A host of game-changing projects encompassed by Saudi Arabia’s new “National Transport and Logistics Strategy” will launch a new phase for the Kingdom’s land, air, and sea transportation and shipping sectors.
On Tuesday, the Saudi Crown Prince announced the plan which places the Kingdom on track to boost its position as a global logistics hub connecting three continents.
According to the strategy, establishing a new national carrier is proposed as part of new transport and logistics schemes to increase the sector’s financial returns and boost the diversity of investment opportunities set to create hundreds of jobs.
The strategy also aims to move Saudi Arabia into fifth place globally in terms of the number of transit passengers, increase the number of international destinations served by the country to more than 250, and launch a new national air carrier.
Successful implementation of the strategy’s projects will help other sectors, such as Hajj, Umrah, and tourism, achieve their own goals for improvement and growth.
The projects rely on the unique characteristics of Saudi Arabia, such as its strategic geographic location, which links three continents, and its large influx of tourists traveling from different countries around the world.
As maintained by the goals of the Kingdom’s national transformation plan, dubbed “Vision 2030,” Saudi Arabia will see nearly 100 million visitors coming in annually.
The new logistics strategy also seeks to improve the capabilities of the air cargo sector by doubling its capacity to more than 4.5 million tons.
“Transportation is an integrated system linked to passenger and cargo operations, so development and modernization in this sector have positive effects on the main, support and logistical services in this sector,” Hussain Al-Zahrani, Chairman of the Aviation and Support Services Committee in the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce, told Asharq Al-Awsat.
