Building strategic alliances to boost the competitiveness of the Saudi Arabian economy was the focus of the Global Competitiveness Forum, which concluded in Riyadh today (January 20).

The discussion topics included catalysing innovation, women's role in economic growth and innovating the education system.

Abdullatif Al-Othman, governor of Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority explained the kingdom’s new approach to attracting investment partners in his keynote speech, 'Saudi Arabia: an investment destination of choice.'

"We have helped nurture and incubate some of the world's most sophisticated partnerships; from the early days of oil discovery in the 1930s, to the ventures that helped build the world's leading petrochemical industrial complexes,” he said.

"Now we are heading towards the next phase: an era of diversifying our portfolio of investments that is right for our evolving national economy, right for the times, and most of all, right for discerning investors around the Kingdom and throughout the world. We strongly believe in creating an investment climate that will bring about these development plans and we fully intend to achieve our goals that we have set," said Al-Othman.

The Minister of Economy and Planning Dr Muhammad Al-Jasser also stressed the competitive advantages of Saudi Arabia, but warned that although the nation should be proud of its progress, there was no room for complacency.

“The kingdom has made great strides economically in a very short period of time, but there is still a lot to do. What is needed is a focus on the future, flexibility in markets, employment and legislation - and a commitment to initiatives to support the country's competitiveness,” he said.

The forum also examined case studies from different industry sectors, and provided a continued opportunity to network with visitors, speakers and experts from home and abroad. - TradeArabia News Service