The Saudi Association of Engineers (SAE) is organizing the two-day event to discuss construction contracts for this year to further boost the Kingdom’s engineering and contracting sectors. It will also review the format of the Saudi "public construction contract," its basic elements and the best Arab and International experiments in the use of construction contracts endorsed by the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC).
Representatives from the FIDIC as well as experts from Arab and European countries will participate in the forum to produce recommendations that will benefit the Kingdom’s construction sector. Engineers and contractors building roads and other basic infrastructure as well as finance managers from a number of concerned government departments will also attend the gathering.
SAE Secretary-General Ghazi Muhammad Al-Ahmadi said this is the first forum of its kind in the Kingdom to discuss public construction contracts. He added that the event is aimed at reviewing the best methods in carrying out construction contracts. He said representatives from the ministries of finance and transport, municipalities, the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and the Islamic Development Bank will also attend the forum.
Nabeel Muhammad Ali Abbas, chairman of the event’s organizing committee, said the construction sector carries particular significance for the national economy. He cited figures released by the Finance Ministry in the first half of 2010 that said 1,018 government contracts were approved during that year with a total value of SR60 billion. The value of government contracts offered during 2008 and 2009 amounted to SR318 billion, he added.
