Saudi Minister of Commerce and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Competitiveness Center (NCC) Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi has highlighted the Kingdom's efforts to diversify its economy and prioritize emerging sectors, noting that non-oil exports of the Kingdom grew 77% from 2016 to 2022.
During his participation in a high-level ministerial session on e-commerce held on the sidelines of the UNCTAD eWeek 2023, organized by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva, he noted that the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is very open to international trade, as the volume of international trade has risen to $7.7 trillion last year.
He emphasized that digitization has transformed trade, making it more efficient, reliable, and transparent. He said the Kingdom is keeping pace with the trend through economic reforms and modernizing infrastructure, and the focus is shifting towards the digital economy and enhancing the knowledge-based economy.
Concerning the Kingdom's perspective on regional trade and free-trade agreements, the minister said they have advantages, such as enhancing intra-trade and the security of the supply chain.
However, he expressed his concerns about the trend towards regionalization at a time when the world faces global challenges such as climate change, artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and other issues that require international consensus. Global trade governance is necessary to guarantee pluralism and sound practices, he said.
Al-Qasabi met with representatives of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and discussed the latest developments in the agreement that the NCC signed in September with the WEF.
The agreement aims to facilitate and develop services trade in the Kingdom and raise its competitiveness in global markets. He also met with Professor Richard Baldwin, an economist at the International Institute for Management Development (IMD).
