JEDDAH: The National Transformation Program (NTP) for 2020 is the ideal strategy to deal with the current economic conditions in the country and the world, according to several local experts.

They said the NTP, the operational plan for Vision 2030, would set up the required infrastructure to help overhaul the economy, including ensuring efficient spending, according to a report in a local publication.

These goals would be achieved through partnerships with the private sector and save the government nearly 40 percent of the costs of some programs in addition to the creation of 450,000 nongovernment jobs by 2020, they said.

Mohammed Al-Omran, a business writer, said the NTP would transform the economy from its dependence on oil to one that is more productive and diversified. This was similar to programs successfully applied by the United States in the post-World War II era, and in Britain in the 80s under Margaret Thatcher, he said.

He said great value can be added to the assets of the state through privatization. For example, the 5 percent floating of Saudi Aramco would yield $100 billion, for a company estimated to be worth $2 trillion by global financial firms, he said.

He said many developing countries are competing to introduce sustainable economic development plans to boost production levels, raise employment and attract foreign direct investment.

Economist Fadl Albuainain said the announcement of the NTP through press conferences was a new strategy adopted by the government to demonstrate it was moving with the times. He said the NTP would create the necessary infrastructure to realize Saudi Vision 2030.