More than 120 Saudi government agencies have recently met to activate a royal order to establish teams to develop local content, in the presence of Bandar Al-Khorayef, Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority.
The meeting was aimed at presenting the objectives of the local content development teams, as well as the roles and responsibilities entrusted to them and the support mechanism and capabilities provided by the authority.
The royal decree directs government agencies involved in offering business, procurement and contracting to form teams to develop the local content, by working in cooperation and coordination with the authority to achieve compliance with the local content requirements, as well as industry localization and knowledge transfer agreements.
Abdulrahman Al-Samary, CEO of the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority, said that the sector represented a key priority at the national and economic level, adding that government procurement contributed to the development of the national economy and enhancing its sustainability.
Moreover, he noted that the authority was keen to introduce government agencies to the mechanisms for activating the royal order, the proposed structuring of the teams, the roles assigned to them, and indicators for measuring their performance.
This royal order comes within the framework of achieving integration and cooperation between the authority and its partners and activate partnerships with government agencies to find opportunities aimed at content development.
The Local Content and Government Procurement Authority works to develop local content, improve government procurement activity and achieve development and financial goals in line with national visions, strategies and plans, in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations.
Meanwhile, recent figures showed that the total value of Saudi Arabia’s exports of dates reached 1.215 billion riyals ($320 million) last year, an increase of 31 percent compared to 2020.
According to official government data issued on Wednesday, date exports increased by 110 percent since 2016.
The Kingdom has contributed to supporting the palm and date sector in the world through initiatives in coordination with UN organizations.
The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture and the National Center for Palms and Dates have set up and implemented initiatives and permanent programs, including the registration of dates as an unusual “Super fruit” with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in 2019, and the adoption of the International Year of Dates in 2027.
