Saudi Arabia is an asset to the Middle East and North Africa region because of its 25% reserve of world’s oil resources. Besides being the largest economy in this region, it is also one of the most developing countries across the globe but due to its dependence on the oil reserve, other sectors are being neglected. Though the country is one of the richest of all the Middle East countries and many other countries across the globe the versatility or the uniformity in the income is not there. The diversity of income from different resources and sectors is not there in this economy which is why; the government is now trying to attract foreign investments into different sectors of Saudi.
Earlier the most challenging factor in the economy was its regulations and the legalities in the businesses for which the investments were restricted as well. Investing in Saudi Arabia earlier used to mean a lot of compliances which the government is working upon now to relax the process of investment in the country.
The future prospect of this economy and the potential of its untapped resources is yet to be discovered by the economy itself and the government has started working on the same and the results are positive though slow. This economy is not making this progress themselves but also for its surrounding nation as well and it is evident from the growth in Egypt, UAE, and the other GCC countries. The individual investors or the HNIs or the government across the globe who invests money in this region tends to lose the same in most of the scenario but with utmost hard work towards making strong governance and the reformation of the judiciary along with effective bureaucratic control, many investors are gaining interest in these markets.
SAGIA which stands for Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority provides the license for investment from the foreign nationals and entities in the country. It was formed to enable and ease the process of liberalization in the economy to gain foreign investments, in 2010. The objective with which this body was formed and is working currently is to achieve the growth in the economy by helping the businesses attract foreign investments and for creating a healthy environment for various business opportunities in the KSA. This body strives for fostering the growth through investments in the major sectors of the economy which are construction, healthcare, education, online & IT services and Food and Beverages.
Opportunities for investment in construction sector:
By 2025, 3.3 million of housing units has to be made to cater to the need of the population of Saudi Arabia as reported by the Housing Ministry of the country. This is because the country is a chronic shortage of homes and housing units for its growing population.
Already the government has started taking help from foreign nations in which China has been proposed to build 1 lac houses in AI-Ahsa province. This figure helps in understand the need for investing in the Saudi’s construction sector. Since the construction sector contracted in the previous financial year by almost 2 percent, the country is gearing up to expand it now and thus investing in this sector at this point of time can be really profitable.
Opportunities for investment in health care center:
One of the main aspects the ambitious and optimistic Saudi Vision 2030 which was launched last year is the "PPPs" which stand for the Public-Private Partnerships. Under this, the public entities of the Saudi government will get investments from the private sector which includes foreign investments as well.
This partnership program has been developed to initialize the investment of the foreign investors into the public organization of the economy out of which hospital and the healthcare sector in under main focus. Almost 55 and above health centers will be privatized in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia under this program and many more investments will be done to make the healthcare sector highly functional. If you are looking to invest in the healthcare sector of Saudi, this is the right time.
Opportunities for investment in education sector:
There are four ways to invest in the education sector of Saudi Arabia and the first one is for investors looking for growth focused acquisitions. This investment will direct to the institutions and companies already established in the nation for providing education. These are recognized and thus investing in this program will definitely earn you cash flows at the end of the venture as well as on an ongoing aspect.
- The next is the Greenfield investments which suit the investors looking for taking a risk in the startups and have entrepreneurial skills. For investing in these projects, you need to verify the models of the business to anticipate the earning.
- The third one is for the people looking for investing in the vocational institutes and the play schools which are yet to boom in the market but hold potential growth factor.
- Lastly, you can invest in the land or the building which will be used for the purpose of building educational institutes.
Opportunities for investment in online and IT services:
The government-owned science and research entities in Saudi have reportedly increased the investment prospect in the country. After earlier challenges in IT, There is a huge improvement in the Information technology and the online services. The country also gets indulge in the outsourcing opportunities and there are more than 70% chances of increase in the technology sector in the coming years. There is a huge opportunity for the people who are looking to invest in this sector as this is the most growing sector across the globe as well as in Saudi. Since Saudi Arabia is looking to decentralize its focus from oil production, this sector gains major attraction after the former.
Opportunities for investment in food and beverage sector:
The annual growth rate of the food and beverage industry of Saudi in last five years is 2.6% and the market is growing with foreign investments as the taste and preference of the people are changing slowly but steadily.
There are major food companies which are investing in the country and reaping huge profits due to the fact mentioned above. The government along with the private investors are looking to invade the market more and thus if you are looking for investing in the sector of Saudi then this is the perfect time to listen to your heart and mind.
Saudi Arabia has always been the largest producer of oil in the world and one of the riches countries as well. It is still the major oil producer in the Gulf and thus with the wind of liberalization, it is important to shift a little from its core sector to other sectors as well as the times are changing and investments and growth of other sectors are also necessary to progress as an economy in a whole. Ample opportunities are there, you just need to be cautious about the sector and its prospects before investing your money. You should do your own analysis on the market you are opting for investment and look for the major players in that sector.
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