the Kingdom will significantly enhance our coverage of the largest economy in the Middle East. The establishment of a Riyadh office will allow us to deliver in-depth business news about the Kingdom with on-the-ground understanding and insight.”
Kurdi added that since the launch of the channel some six months ago, CNBC Arabiya had established itself as a leading source of television business news in the region.
He pointed out that it features the first daily program covering the region’s corporate news and daily regional stock market report in addition to regional and international business news programs broadcast live from London. “CNBC Arabiya editorial content is developed and generated by Arabs for our Arab audiences. It is not imported or prepackaged,” he added.
