OREANDA-NEWS. February 13, 2014. Government and business leaders from across the Kingdom gathered for the 7th Global Competitiveness Forum to explore ways to build strategic partnerships to bolster the country’s economic competitiveness.

The theme featured was “Building Competitive Partnerships” for promoting partnerships between public and private sector establishments, and to enhance understanding of the impact and effectiveness of partnerships in supporting economic competitiveness.

Saudi Aramco was a primary sponsor of the event, with key members of management participating in the panel sessions and with an exhibit included in the forum’s exhibition.

HE Abdullatif Al-Othman, Governor of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA), honored the company by presenting an honorary shield to Abdulaziz Al-Judaimi, vice president of Power Systems at Saudi Aramco.

In his opening speech, Al-Othman disclosed the joint work program being applied by SAGIA with other ministries and government organizations to fulfill the vision of King Abdullah, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, who issued a Royal Order to prepare a standardized investment plan for each sector of the economy. The plan’s objective is to specify the mechanisms and criteria to replace imports and enable investments to allow these sectors to compete globally and become feeders of the economy.

Al-Othman urged participants to focus on the quality and sustainability of an economy based on knowledge and productivity, adding that “in addition to these characteristics, the program is based on the principle of partnership and full cooperation between all parties in order to unify the efforts and attract investment.”

In one of the more than 13 panel sessions, Andrew Liveris, president, chairman and CEO of Dow Chemical Co., which is joint venture partner with Saudi Aramco in the development of the Sadara chemicals complex in Jubail; and Motassim Al-Maashouq, vice president of New Business Development at Saudi Aramco; were joined by a number of presidents, chairmen, CEOs and vice presidents of trading companies to discuss the consumer’s willingness to purchase local products and the governments’ efforts to develop their countries’ competitive edge.

The panel also discussed the need for products produced domestically, what the phrase “Made in Saudi Arabia” means, what can be manufactured for export, and how to convert the Kingdom’s economy to be knowledge-based instead of energy dependent.

During the session, Al-Maashouq mentioned that Saudi Aramco, since its early days, has developed many big projects and supported entrepreneurs. “Today, I want to note that we need to think differently of the work we do.” He explained that “as a big company, we need to guarantee transparency and clarity in our dealings with the investors in order to allow the entrepreneurs to develop their industrial plans. In this direction, we established Wa’ed (Saudi Aramco’s entrepreneurship center), which attracts small and medium enterprises in the Kingdom to fill the gap between supply and demand while ensuring that companies’ purchasing policies offer real incentives to investors in the Kingdom.”

Al-Maashouq made the distinction between manufacturing and services, saying that “they require the application of different strategies; in services, for example, we must apply Saudization, however; in manufacturing, Saudization may not be expedient. A good way to look at ourselves is by asking ourselves, ‘How can we support production in our companies?’ The main dimension here relates to the ability to build investment capabilities.”

One of the forum’s special activities was a press conference, which included Mohammed Al-Ali, senior  vice president of Finance at Saudi Aramco and head of the GCC Board of Directors Institute. During the conference, the Saudi Companies Governance Index Initiative adopted by SAGIA was announced. Al-Ali explained that the index would help companies improve their performance and enable Saudi investors to identify the best companies in the stock market before purchasing their stocks and investing in them.

“The index will start first with the companies listed in the stock market because their financial results are already announced and made available,” Al-Ali noted. He commended SAGIA for adopting the initiative as approved by the Capital Market Authority.

In the forum’s exhibition, titled “Invest in Saudi Arabia,” Saudi Aramco’s pavilion included visual presentations about company achievements and highlighted investment opportunities in commodities and services needed for Saudi Aramco operations. The presentations also included Saudi Aramco work in the areas of chemical conversion industries, in energy efficiency and in Wa’ed’s support for entrepreneurs. The organizations that participated in the presentation included New Business Development, the Saudi Entrepreneurship Center (Wa’ed), Chemicals, Energy Systems and Purchasing. Visitors to the exhibit were handed booklets and pamphlets that guide investors on how to do business with Saudi Aramco.