His Excellency the Minister of Commerce and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Competitiveness Center, Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi, affirmed during his participation in the 16th Session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) that the Vision launched by His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister — may God protect him — has brought about transformations in the Saudi economy that made it different from what it was before.
The Kingdom is participating in the works of the session hosted by the city of Geneva, Switzerland, until the 23rd of this month, under the theme: “Forging the Future: Leading Economic Transformation for Fair, Inclusive, and Sustainable Development.” The session witnesses high-level governmental attendance and representation that includes (60) ministers, (40) deputy ministers, and officials representing (195) countries.
Dr. Al-Qasabi spoke about the impact of Saudi Vision 2030 on the growth of the digital economy during a ministerial session titled “Making the Digital Economy Inclusive and Sustainable Through Cooperation.” The session was attended by the Kingdom’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and international organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Abdulmohsen bin Khothaila. It was moderated by journalist Isabelle Kumar and included the participation of His Excellency Dr. Mthuli Ncube, Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion of Zimbabwe; Her Excellency Helene Budliger Artieda, State Secretary for Economic Affairs of Switzerland; and His Excellency Gerd Müller, Director General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
He explained that the Vision came with a comprehensive framework that made reform a continuous policy, resulting in the modernization of legislation, restructuring and digitization of procedures, whose effects were reflected in the increase of the private sector’s contribution to nearly half of the GDP. The digital economy contributed (16%) to the GDP. He pointed out that the Saudi Business Center has contributed to facilitating the business environment in the Kingdom, especially in the field of e-commerce, noting that the Kingdom’s goal is to make the digital economy accessible to entrepreneurs.
During the works of the session, His Excellency held a series of meetings that discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation and facilitate trade with Their Excellencies: Atheer Al-Ghurairi, Minister of Trade of the Republic of Iraq; Qais bin Mohammed Al-Yousef, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion of the Sultanate of Oman; Ahmed Kouchouk, Minister of Finance of the Arab Republic of Egypt; Dr. Arnoldo André Tinoco, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Costa Rica; Ryad Mezzour, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Kingdom of Morocco; Dr. Ahmed Al-Sayed, Minister of State for Foreign Trade Affairs of the State of Qatar; and Dr. Kamel Rezig, Minister of Trade and Export Promotion of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria.
He also discussed facilitating trade and supply chains and cross-border e-commerce with Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
It is worth noting that the works of the session addressed several important topics, most notably the digital economy and its impact on inclusivity and sustainability, the importance of enhancing international cooperation, and the role of (UNCTAD) in shaping related policies, especially in data governance and the inclusive digital economy, and its ability to assist countries in building resilient digital systems that bridge divides, improve data governance, enhance innovation, and support the circular economy.