Saudi Arabian Military Industries’ (SAMI) executive tam has been completed, Dr. Andreas Schwer, CEO of SAMI announced on Tuesday.
Schwer said the team comprises distinguished national leaders and international experts specialized in the military industries, as well as the financial, administrative, industrial, and strategic sectors.
The members of the executive management team have been recruited to support the company’s journey and the development of a strong local base for military manufacturing and defense in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Each will play a key role in steering SAMI’s efforts to embrace international trends and developments, transferring state-of-the-art technology to the Kingdom and setting-up local production to fulfill domestic and export market demands, he explained.
SAMI’s executive team consists of 13 experts and pioneers in various fields of military industries. During the course of 2019, it has been complemented with the addition of four senior experts.
These experts are Chief Financial Officer Mater al-Anazi, Chief Strategy Officer Walid Abukhaled, General Director Naval Systems Jose Esteban Garcia Vilasanchez and EVP Aeronautics Bruno Delile.
Anazi is a seasoned expert with extensive experience in the finance and accounting sectors. He has previously served as Chief Financial Officer at ACWA Power International and has also excelled in senior financial and accounting posts with organizations such as SAGIA, Maaden, and SABIC.
Abukhaled has had a distinguished career in the military industries for almost three decades. Prior to joining SAMI, he served as CEO for Middle East at Northrop Grumman and has held numerous roles at General Electric (GE) and BAE Systems.
While Vilasanchez is an industry veteran in the maritime and defense sectors and has joined SAMI from Navantia, where he most recently served as Chairman and CEO as part of his 28-year tenure with the organization.
Delile is a well-established leader in the aeronautics domain and has served many years as an executive manager in various organizations, including Air France- KLM and Zodiac Aerospace.
The executive management team also includes Chief Technology Officer Dr. Mohammad al-Kahtani, EVP of Weapons & Missiles Dr. Timothy Carter, EVP of Land Systems Johan Steyn, EVP of Defense Electronics Jan Wessels, General Council Brandt Pasco, VP of Corporate Communications and Services Department Wael al-Sarhan, VP of Human Resources Mohammed Bushnag, VP of Quality and Internal Audit Khalid al-Madi and VP of Information Technology Hani al-Hazmi.
Schwer noted that the completion of the company’s executive team sets the course for the company’s next phase of growth, with the new appointees looking forward to harnessing their abilities and extensive industry experience to support SAMI in achieving its goals.
“The objectives of the Saudi Vision 2030 provided a strong source of motivation for these esteemed industry leaders to join the company and serve as key enablers of the program by being part of the emerging defense ecosystem in Saudi Arabia,” he stated.
He also pointed out that the team will work within SAMI’s integrated industrial enterprise to develop and support the military industries in the Kingdom and play a key role in increasing the domestic share of military equipment expenditure to 50 percent by 2030.
