Saudi Minister of Commerce Affirms his Country’s Readiness to Support Cooperation to Achieve Economic and Social Development in Arab and African Countries

The Minister of Commerce of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi affirmed the readiness of his country to support cooperative efforts to achieve economic and social development in Arab and African countries.

In a key speech during the activities of the 3rd meeting of the Governance Council of the Arab-African Trade Bridges Program, currently ongoing in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, Al-Qasabi stressed that the Kingdom’s ambitious Vision 2030 seeks to open new markets and promising investments, drawing attention to the Kingdom’s historical stances confirming its continuity and interest in Africa.

He said that the African continent is rich in its natural and human resources and its distinguished geographical location, actually making it an attractive continent for investments, despite the challenges facing African countries in the areas of infrastructure, environment, investment, and trade barriers.

Dr. Al-Qasabi pointed out that the African continent contains about 60% of the world’s minerals, qualifying the Jusoor program as an opportunity to identify and confront these challenges, work to open markets further and exchange intra-trade between Arab and African countries.

He expressed hope that today’s meeting of the Council will come out with clear action plans and goals, and express keenness to achieve them in the coming years, especially since the opportunity, components and capabilities exist, and the African continent needs to transfer knowledge and localize new technology in its countries.

The Minister of Commerce noted that the Arab-African Trade Jusoor Program will achieve its lofty goals if the business and investment climate improves in all countries, applying the best global practices, stimulating companies and entrepreneurship, and promoting regional and continental economic integration, especially through the African Continental Free Trade Area.

He praised the initiative to support the African Free Trade Area led by the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation of the Islamic Development Bank in partnership with the World Trade Organization and the African Economic Commission, citing other initiatives led by the institution.