Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Chairman of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs, affirmed that the Kingdom will continue to consolidate the gains made since the approval of the Vision 2030, and stressed its keenness to move towards further development and progress in various economic, developmental and social fields.
This came in remarks on the occasion of the approval of the 2021 budget.
The Crown Prince said that the 2020 was a difficult year for the whole world due to the outbreak of the COVID-19, yet the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's economy has proven its ability to face the repercussions of the pandemic. Moreover, the Kingdom was able to take health and preventive measures aimed primarily at protecting human health through reducing the spread of the epidemic, and providing free treatment for those infected.
He indicated that under the continuous directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, financial and economic measures have been taken aimed at limiting the repercussions of the pandemic on economic activities.
"The crisis was managed with great care and effectively that led to mitigating the negative effects on the Saudi economy which was expected earlier to be stronger, as balance between the precautionary measures and the timing of the gradual return of economic activities was at a good pace," state news agency SPA quoted him as saying,
The Crown indicated that a number of initiatives and measures have been approved to support private sector establishments during the pandemic and to preserve jobs and workers in the private sector, and these measures have helped limit the repercussions of the pandemic on the economy.
He pointed out that economic growth is expected to increase while continuing to develop role of the private sector by facilitating the business environment, advancing privatization programs, providing more opportunities for the private sector to participate in infrastructure projects.
The Crown Prince affirmed that the Kingdom, through its presidency of the G20 this year, was keen to enhance the group’s role in addressing global economic crises, by stimulating the efforts of the group’s countries, raising the level of coordination and cooperation among them to jointly confront the pandemic and limit its effects on global economic growth, and mobilize resources to fund its programs in responding to the pandemic.
