22nd July, 2016

On 22^nd July, the Arab British Chamber of Commerce was privileged to host a business roundtable with H E Dr Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi, the Minister of Commerce and Investment, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Minister was accompanied by HRH Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the UK.

The Minister and Ambassador were warmly welcomed to the Chamber by Dr Afnan Al-Shuaiby, Secretary General & CEO, ABCC. Rt Hon Baroness Symons, the ABCC Chairman, described it as an honour for the Chamber to be visited by the Minister so soon after his appointment. She informed the audience that the Minister’s portfolio had now been extended to cover investment.

H E Dr Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi delivered an extended presentation which explained how the Kingdom was moving towards a more diversified economy with a strategy that was motivated by recognition of the need to move away from oil dependency. The Kingdom was seeking to attract smart investment from leading global corporates. The Minister described the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 strategy as a “vision for change” which was seeking to highlight interest from investors in the country’s resources such as minerals and mining.

The Kingdom possessed substantial quantities of copper, gold, silver and other precious metals which had so far not been developed. The Red Sea region was another major natural resource that would be developed under the strategy by creating industrial zones and opening new seaports to attract industries to set up. The Minister stressed that all these programmes open up major opportunities for investors in various sectors. H E Dr Al-Qasabi urged potential UK investors to contact the commercial attaché at the Saudi Embassy in London to obtain assistance. The Minister responded to questions from delegates on an extensive range of issues.

In conclusion, HRH the Ambassador remarked that the Kingdom was looking to the future and wished to develop closer relations with its key partners in the UK and western world. Rt Hon Baroness Symons concluded the meeting by expressed thanks to the Ambassador and the Minister for participating in the informative discussion.