French Companies Seek to Invest in Saudi Tourism, Food Sectors

Cars drive past the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 18, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
Cars drive past the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 18, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
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French Companies Seek to Invest in Saudi Tourism, Food Sectors

Cars drive past the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 18, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
Cars drive past the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 18, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser

A number of specialized companies and businessmen in France are seeking to enter the Saudi market through investments in the sectors of tourism, food, and some different industries.

According to the Arab-French Chamber of Commerce, interested companies have started collecting information about procedures that allow them to invest in the Kingdom.

They have appointed economic consultants to carry out feasibility studies and determine the targeted sectors and the appropriate mechanisms, taking advantage of the diversity of opportunities available at this stage.

In parallel, the World Investment Report 2020 of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) - issued recently - revealed the rise in foreign direct investment flows in Saudi Arabia by 7 percent for the second year in a row to reach $4.6 billion despite the outbreak of the coronavirus.

The report noted that the Kingdom represented one of the main destinations for foreign direct investment in the West Asia region, with its acquisition of the majority of inflows in the past year, before the current economic downturn began as a result of the pandemic.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Secretary-General of the Arab-French Chamber, Dr. Saleh al-Tayyar, said that a number of major companies in France and abroad were preparing for the post-coronavirus phase.

He added that French companies and businessmen were interested in investing in the Saudi market, and were studying the mechanisms and the relevant financial obligations.

Tayyar also emphasized that the Kingdom was proceeding according to a clear methodology and strong and promising development plans, despite the circumstances that the world is going through as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

He stressed that Saudi Arabia’s policies have managed to curb the repercussions of the pandemic on the national economy and have become a source for attracting foreign investments.



Riyadh and Tokyo to Launch Coordination Framework to Boost Cooperation

Saudi Ambassador to Japan Dr. Ghazi Binzagr. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Ambassador to Japan Dr. Ghazi Binzagr. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Riyadh and Tokyo to Launch Coordination Framework to Boost Cooperation

Saudi Ambassador to Japan Dr. Ghazi Binzagr. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Ambassador to Japan Dr. Ghazi Binzagr. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia and Japan are close to unveiling a higher partnership council that will be headed by the countries’ leaderships in line with efforts to build a partnership that bolsters the technical transformation and joint research in clean energy, communications and other areas, revealed Saudi Ambassador to Japan Dr. Ghazi Binzagr.

He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the two countries will soon open a new chapter in their sophisticated strategic partnership.

The new council will be chaired by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to push forward the Saudi-Japan Vision 2030, he added.

The council will elevate cooperation between the countries and pave the way for broader dialogue and consultations in various fields to bolster political, defense, economic, cultural and sports cooperation, he explained.

The two parties will work on critical technological partnerships that will focus on assessing and developing technologies to benefit from them, Binzagr said. They will also focus on the economy these technologies can create and in turn, the new jobs they will generate.

These jobs can be inside Saudi Arabia or abroad and provide employers with the opportunity to develop the sectors they are specialized in, he added.

Binzagr said Saudi Arabia and Japan will mark 70s years of relations in 2025, coinciding with the launch of Expo 2025 in Osaka in which the Kingdom will have a major presence.

Relations have been based on energy security and trade exchange with Japan’s need for oil. Now, according to Saudi Vision 2030, they can be based on renewable energy and the post-oil phase, remarked the ambassador.

Several opportunities are available in both countries in the cultural, sports and technical fields, he noted.

Both sides agree that improving clean energy and a sustainable environment cannot take place at the expense of a strong economy or quality of life, but through partnership between their countries to influence the global economy, he explained.

"For the next phase, we are keen on consolidating the concept of sustainable partnerships between the two countries in various fields so that this partnership can last for generations,” Binzagr stressed.

“I believe these old partnerships will last for decades and centuries to come,” he remarked.

Moreover, he noted that the oil sector was the cornerstone of the partnership and it will now shift to petrochemicals and the development of the petrochemical industry.