A meeting of the Saudi-Turkish Business Council was held in Jeddah on Monday to discuss prospects for joint investments and means to promote cooperation between the two countries.
The meeting was held during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Gulf tour, which kicked off from Saudi Arabia.
In a speech at the start of the meeting, Saudi Investment Minister Khaled al-Falih said that Vision 2030 came to establish a new phase in all aspects of life in the Kingdom and to foster an excellent economic environment for promising investments.
“One of the most prominent features of the vision is the keenness to involve the Saudi and foreign private sectors, including the Turkish private sector,” he said, explaining that the National Investment Strategy was aimed at enabling diversified investments with a total estimated volume of $3.3 trillion by 2030.
Al-Falih added that the goal was to expand investments inside and outside the Kingdom, stressing that integrating the capabilities of the Saudi and Turkish private sectors would achieve greater opportunities.
He noted that the volume of spending on the building and construction sector would continue to rise and was expected to exceed the value of $215 billion annually by 2030, driven by the demand for the Kingdom’s giant projects and the major investments by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Aramco and other entities.
Turkish Minister of Trade Omer Bolat emphasized the necessity to enhance bilateral investment and trade, pointing to the strong ties between Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.
He noted that the free trade agreement would serve the interests of the two sides, saying: “Türkiye and the Kingdom are two countries that have sufficient energy to strengthen relations and work to develop all cultural, commercial and industrial sectors.”
The Turkish minister revealed that Saudi Arabia’s investments in his country exceeded $2 billion, which he said confirmed “the confidence of our Saudi brothers in Türkiye.”
The chairman of the Federation of Saudi Chambers, Hassan Al-Huwaizi, told Asharq Al-Awsat that Turkish companies were greatly interested in investing in the Kingdom.
He added that Erdogan’s visit to Jeddah, at the head of a delegation of more than 200 businessmen and investors, was an indication of the importance of the local market, stressing that the economic relations between the two countries were on the right path.
