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KSA: Group of Investors Briefed on 100 Privatization Opportunities

KSA: Group of Investors Briefed on 100 Privatization Opportunities
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KSA: Group of Investors Briefed on 100 Privatization Opportunities

KSA: Group of Investors Briefed on 100 Privatization Opportunities

Saudi Arabia has hosted a huge banking and investment group in Riyadh, including 67 banks and financial companies that were briefed on up to 100 potential privatization opportunities in the Saudi public sector.

Spokesman of the National Center For Privatization (NCP) Hani al-Sayegh noted that the center is exploring more opportunities that can be privatized in government institutions.

There is a list of 100 current opportunities, he added, saying that the access of giant investment firms to privatization and the public-private partnership has been facilitated.

The gathering encompassed a number of executive managers of local and international banks as well as financial companies operating in the kingdom. Representatives of 67 commercial and investment banks and financial firms also attended.

This meeting showcased current investment opportunities to be issued from sectors targeted with privatization. It also shed light on the features and components of these sectors and presented the NCP’s plans to attract international and local investors to take part in the privatization opportunities.

Sayegh affirmed that convening with banks and financial companies is vital because of their role as partners in boosting privatization and public-private partnership via funding, consultations, and producing innovative financial products.

He stressed that banks play a positive role in stimulating international and local investments, introducing new prospects in the national economy, and upgrading services provided to citizens and residents.

Sayegh said this was the third meeting for NCP with the business sector since the beginning of the year. The first was with businessmen in a number of commercial chambers in the kingdom and then with businessmen in Eastern Province.

The center aims to hold meetings with various business sectors to establish a knowledge base for the private sector and to support public-private partnerships, in addition to supporting privatization opportunities.

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Fire, Smoke Upend Western Canada’s Summer Tourism Season

A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)
A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)
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Fire, Smoke Upend Western Canada’s Summer Tourism Season

A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)
A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)

Severe wildfire seasons are increasingly hurting western Canada's lucrative tourism industry, with some visitors beginning to avoid the busy late-summer months due to concerns about uncontrolled blazes, smoke-filled skies and road closures.

After a scorching start to July, nearly 600 wildfires are now ablaze across British Columbia and Alberta, including a huge fire that this week devastated the picturesque tourist town of Jasper in the Canadian Rockies.

Dozens of communities, including popular holiday spots in British Columbia's Kootenay region, are under evacuation orders and several highways are closed.

This year's surge in wildfire activity comes after Canada endured its worst-ever year for wildfires in 2023, when more than 15 million hectares (37 million acres) burned, including parts of the city of West Kelowna in the heart of British Columbia's wine region.

Ellen Walker-Matthews, head of the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association, said the industry was seeing a lot more last-minute travel decisions instead of booking in advance.

"It's a huge blow. July and August are traditionally the busiest months in the region," said Walker-Matthews, adding that while her region has been relatively unscathed by wildfires this summer, some visitors are choosing to avoid interior British Columbia altogether.

The members of the British Columbia Lodging and Campgrounds Association are reporting a 5-15% drop in bookings from a year ago, with the biggest declines coming from the hotter Okanagan and Cariboo regions, said Joss Penny, who heads the association.

"The concern is that this is something we have to live with and we have it every year now," said Penny.

Although wildfires in Canada's forests are natural and common, scientists say drier, hotter conditions fueled by climate change are leading to more volatile and frequent blazes.

'SMOKEY SKIES'

Some events, like the Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival, usually held in August, have now been rescheduled to earlier in the summer to avoid what is now seen as peak smoke season. The festival, which was cancelled last year due to nearby wildfires, was this year moved to July to benefit from "less smokey skies."

Wildfires and extreme climatic events are prompting tourists to "change their plans not just temporarily, but permanently," said Elizabeth Halpenny, a tourism researcher and professor at the University of Alberta, noting that seasonal workers in the sector are often the hardest hit as they have few protections during a bad season or amid a cataclysmic fire.

Tourism contributed C$7.2 billion to the British Columbia economy in 2022, and C$9.9 billion to Alberta in 2023, according to the latest government data.

Jasper National Park is one of Canada's premier tourist destinations, with more than 2 million visitors a year flocking to see its pristine mountain landscapes and abundant wildlife, including grizzly bears, moose and elk.

Kelly Torrens, vice-president of product at international tour company Kensington Tours, described western Canada as a bucket-list destination. But the company now has 49 trips that were supposed to pass through Jasper this season in limbo. Six others were forced to evacuate the park when the fire hit.

Parks Canada has cancelled all camping reservations within Jasper National Park until Aug. 6 and with potentially 50% of the town's structures destroyed by fire, the cleanup and rebuild could take years.

Halpenny is among those hedging their bets.

"I've booked a campsite stay in the mountain parks but at the same time, I booked a campsite out on the prairie somewhere and that's my backup plan because I don't want to miss out on my vacation with my family."