The Saudi Shura Council has recently called for supporting small and medium enterprises, as this week’s sessions brought about a demand for increased financing, a better monitoring of economic-focused issues and imposing fair competition.
The recommendations of the Shura Council sessions, which were held this week, emphasized the need to strengthen coordination with the relevant authorities, to reduce obstacles that prevent companies from entering the market, boost fair competition and encourage enterprises to localize jobs and raise business efficiency.
The Council called for promoting the Kafala system (the financing guarantee program for SMEs), in coordination with the General Authority for SMEs, in order to ensure the full financial and administrative flexibility of the program to be able to achieve its strategic goals.
The Kafala program will reduce the financial burdens on small enterprises, as there are around one million establishments (over 950,000 SMEs) operating in all Saudi cities, of which 47.7% work in wholesale and retail trade and about 10.9% in the manufacturing industries, while about 10.6 percent operate in accommodation and food.
Dr. Saeed Al-Sheikh, a member of the Shura Council and an economic expert, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the government efforts give great relief to the Shura Council’s discussions to strengthen the SMEs sector, noting that the government has taken many measures to help companies overcome the repercussions of COVID-19, through the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA).
He added that the interaction of all concerned parties and combined efforts would accelerate economic recovery and allow many companies to overcome the effects of the outbreak of the coronavirus.
