His Excellency the Minister of Commerce, Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi, met today with businessmen, businesswomen, entrepreneurs, and investors in the Asir region to discuss their proposals and challenges and to explore opportunities for developing their various sectors.
The meeting took place during his visit to the Asir region with the participation of leaders from the commerce system. At the outset of the meeting, His Excellency Hassan bin Muajeb Al-Huwaizi, Chairman of the Federation of Saudi Chambers and Chairman of Abha Chamber, pointed out that Abha Chamber supports traders and investors through initiatives, stimulating partnerships, digital transformation, financial sustainability, and other enablers.
Dr. Al-Qasabi expressed his delight at visiting the Asir region and meeting with the business community. He added that Asir is a magical and attractive canvas that needs marketing so that people can discover its beauty and captivating nature, as it combines the sea, the Tihama plain, mountains, and the desert, along with all the elements that make nature attractive for tourism.
In a brief presentation on the work of the commerce system, he highlighted the development and growth of the business sector in the Kingdom, with commercial registrations reaching 1.7 million, including more than 90,000 in the Asir region, representing 5.2% of the total.
He also referred to the increase in total commercial registrations for establishments in the Kingdom, reaching 1.2 million with 9% growth over five years. Limited liability companies grew by 133% to 462,000 registrations, while joint-stock companies grew by 48% to more than 4,300 registrations.
He noted that several promising sectors recorded growth in Asir, most notably: logistics services, cargo handling, light transport, and the operation of storage facilities.
Al-Qasabi stressed that e-commerce is witnessing remarkable growth, representing 29% of total consumer retail payments, with more than 87 million shipments recorded in 2024. In 2023, 60% of internet users in the Kingdom made online purchases.
On the legislative front, more than 110 laws and regulations have been reviewed and developed in recent years, most notably the Companies Law, the Franchise Law, the E-Commerce Law, the Commercial Registry Law, the Trade Names Law, among others.
Additionally, market rules have been developed to protect consumers, monitor prices, combat fraud and commercial concealment, and prepare a consumer protection law and strategy.
He explained that combating concealment is an integrated effort among government agencies, with the development of an electronic system for reporting suspected cases of concealment and directing inspection teams using data and suspicion indicators.
Al-Qasabi pointed to the integrated efforts of the National Competitiveness Center with more than 65 government entities and in partnership with the private sector to implement more than 900 reforms and economic recommendations that enhanced business competitiveness. Twenty branches of the Saudi Business Center were also established in 15 cities and provinces to facilitate starting and conducting business.
A knowledge center was also established, represented by the National Competitiveness Center, in partnership with the World Bank, to promote a global culture of competitive and economic reforms and to develop trade in services in cooperation with the World Economic Forum.
He affirmed the continuity of work on five pillars to empower small and medium-sized enterprises: access to finance, spreading the culture of entrepreneurship, support services, financing, and access to markets.
On another note, His Excellency the Minister of Commerce held a meeting with the Board of Directors of Abha Chamber, which discussed the Chamber’s strategy aimed at “enhancing financial sustainability” and its future plans to diversify income sources and rationalize expenditures while maintaining and continuously developing the quality of services provided to its members, thus strengthening its capacity to fulfill its role as a representative of the private sector and an active partner in development.
He also visited startup projects at the accompanying exhibition for entrepreneurs in Asir, offering support and empowerment to the region’s young men and women with innovative projects.