Saudi Arabia has set up a new investment promotion authority as the Arab world’s largest economy aims to boost growth.
The Saudi Investment Promotion Authority (Sipa) was launched at the directive of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is the president of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs, the Ministry of Investment said on Wednesday.
“The establishment of Sipa will enable an integrated approach to investment between government agencies while enhancing all activities and services related to investment promotion to support partnerships between local and foreign investors,” Khalid Al Falih, Minister of Investment for Saudi Arabia, said.
The move comes as Saudi Arabia, Opec’s top oil exporter, continues to focus on attracting investment into the country to diversify its economy away from oil.
In October, Prince Mohammed launched the National Investment Strategy, which seeks to attract 388 billion riyals ($103.47bn) in foreign direct investments annually, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency.
The kingdom also expects to increase its domestic investment to about 1.7 trillion riyals by 2030 under the new strategy.
“The launch of Sipa is made possible by the kingdom’s first National Investment Strategy, which seeks to unleash the potential of the kingdom’s strong market fundamentals and the breadth and depth of opportunities created by Vision 2030,” the Ministry of Investment said.
“The strategy aims to increase investment to 30 per cent of GDP [gross domestic product], and catalyse the growth of emerging sectors in the economy.”
In the first quarter of this year, the kingdom signed investment deals worth more than $4bn in sectors including entrepreneurship, advanced manufacturing, defence, information and communications technology, petrochemicals and conversion industries.
Among the big deals announced during the quarter was the $3.4bn investment by US-based Lucid Motors to set up an electric vehicle factory in Saudi Arabia with a production capacity of 155,000 units a year.
Saudi Arabia also signed 13 investment agreements on the sidelines of US President Joe Biden’s visit to the kingdom last month.
The agreements covered sectors including energy, aerospace, defence, textiles, manufacturing, education and tourism, the Ministry of Investment said at the time.
The kingdom's economy in the first quarter of 2022 experienced the highest rate of growth in the last 10 years amid increased activity in the oil sector, government data showed.
The country’s economy is forecast to grow 7.6 per cent in 2022 and 3.7 per cent in 2023, after expanding 3.2 per cent last year, according to the International Monetary Fund.
Changing visa rules
For decades the UAE has granted two and three year visas to foreign workers, tied to their current employer. Now that's changing.
Last year, the UAE cabinet also approved providing 10-year visas to foreigners with investments in the UAE of at least Dh10 million, if non-real estate assets account for at least 60 per cent of the total. Investors can bring their spouses and children into the country.
It also approved five-year residency to owners of UAE real estate worth at least 5 million dirhams.
The government also said that leading academics, medical doctors, scientists, engineers and star students would be eligible for similar long-term visas, without the need for financial investments in the country.
The first batch - 20 finalists for the Mohammed bin Rashid Medal for Scientific Distinction.- were awarded in January and more are expected to follow.
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
AGL AWARDS
Golden Ball - best Emirati player: Khalfan Mubarak (Al Jazira)
Golden Ball - best foreign player: Igor Coronado (Sharjah)
Golden Glove - best goalkeeper: Adel Al Hosani (Sharjah)
Best Coach - the leader: Abdulaziz Al Anbari (Sharjah)
Fans' Player of the Year: Driss Fetouhi (Dibba)
Golden Boy - best young player: Ali Saleh (Al Wasl)
Best Fans of the Year: Sharjah
Goal of the Year: Michael Ortega (Baniyas)
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
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Student Of The Year 2
Director: Punit Malhotra
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4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
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