RIYADH: Former Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih was honored on Monday at a major industrial development event in Riyadh. The Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources also paid tribute to Al-Falih for his previous roles as chairman of the state oil company Saudi Aramco, and of the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF).The SIDF announced the expansion of its finance activity to a number of promising new sectors in the fields of industry, mining, energy and logistics included under the National Industry Development and Logistics Program (NIDLP).Under the patronage of the Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, SIDF Chairman Bandar Al-Khorayef, the SIDF launched new financial services and products under the slogan “Empowering the Private Sector,” in the presence of a number of senior officials in government agencies and industrial leaders from the private sector.Al-Khorayef said that the SIDF has been for 45 years the state arm in financing thousands of factories, promoting industrial development in the Kingdom, contributing to the empowerment of the industrial sector, and meeting the requirements of investors in support of economic development in the Kingdom.“The SIDF has played a developmental role in serving the industry in the Kingdom for 45 years,” he said. “By just shedding light on its role since 2000, which is for about the past 20 years, we notice that the SIDF approved 2,186 loans, with a total value of over SAR 132 billion, while the proportion of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) reached 81 percent of the total number of loans approved. The total number of direct jobs provided by projects funded by the SIDF in the same period was more than 187,000 jobs, and the value of the contribution of projects funded by the SIDF in the industrial GDP of the Kingdom reached SAR 189 billion.”The minister said the SIDF celebrates the launch of a new package of its services and products to keep up with the requirements of the current phase by expanding its products.He added that the new financing products launched by the SIDF will support the objectives of the ministry in supporting the industrial and mining sector, noting that these products will support industry as the first option for investment.
FASTFACT
SIDF has for 45 years been the state arm in financing thousands of factories, and promoting industrial and economic development in the Kingdom.
On the signing of a number of agreements with government and private entities, Al-Khorayef said: “These agreements confirm the SIDF’s interaction with the relevant authorities, whether governmental or private, to serve the objectives of developing the industry and investing in it.”The ministry would work with all partners in full harmony to the success of the objectives of NIDLP by facilitating the capabilities and efforts, in order to maximize the economic return and build an attractive investment environment, he said.SIDF chief executive Dr. Ibrahim Al-Moji said that the launch of a new package of financial services and products that will contribute to meeting the needs of the industrial sector and enabling and supporting it, reflecting the new role of the SIDF to become the main financial enabler not only for the industrial sector but also expanding to new sectors, which are energy, mining and logistics.The ceremony also witnessed the inauguration of the SIDF in its new identity after amending its Basic Law to reflect the strength and reliability of the SIDF system in enabling the private sector to develop and diversify the Saudi economy, with the support of the industrial system.
