MUST-READS

• Down on the farm, Saudi Arabia has a $9.8bn hole to fill

  The Saudi government is stepping up efforts to attract investors to its agriculture sector after identifying a funding gap of SAR37 billion ($9.8 billion). The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture says there are investment opportunities in plant and animal production, as well as fisheries, processing, manufacture of agricultural products and infrastructure development. Saudi Arabia imports 80 percent of its food at the moment, but is working to increase domestic production as part of its Vision 2030 plans for food security. Farming contributed about SAR109 billion to Saudi Arabia's economy in 2023 – up from just under SAR100 billion a year earlier. This was the sector's highest contribution so far, agriculture minister Abdulrahman Alfadley told a trade fair last month.

• Saudi Arabia, a Kingdom in Transition

  However, more notable than the fundamental changes in the US military’s historical postures in West Asia was the appointment of Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) as Saudi crown prince and heir apparent in 2017, and the dramatic changes announced since.^[7],[8] The MBS-led Saudi polity has adopted a two-pronged approach as part of its ‘Vision 2030’:^[9] first, the kingdom must future-proof itself and build alternate economic models not dependent on oil; and second, to realise these changes, it must pursue fundamental ideological shifts away from conservatism or traditionalism towards moderate Islam. Finally, the core challenge for Saudi Arabia, MBS, and Vision 2030, will be political sustainability. While the crown prince arguably has decades in power ahead, managing this transition alongside a young and aspirational population and little experience with a non-oil, market-led economy,^[65] will not be easy. However, the advantage for MBS is that the international community is equally invested in the success of this transition given that its failure will be a tectonic setback.

• HRC Chief: 13 million expats from 60 countries constitute 40% of Saudi population

  Saudi Arabia has exhibited an unprecedented openness to different races and cultures by hosting more than 13 million expatriates who hail from about 60 nationalities, according to President of Saudi Human Rights Commission (HRC) Dr. Hala Al-Tuwaijri. "These expatriates constitute more than 40 percent of the Kingdom's population, and they enjoy their rights guaranteed by the Kingdom's laws and international conventions," she said while speaking in Geneva on Wednesday, leading the Saudi Arabian delegation to the 114th session of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD).

• Saudi Arabia likely to join GCAP jet fighter project, Italy says

  A partnership involving Italy, Britain and Japan to build an advanced front-line fighter jet will likely be extended to Saudi Arabia, the Italian foreign minister said on Wednesday. The three countries agreed in December 2022 on the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), the first major defence industry collaboration merging the separate next-generation fighter efforts of the countries. "The deal we have with Britain and Japan ... I think will now be extended to Saudi Arabia," Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said. The partners aim to see the combat aircraft in flight around the middle of next decade. Firms including Leonardo, BAE Systems and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have been involved in the project.

• Al Rajhi: Saudi Arabia sets revised unemployment target of 5% by 2030

  Al Rajhi said that the implementation rate of the labor market strategy reached 84 percent over the last four years. "Today we were asked to update this strategy, and we have raised a new, very ambitious strategy that will move the Saudi labor market to the ranks of the best global labor markets," he said. Al Rajhi pointed out that the rate of women's economic participation reached 35 percent while the target was 30 percent in 2030. "So today we have a new target in terms of the partners in the private sector as they are the ones who made this achievement. The number of Saudis in the private sector reached 2.4 million, while in 2018 it was about 1.7 million, thanks to God and then to our partners in the private sector," he said.

• Rise in major US law firms setting up in Saudi Arabia

  Saudi authorities have implemented many legal reforms in recent years.  Crucially, say sources, those include a new framework that since last year has supported foreign law firms’ creation of joint ventures with local counterparts, including through full-blown acquisitions, or wholly-owned Saudi subsidiaries. Foreign lawyers have been cleared to practice in Saudi Arabia in 2021 if they secure a license from the Saudi Bar Association. “These reforms, along with the modernisation of the legal and dispute resolution systems, ensure that foreign law firms can operate independently,” says Nassar. Saudi Arabia has upgraded its framework for cross-border bankruptcy proceedings, arbitration, investments, domestic commercial disputes and is looking to reform labour-related regulation, according to sources.

• Is corporate sports sponsorship important? Experts say its a ‘powerful’ strategy

  Unlike traditional marketing, which tends to be a one-way street, sports sponsorship allows brands to become an integral part of the experience of sports enthusiasts, fostering a deeper and more dynamic connection. According to a recent market report The sports sponsorship Market grew from $105.47 billion in 2023 to $114.41 billion in 2024. It is expected to continue growing at a CAGR of 8.73 percent, reaching $189.54 billion by 2030.  

• Saudi Arabia’s Industrial Development Fund injects $3.19bn into the sector, minister confirms

  The Industrial Development Fund provided SR12 billion ($3.19 billion) in financing to the Kingdom in 2024, boosting its global competitiveness, according to leading minister. He continued: “We have key indicators for the industrial sector: First, there are the licenses, which have seen significant growth. By the end of this year, more than 1,100 opportunities have been issued, and 900 factories have entered production. This is a very important key indicator.”

• Saudi 2024 budget sees record spending

  Argaam Macro indicated that Saudi Arabia’s estimated 2024 budget witnessed record spending of SAR 1.34 trillion, reflecting the government’s expansionary fiscal policies to drive economic growth. The Ministry of Finance earlier highlighted significant progress toward Vision 2030 goals, pledging to maintain structural reforms. Transformative spending will focus on sectoral strategies, Vision 2030 programs, and mega projects to support sustainable growth. Social welfare spending will continue to ease the economic impact on targeted groups.

• Saudi Arabia draws $9 billion in new mining deals

  Nine mining and metals deals were announced in Riyadh worth more than $9.32 billion, including a $2 billion deal with India’s Vedanta for copper mining and up to $1.6 billion from China’s Zijin primarily for zinc. Vedanta was lured by incentives including land, water, and power services, and the possibility of a lower cost of capital there, the company’s base metals CEO told Reuters.

  • Solar Quarter - Saudi Arabia Secures SAR35 Billion in Investments for Green Supply Chains and Advanced Manufacturing
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