JEDDAH: The Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) in cooperation with Fujiatlas World Exchange Center Inc, organized a forum on “Japan Miracle” on the cultural day of Japan last week.
The forum emphasized on Japan’s post World War economic and industrial development, and government’s role and private sector contribution. Officials, diplomats, businessmen, senior executives and university students were among those present.
JCCI Vice chairman Mazen Batterjee presided over the event, which was marked by speeches by Japanese Deputy Consul General Koichi Ibara, Mohamed Zekrioui, president, Fujiatlas World Exchange Center Inc, Dr. Anwar Ashqi, president Middle East Center for Strategic and Legal Studies, and Faisal Tahir Khan, business development manager, Fujiatlas World Exchange Center Inc.
“What is Japan Miracle?” was presented by Faisal Tahir Khan who later moderated a brain storming session which talked about Saudi Arabia’s vision for 2020 and discussed matters related to human resource development, competitive advantage, transfer of technology and strategic partnership in knowledge-based industries with Japan.
The concluding session was on “Saudi Arabia’s way forward” that was addressed by Faisal Ahmed Zaki Yamani, executive partner, Ahmed Zaki Yamani Lawyers and legal Consultants, Hisham A.A. Koshak, CEO, Haykalah, Ayman Jamal, partner, Haykalah, and Mishal Abdul Mohsin Al-Suleiman, vice chairman, United Race Ways Company.
The forum made the following suggestions and recommendations:
• Saudi Arabia needs to revamp its education system in order to compete in international market.
• We need to integrate thinking, based on critical analysis in our education system.
• We have to establish partnership with foreign universities to bridge the knowledge gap.
• We need to have student exchange programs with top world universities for exposure and further learning.
• We need to emphasize on teachers training as they are shaping our society.
* We need to develop career guidance and support centers in all universities.
• We should make Internship programs compulsory in all universities in order to obtain a degree to have more practical experience and gain applied knowledge.
• We need to have more professional level specialized courses to develop soft skills which can be useful in specific industry.
• Competitive advantage is only possible through properly investing in people.
• We need to develop Saudi brands and market them globally keeping in mind the international standards.
• We have to develop a strong supply chain management system to make our products accessible to global markets.
• We should teach our youth to take risk and encourage them to start their own business as all great nations have developed economically through entrepreneurial activities.
• We need to teach our youth the modern methods of developing a business not only in Saudi Arabia but globally.
• There should be an institution to encourage and teach entrepreneurship as a science.
• Saudi Arabia needs to develop partnerships with leading Japanese companies in order to transfer their technologies to Saudi Arabia.
