Riyadh - Sharikat Mubasher: The number of foreign companies that obtained licenses to establish regional headquarters (RHQ) in Saudi Arabia reached 520, surpassing the 2030 target of 500 companies, Minister of Investment Khalid Al Falih stated during the eighth edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII8).

In a panel discussion, Al Falih revealed that the number of licensed international companies in the Kingdom is “10x of what it used to be before Vision 2030.”

He noted that Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product (GDP) has grown by 70% since the launch of Vision 2030, positioning the Kingdom as the second fastest-growing economy among G20 countries.

Al Falih further unveiled that the Saudi non-oil economy has been growing consistently at 4% to 5% since 2017, including this year and the previous one.

Sharing figures about the investments in Saudi Arabia, the minister pointed out that the Kingdom targeted $3.3 trillion of direct investments, with a gross capital formation growing above 10% year-on-year.

Furthermore, Saudi Arabia recorded $26 billion of foreign direct investments (FDIs) in 2023, nearly ahead of the National Investment Strategy (NIS) targets.

On the other side, Al Falih discussed the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in fostering digital transformation in Saudi Arabia, showcasing the Kingdom’s efforts to have a balanced framework on data privacy, sovereignty, and security while shifting more towards the enablement of AI applications.

The FII8 takes place in Riyadh from 29 to 31 October, gathering world, leaders, ministers, CEOs, investors, founders, and public policy experts in finance, sustainability, energy, geoeconomics, and space sectors.