Saudi Ministers Drive Collaborations And Economic Dialogues At Davos 

RIYADH: Saudi ministers have used the World Economic Forum in Davos to foster international partnerships, discuss pivotal economic and business matters, and explore collaboration opportunities. 

On Jan. 17, Saudi Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef met with Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani to discuss strengthening bilateral relations in both countries’ industrial and mining sectors. 

They explored potential collaboration aspects and investment opportunities in both nations.  

On his X account, Barzani described the meeting as fruitful, adding that the Kurdistan Region and Saudi Arabia have embarked on “a common agenda: economic diversification,” adding: “Our technical teams will explore new opportunities in new industries.”   

According to the Saudi Press Agency, Alkhorayef also conducted meetings with Jai Shroff, chairman and CEO of UPL Group, Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI, and Neeraj Kanwar, vice chairman and managing director of Apollo Tyres.

There were also discussions with Sri Prakash Lohia, board chairman at Indorama Ventures, and Chung Ki-sun, vice chairman of HD Hyundai. 

During these meetings, the industry minister explored ways of enhancing mutual collaboration between Saudi Arabia and these companies in the sectors of industry and mining.  

The discussions also covered reviewing investment opportunities provided by the Kingdom, as well as the facilities and procedures offered to attract foreign investment. Additionally, increasing trade exchange and enhancing the access of non-oil Saudi exports to European markets were also touched on.

On Jan. 18, Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal bin Fadel Al-Ibrahim held discussions with Clare Woodman, head of Europe, Middle East, and Africa and CEO of Morgan Stanley & Co., to explore Saudi Arabia’s evolving capital market and enhance attraction for foreign direct investments. 

Moreover, Al-Ibrahim met with Hashim Shawa, chairman at Bank of Palestine Group, on the sidelines of forum. The Saudi minister additionally held talks with Jakob Baruel Poulsen, managing partner at Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. The two sides’ discussions evolved around areas of collaboration within renewable energy and infrastructure. 

Furthermore, Al-Ibrahim met with Todd Sisitsky, president and co-managing partner at TPG Capital, focusing on the involvement of private equity firms and foreign investors in seizing growth opportunities aligned with the Kingdom’s ambitious 2030 plan. 

Meanwhile, Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan, along with Al-Ibrahim, met with Tom Donilon, chairman of BlackRock Investment Institute, and Charles Hatami, head of the Financial & Strategic Investors Group and a member of BlackRock’s global executive committee. Among the topics discussed was the role of private financing in achieving the goals of Saudi Vision 2030. 

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha also held similar talks with his counterpart from Singapore, Josephine Teo, on Jan 17. 

The two parties discussed ways to enhance their nations’ strategic partnership in the fields of digital economy, emerging technologies, and digital government. 

Al-Swaha also met with the CEOs of the firms, as well those from Amazon, Alibaba Group, and NAXGRP. 

During the minister’s meeting with Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella, the two discussed promoting investment opportunities in the fields of generative AI, cloud computing, and stimulating entrepreneurship. 

They also delved into discussions seeking to foster the development of national talent capabilities. 

The official also held talks with IBM CEO Arvind Krishna to recap joint projects and progress made in several generative artificial intelligence projects, big data, and digital capabilities development. The talks also touched on research and innovation in deep tech.