'Kingdom's G20 participation reflects its stature'
Published: Jun 27, 2010 22:53 Updated: Jun 27, 2010 23:00
TORONTO: Saudi Arabia’s participation in the G20 summit reflects its strong position in the world, said Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf. “It will also help the Kingdom protect its interests and influence international resolutions,” he said.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah is leading the Kingdom’s delegation to the summit. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper met King Abdullah and other G20 leaders on Saturday. He also hosted a dinner in honor of the world leaders.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the summit, Al-Assaf said the wise economic policies adopted by the Kingdom enabled it to deal efficiently with others. He also emphasized the solid performance of the Kingdom’s overseas assets.
Muhammad Al-Jasser, governor of Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA), said the wise policies adopted by the Kingdom before and after the global economic crisis enabled it to participate in G20. “Before the crisis, Saudi Arabia paid back most of its debts,” the governor said. “The Kingdom also works to stabilize the international oil market,” he added.
In a related development, Commerce and Industry Minister Abdullah Zainal Alireza predicted that Saudi Arabia would achieve a four percent growth rate in 2010. Addressing the Saudi-British Business Council meeting in London, he said he expected a 20 percent growth in direct foreign investment in the Kingdom.
He described Saudi Arabia’s plan to spend $400 billion until 2013 as the largest in the G20 countries. He said most G20 countries have not taken any precautionary measures to protect themselves from the threat of large financial deficits.
Alireza underscored the Kingdom’s investment-friendly climate. The World Bank rated Saudi Arabia as the 13th most competitive country in the world in its annual Doing Business report, thus ensuring the Kingdom is well poised to achieve its goal of becoming one of the top 10 most competitive countries by 2010.
For the fifth consecutive year, the report ranks Saudi Arabia as the best place to do business in the entire Middle East and Arab World, ahead of Bahrain (20th), the UAE (33rd) and Qatar (39th). The report also ranks Saudi Arabia ahead of advanced economies such as Japan, Germany, France, and Switzerland.
