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RIYADH: Small and medium enterprises in Saudi Arabia are set to prosper thanks to 23 new initiatives launched by the SME General Authority, also known as Monsha’at.
The plans are linked to seven strategic goals embedded within programs affiliated with Vision 2030 — the economic diversification strategy which will see the Kingdom move away from its reliance on the oil trade, Saudi Press Agency reported.
The initiatives put forward by Monsha’at will support goals including the development and sustainability of Saudi Arabia’s financial sector.
They will also target human capacity development as well as the growth of national industry and logistics services.
The goals were part of the National Transformation Program presented by Monsha’at, which also showed the increase in SMEs from 429,026 in 2016 to 1.14 million in 2022, reflecting a growth rate of 166 percent.
In addition to this, the authority also secured second place in the National Entrepreneurship Context Index in 2022, up from its ranking of 41 in 2018, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report.
In the financial sector development program, Monsha’at contributed to establishing a national SME Bank and raising the share of lending to suitable firms from 5.4 percent in 2018 to 8.3 percent in 2022 — a growth rate of 54 percent.
During the same period, the authority launched a portal to link financiers from the government and private sectors with SMEs wishing to obtain funding. The value provided through the portal amounted to more than SR18 billion ($4.7 billion).
Other moves towards helping secure the goals related to Vision 2030 include Monsha’at establishing the Saudi Venture Capital Investment Co. with the aim of promoting the concept of bold and direct investment in emerging enterprises while stimulating the private sector to invest.
The authority also launched the Government Fee Refund initiative in 2018 which contributed to encouraging SMEs to enter the market, while supporting them to achieve growth during the first years of operation.
In the National Industry Development and Logistics Program, Monsha’at launched the Jadeer service to facilitate the access of SMEs to purchasing opportunities in the public and private sectors. The number of establishments qualified through the service has reached more than 2,300.
RIYADH: Saudi firms are increasingly playing an important role in driving the economy, with the share of local content continuing to rise in various sectors as the Kingdom’s diversification efforts gain momentum, revealed an annual report tracking the Vision 2030 blueprint.
This comes as Saudi Arabia has achieved 59.5 percent of local content in the oil and gas sector as opposed to the targeted baseline of 37 percent in 2022.
Local content refers to the percentage of goods, services, and skills sourced from local suppliers and workforce within the Kingdom.
The aim of promoting local content is to increase the participation of local businesses and citizens in the industry’s supply chain, which can lead to economic growth, job creation and technology transfer.
According to the report, the Kingdom also surpassed its targets for the share of non-oil exports for non-oil gross domestic product by 6.3 percentage points.
While the target set for the share of non-oil exports in the non-oil GDP was 18.7 percent, the Kingdom achieved 25 percent in 2022.
Small and medium enterprises loans as a percentage of bank loans also outscored the baseline target of 2 percent last year by attaining 8 percent.
This helped the Kingdom reduce its unemployment rate to 8 percent among locals against the intended target of 12.3 percent.
Women’s participation was also brought to fruition, with their percentage reaching 34.5 percent compared to the planned 22.8 percent in 2022.
The report further revealed that the percentage of university graduates joining the labor market within six months of graduation touched 32 percent against the targeted 13.3 percent.
The Kingdom also excelled on the UN E-Government Development Index, securing 31st rank last year. Its target for 2022 was 44.
“The future of the Kingdom is blessed and promising. Our country deserves more than what has been achieved. We have capabilities; we will double their role and increase their contribution in making this future,” Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is quoted as saying in the report.
“Our history records the greatest and most successful collection of directed purposes to building a modern state whose foundation is the citizen, its pillar is development and its goal is prosperity,” King Salman added in the report.
RIYADH: Saudi families have received more support to own their homes after SR933 million ($248 million) was deposited into their Sakani accounts in April.
The amount — paid out by Saudi Arabia’s Real Estate Development Fund in conjunction with the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing — is in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 goals which aim to provide adequate housing opportunities for Saudi families.
The amount was allocated to support various housing support contracts, according to the REDF CEO Mansour bin Madi.
Sakani is a real estate initiative to support and enable Saudi citizens to own their first home.
In January, the fund deposited SR912 million in the accounts of Sakani beneficiaries.
The CEO further indicated that the total amount deposited in the accounts of Sakani beneficiaries since the program’s announcement from June 2017 until April 2023 exceeded SR47.1 billion.
Over half of the total beneficiaries who completed an initial period of up to three years after signing their financing contracts were able to update the construction stages through the fund’s website, Madi disclosed.
Madi also stressed the importance of updating stages of self-construction to ensure that the fund supports the beneficiaries of the product as well as the continuity of housing support for them.
The Sakani program seeks to raise the proportion of housing ownership for Saudi families to 70 percent by 2030.
Ongoing initiatives implemented by the government, including access to finance and regulations standardizations, are reforming the housing market and improving access for Saudi families, according to a report from PwC Middle East.
Saudi Arabia’s housing demand stood at 99,600 houses in 2021 and is expected to increase by more than 50 percent to reach 153,000 by 2030.
RIYADH: Danish shipping giant Maersk has stopped taking new bookings of goods and cargo for Sudan in light of the ongoing conflicts in the country, according to a company statement.
The firm will monitor the situation and search for solutions to stabilize its supply chain services in the country, it added.
Due to the escalating violence and political unrest in Sudan, global supply chains strained by the Russia-Ukraine crisis are now experiencing additional disruptions, reported specialist news agency The Loadstar.
It added that other significant container carriers, including German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd, have halted cargo bookings for the African country until further notice out of concern for operational risks.
Hapag-Lloyd stated: “Any bookings placed up to this date will be honored and shipped to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.”
French container transportation company CMA CGM announced this morning that it would add a $500 “extra risk coverage surcharge” for dry and reefer shipments from Europe, the Middle East, and India starting May 1.
Currently, all roads and bridges of Port Sudan are open for the transportation of goods, and load and discharge operations are proceeding normally inside the port, reported leading maritime insurer West of England P&I Club on Tuesday.
Port Sudan is crucial for oil exports from the landlocked neighboring country of South Sudan.
“Furthermore, the oil terminal at Bashayer, an essential facility that handles Sudan’s oil exports located near Port Sudan, is operating normally,” added West of England P&I Club.
In December, a consortium led by AD Ports Group and Invictus Investment signed a preliminary agreement with Sudan to build and operate the Abu Amama port and economic zone on the Red Sea with a $6 billion investment.
As the Sudanese conflict unravels, it is unclear how the deal will develop further.
Moreover, most Gulf airlines stopped operating in Sudan following a recent incident involving a Saudia passenger flight being shot at earlier this month.
According to an industry advisory, Emirates has announced a prolonged suspension of flight connections to Khartoum, the busiest airport in Sudan, through to May 31.
“The air space has been closed, disrupting air cargo shipments to Khartoum. Supply chain managers are dealing with difficult times to fulfill their customers’ requirements.” Joy John, director of sea and air freight at Mumbai-based Jet Freight Logistics, told The Loadstar.
RIYADH: In a bid to boost tourism in Saudi Arabia, Diriyah Co., formerly known as Diriyah Gate Development Authority, has joined hands with Switzerland-based hospitality firm Aman Group to unveil two new hotels in the Kingdom.
Aman Wadi Safar will be located near Riyadh, and will feature 78 rooms, 34 branded residences, and amenities such as a spa and dining outlets, according to a press release.
Janu Diriyah, a hotel from Aman’s sister brand Janu, will be located near the UNESCO world heritage site of At-Turaif. This hotel will have 120 rooms, a wellness center and dining outlets.
“We are very proud to launch Diriyah’s partnership with Aman, delivering two outstanding projects in Wadi Safar and Diriyah. Diriyah, the City of Earth, will be the world’s largest cultural and heritage destination and these projects will enhance our luxury offerings to guests who come to explore our identity,” said Jerry Inzerillo, group CEO of Diriyah Co.
He added: “Aman Group have developed these projects by harnessing our unique setting at the heart of 300 years of Saudi history, while embracing our shared future as a city and a community. We are delighted to celebrate the beginning of our journey together.”
Vlad Doronin, chairman and CEO of Aman Group, said this announcement is once again affirming the commitment of the company toward Saudi Arabia.
“Aman Wadi Safar and Janu Diriyah will build upon Aman Group’s existing pipeline of properties in Saudi Arabia and reinforce our strategic vision to offer our clients the opportunity to experience the breadth of this fascinating, previously undiscovered country with journeys that encompass city experiences, remote desert landscapes and UNESCO World Heritage Sites,” added Doronin.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power has closed a $123 million financing package with a group of international banks to develop the 200MW Kom Ombo project, a utility-scale solar power plant in Egypt, the firm said in a statement.
The Kom Ombo project will be located about 20 km away from Africa’s biggest solar park, the 1,465MW Benban complex — another ACWA Power development — the company said, adding that the new utility-scale plant will serve 130,000 households once it is commercially operational in January 2024.
The loan was obtained from several regional and international financial institutions, including $36 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, $14.6 million from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ Fund for International Development, and $14.4 million from the African Development Bank.
The EBRD had earlier provided $14 million in equity bridge loans to the project, with another $45 million coming from the Arab Petroleum Investments Corp., the firm said.
The package also includes $34.5 million from the Green Climate Fund, $4.8 million from the Arab Bank, and $10 million from the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa as part of the COVID-19 innovation public procurement aid program.
“The Kom Ombo solar project further demonstrates the private sector’s active involvement in Egypt’s energy transition. This accomplishment highlights the shared vision and purpose of various global financing institutions in achieving the Republic’s targets, which would not be possible without the trust and support of the government, the Egyptian people, and communities,” Marco Arcelli, CEO of ACWA Power, said.
He noted that the financing documentation was initially signed in April 2021 with EBRD, the OPEC Fund, GCF, ADB, and Arab Bank.
However, the changes in global supply chains caused by COVID-19 resulted in Kom Ombo’s timescale being extended.
The Kom Ombo facility will support Egypt in reaching its goal of producing 42 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2035, while also offering one of the lowest generating tariffs in Africa.