Saudi Arabia to create more than 500,000 jobs under new SME strategy
Plan seeks to lift SMEs’ contribution to GDP to 35% while cutting business costs
Dubai: Saudi Arabia is seeking to create more than 500,000 direct and indirect jobs under a new national strategy designed to accelerate the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises, attract innovative global startups and reduce the cost of doing business in the Kingdom.
The Saudi Cabinet approved the National Entrepreneurship and Small and Medium Enterprises Strategy on Tuesday, setting out 13 initiatives intended to strengthen the business environment and raise SMEs’ contribution to gross domestic product to 35 per cent.
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Dr Majid Al Qasabi, Minister of Commerce and Chairman of the General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (Monsha’at), said the strategy was designed to develop the entrepreneurship ecosystem, help businesses grow and expand, and increase their contribution to the national economy.
The 13 initiatives provide an integrated framework covering access to financing and markets, operational capabilities, regulation and innovation, and measures intended to make it easier and less costly to operate a business.
The strategy also sets a target for Saudi Arabia to rank first globally by 2030 on the indicator measuring entrepreneurial skills and knowledge.
Al Qasabi said the plan reflected the leadership’s support for entrepreneurship and SMEs and represented a shift towards a more integrated and efficient ecosystem that would give businesses greater opportunities to expand.
Its implementation will require coordination across government entities to help SMEs gain greater access to opportunities in different sectors, participate more extensively in value chains and major projects, and enter new domestic and international markets, he said.
The strategy marks a shift in Saudi Arabia’s approach to the sector, moving beyond support for establishing businesses towards creating the conditions for companies to grow, scale and compete both domestically and internationally.
Among the initiatives are programmes to develop open commercial innovation and support SMEs and startups operating in industrial cities and special economic zones.
Other measures are intended to help Saudi businesses expand internationally and increase exports, while giving SMEs a greater role in government procurement and purchases by major companies.
The strategy also calls for the establishment of a comprehensive database for SMEs that would be linked with relevant databases across the entrepreneurship ecosystem.
Saudi Arabia also plans to attract and localise innovative international startups, review minimum Saudisation requirements according to sector and introduce measures aimed at reducing business costs.
Other initiatives focus on improving financial awareness and literacy, developing financing enablers and providing incentives to institutions that finance small and medium-sized businesses.
Al Qasabi said the strategy was intended to enable SMEs to take greater advantage of economic opportunities and strengthen their role in the Kingdom’s development under Vision 2030.
