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Recent stories from sustg

  • Op-Ed: Block of WhatsApp, Skype Flunks Smart Phones
     

    The proposal by telecommunications regulatory commissions in Saudi Arabia to ban VoIP services like WhatsApp and Skype, which are an inexpensive and preferred way by many to communicate, particularly between students and families abroad, has caused several in the Saudi media to take issue with the ban.

     
  • A Kingdom’s Thirst: The Saudi Water Challenge
     

    It’s no secret that Saudi Arabia is a dry place in a particularly arid region of the world. The dearth of water resources in the Kingdom is among its foremost challenges, with some estimates predicting full depletion by 2050 if nothing is done.

     
  • 17-day long Janadriyah festival for Saudi Heritage and Culture to begin April 3
     

    The 28th National Festival for Heritage and Culture at Al-Janadriyah showcasing the cultures and traditions of Saudi Arabia will open Wednesday, April 3, the Saudi Gazette reports. The festival is a display of Saudi culture and tradition. China is a guest country at the celebration, and will have a pavilion that is 2.000 sq. meters “at the […]

     
  • Unusual Video Footage Shows Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mosque Under Construction
     

    Amazing footage of the ongoing construction at Mecca’s Grand Mosque surfaced on Facebook, showing the large-scale reconstructive efforts at the holy site in Saudi Arabia. The video, shot from what looks like a crane, shows worshippers circling the Kaaba with construction efforts ongoing at the mataf expansion not far away. The amateur footage shows the […]

     
  • We’re here, can we come in? TASI and foreign investors
     

    The figurative lobby to the Tadawul All Shares Index (TASI), Saudi Arabia’s stock market, is filling up with eager investors.  Intrigued by the $387 billion Saudi stock market (three times the UAE bourses combined) and the $727 billion Saudi economy, many of them think… Brazil; whose fully accessible stock market’s capitalization exceeds $1 trillion. While […]

     
  • First of 84 new Boeing F-15SAs bound for Saudi Arabia Tested as U.S.-Saudi Military Relations Remain Active
     

    UPI.com reports that the first new Boeing F-15SA completed a successful test flight last month in the United States. The report quotes Lt. Gen. C. D. Moore II, the commander of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, who said, “The successful first flight of the F-15SA is a tremendous milestone for the program and […]

     
  • Saudi Youth Filmmaking on the Rise
     

    Social media continues to catalyze Saudi Arabia in unpredictable ways.  Fatima Al-Arjan takes a look at the rise of video blogging ‘vloggers.’  Short videos – some 36 seconds at maximum – have proliferated.  While sometimes a platform for controversial posts, like many on-line communities, this one seems to be maturing. In a related item, female […]

     
  • Saudi Prince Alwaleed Joins Twitter
     

    HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal has joined Twitter, the microblogging social network in which the Prince holds a 3% stake. In an announcement in both Arabic and English on his official handle, @Alwaleed_Talal, Alwaleed’s office noted that the businessman will soon be active on Twitter:   The Private Office of HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal […]

     
  • Lockheed Nets $253 Million Training Contract
     

    US-based Lockheed Martin will provide Virtual Training Technologies in support of Saudi Arabia’s F-15SA Modernization Program. The news comes on the heels of a recent announcement that the company had set up a branch in Riyadh on February 8th.  — According to a Press Release, Lockheed Martin, the Bethesda, Maryland-based aerospace company, has received a contract […]

     
  • Saudi youth, the issue of unemployment and work ethic
     

    Abdulateef Al-Mulhim is a well-known Saudi commentator who is appreciated – at least here at SUSTG – for his willingness to take on sensitive topics and provide his particular perspective.  In this item he addresses the work ethic of young Saudis, a subject of much debate.  Not surprisingly, there are numerous facets to the discussion […]

     

MUST-READS

  • Saudi insurance spending per capita up 30% to SAR 2,034 in 2023

    Per capita spending on insurance in Saudi Arabia grew 30% to SAR 2,034 by the end of 2023, compared to SAR 1,564 a year earlier, data from the Insurance Authority (IA) showed. The per capita insurance spending is defined as the gross written premiums (GWPs) during the year divided by population number. Health insurance accounted for 59% of total per capita spending in the sector last year, followed by general insurance with 37%, as well as protection and savings insurance with 4%.

  • How would a President Harris deal with Saudi Arabia?

    As president, Harris would have to accept that close ties with Riyadh are necessary. There is already a draft bilateral agreement with Saudi Arabia that includes security guarantees and cooperation on civilian nuclear power. While the vice president is campaigning, improbably, as the candidate of change, she should pick up the threads of Biden’s existing policy on Saudi Arabia.

  • NASCAR linked with possible race in Saudi Arabia toward end of decade

    NASCAR was listed with a caveat that it was one of the parties having discussions as opposed to having a firm deal. NASCAR COO Steve O’Donnell and Exec VP and Chief Venue & Racing Innovations Officer Ben Kennedy both told SBJ in separate interviews in ’23 that the Middle East was one of the regions they were exploring for potential events, alongside Europe, South America and Asia.

  • Amjad Iraqi: The Future of Palestinians in Israel

    Amjad Iraqi: It's definitely been quite a complex experience. I think first of all, Gaza's not just sort of an imaginary construct for Palestinian citizens. There are very real family connections, community connections, and Palestinian history. Gaza is, and has always been, very much the center of Palestinian identity and politics and culture. And so, to experience it in this moment whereby you're seeing Gaza decimated in the way that it's been, I think has been very profoundly shocking to Palestinian citizens as much as it has to other Palestinians.

  • Cruise Saudi expanding to 10 destinations along Red Sea coast, 3 new ports underway

    Currently operational ports include Jeddah, Yanbu, and Dammam, which have already facilitated visits from hundreds of thousands of international tourists. Among the new developments is AlWajh, which Clasen revealed will serve as a gateway to AlUla, plus a private island and beach location exclusively for cruise passengers.

  • Saudi Arabia Turns to Debt Markets for Vision 2030 Financing

    According to Saudi Arabia’s National Debt Management Center, the kingdom’s total debt stood at some $308.7 billion at the end of September. Of this total, $183.7 billion was domestic debt, and the remaining $125 billion was foreign debt. Compared to U.S. debt, this is nothing. But compared to 2019 debt levels, it is a palpable increase: in 2019, Saudi debt stood at $180.8 billion.

  • Saudi sees tenfold surge in foreign firms since 2016

    Saudi Arabia has seen a sharp increase in foreign firms establishing operations in the country, with numbers rising tenfold compared to the period before Saudi Vision 2030, the kingdom’s mammoth economic diversification plan, was launched in 2016, said Khalid al-Falih, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Investment, at the Future Investment Initiative (FII).

  • Saudi crown prince meets with global leaders including Pakistani PM, Jordanian counterpart

    Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan on Tuesday, Saudi Press Agency reported. The prime minister and his accompanying delegation are in the Kingdom to attend the Future Investment Initiative conference. During the conference, Sharif shared with attendees his government was looking forward to forging new partnerships in artificial intelligence (AI), education and health.

  • Saudi Arabia’s Renewable Energy Initiatives and Their Geopolitical Implications

    One approach Saudi Arabia has adopted is investing heavily in renewable energy, particularly through partnerships with China. This has had the effect of accelerating the country’s progress in renewable energy, with far-reaching implications for global geopolitics and energy markets. Specifically, Saudi Arabia is increasingly becoming aligned with China while China is gaining greater access to Middle Eastern markets and greater regional influence.

  • Franklin Templeton launches two Saudi Arabia funds

    Saudia Arabia also has the largest and fastest-growing bond market among Golf Cooperation Countries, hence its launch of the the Franklin Saudi Arabia Bond fund, which will invest in debt securities and obligations issued by government and corporate entities in the region. Its second product, the Franklin FTSE Saudi Arabia UCITS ETF, will track the FTSE Saudi Arabia 30/18 Capped index, which consists of 64 large and mid-cap Saudi Arabian equities. Dina Ting and Lorenzo Crosato will managed the fund.