Saudi Visions are based on three pillars: (1)
- Saudi is the land of the Two Holy Mosques which gathers more than a billion Muslims each year at prayer.
- The country holds solid venture capacities and is rich in its natural resources.
- The geographic position of the country connects three continents: Asia, Europe and Africa and plays an important role in commerce.
Government is aware of the country’s excessive reliance on oil and the other structural issues that have come to characterize the nation’s economy and life so that the government of Saudi Arabia outlined the country’s vision until the year of 2030 to free the kingdom’s economy from reliance on oil. But at first, it is important for Saudi to launch a group of executive programs to ensure the possibility of the implementation of the vision including the Saudi Aramco Strategic Transformation program, the Public investment fund restructuring program, the Human Capital program, the Nation transformation program, the program for strengthening public sector governance, the privatization program, the strategic partnerships program. (2)
The purposes of the vision are to increase the use of resources, enhance the society and human life, strengthen it’s competitiveness and help the country rise from current position of 25 to the top 10 countries on the Global Competitiveness Index.
The details of Saudi vision 2030 are as follows:
1. A vibrant society with strong roots: “we have enormous untapped opportunities and a rich blend of natural resources, but our real wealth lies in our people and our society. We take pride in what makes our nation exceptional: our Islamic faith and our national unity. Our nation is the core of the Arab and Islamic worlds and represents the heart of Islam. We are confident that, god willing, we will build a brighter future, one based on the bedrock of Islamic principles. We will continue to excel in performing our duties towards pilgrims to the fullest and promote our deep-rooted national identity”. (3)
In 2015, the country expanded the two Holy Mosques to increase the capacity to serve up to 8 million each year. (4) Moreover, the government improved visa application procedures, upgraded accommodation especially improved hospitality, integrated e-services into pilgrims’ journey and constructed an Islamic gallery as per the most elevated worldwide guidelines, outfitted with the most recent strategies in gathering, conservation to help visitors enrich religious and cultural experiences.
2. A vibrant society with fulfilling lives: “the happiness and fulfillment of citizens and residents is important to us. This can only be achieved through promoting physical, psychological and social well-being. At the heart of our vision is a society in which all enjoy a good quality of life, a healthy lifestyle and an attractive living environment”. (3)
The country focuses on enhancing the quality of life by ensuring high quality of services such as water, electricity, public transportation. The government also expanded the effectiveness of waste disposal services, building up thorough reusing ventures, decreasing a wide range of contamination and battling desertification to advance the ideal utilization of its water assets by diminishing utilization and using treated and sustainable water. Take the interest of the private area and government finances into consideration to improve the society, the country conducted projects for example building and improving libraries, expressions and historical centers for all and meet the needs and requirements of its citizens.
3. A vibrant society with strong foundations: “our goal is to promote and reinvigorate social development in order to build a strong and productive society. We will strengthen our families, provide the education that builds our children’s fundamental characters and establish empowering health and social care systems”. (3)
Saudi will keep modernizing its social welfare system to make it more productive and engaging. The country currently has 2.2 doctor’s facility beds for each 1,000 individuals, world class medicinal pros with normal future ascending from 66 years to 74 years in the previous three decades. (5) Yet, the country launched some projects to upgrade and efficiently use the limit of its doctor’s facilities and medicinal service focuses, and upgrade the nature of its preventive furthermore, helpful human services administrations.
As for education, the country’s objective by 2020 is for 80 percent of parents to participate in school activities and the learning procedure of their youngsters. (6)To accomplish this objective, Saudi will team up with private and non-benefit parts to offer imaginative instructive projects and occasions that can enhance this scholarly association. For instance, the country will dispatch the “Irtiqaa” program, which will quantify how effectively schools can engage parents to in their children’ training.
For healthcare system, the country will upgrade the standard and nature of social insurance system to improve the capacity, effectiveness, profitability of care and treatment and increment the choices accessible to its residents.
4. A thriving economy will reward opportunities: “the skills and competencies of our children are one of the most important and cherished assets. To make the most of their potential, we will build a culture that rewards determination, provides opportunities for all and helps everyone acquire the necessary skills to achieve their personal goals. To this end, we will reinforce the ability of our economy to generate diverse job opportunities and institute a new paradigm in attracting global talents and qualifications”. (3)
Saudi concentrated on the development and innovation of advanced technologies and entrepreneurship. The country conducted a lot of projects for creating early adolescence training, refining its national educational program. The government also launched the National Labor Portal (TAQAT), and set up sector councils to decide the aptitudes and information required by each financial segment. (7) Grants and scholarships will be guided towards prestigious worldwide colleges and be granted in the fields that serve its national needs.
Moreover, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are among the most critical specialists of financial development; they make employments and bolster development. Thus, the government will support SME business enterprise by setting up the SME Authority and empowering its young business visionaries with regulations and government offers. The government also strive to provide funding up to 20% of its budget to SMEs by 2030. (3)
In addition, the country provides equal opportunities and attracts more talents as well as foreign investment from 3.8% to the international level of 5.7% of GDP by improving living, working condition, sampling working visa and residence permits. (8)
5. A thriving economy focuses for the long term: “diversifying our economy is vital for its sustainability. Although oil and gas are essential pillars of our economy, we have begun expanding our investments into additional sectors, we understand that there are complicated challenges ahead but we have long-term plans to overcome them. In the past 25 years, the Saudi economy has grown by an annual average rate of more than 4 percent, contributing to the creation of millions of new jobs, although we are already among the 20 largest economies in the world, our ambitions are even greater. We aspire to have an even higher ranking by 2030, despite the headwinds of the global economic slowdown and the expected impact of our structural economic reforms. This requires us to invest in all our resources in order to diversify the economy, unleash the capabilities of our promising economic sectors and privatize some government services”. (3)
The country vision is to maximize its investment capacities by joining international organizations around the world. Also, the country transferred the ownership of Aramco to the Public Investment Fund, which will move toward becoming the biggest sovereign riches subsidize on the planet. The Public Investment Fund won’t rival the private part, however rather help open vital divisions requiring serious capital sources of info. This will contribute towards growing altogether new financial divisions and building up tough national companies. First, the country focuses on supporting promising sectors. For example, in the fabricating area, the government will work towards limiting sustainable power source and modern gear segments. In the tourism and relaxation areas, the country will make attractions that are of the most noteworthy universal benchmarks, enhance visa procedure for talented employees. In innovation, Saudi will increment its interests in the computerized economy. In mining, the country will outfit impetuses for and advantage from the investigation of the Kingdom’s mineral assets. In addition, the country will twofold its gas creation, and develop a national gas dissemination arrange.
Second, the country will privatize its government services by enhancing and changing its controls, clearing the path for financial specialists and the private segment to get and convey administrations. In addition, the goal of the country is to increase the private sector’s contribution from 40% to 65% of GDP by 2030. (9) Hence, the country will build private segment commitment by empowering ventures, both neighborhood and universal, in human services and civil administrations.
Third, the country aims to localize defense industry. The country’s point is to restrict more than 50 percent of military hardware spending by 2030. (10) Saudi will grow this activity to higher esteem and more perplexing hardware, for example, military flying machine and build up more particular and coordinated mechanical buildings.
Moreover, the country focuses on producing 9.5 gigawatts of sustainable power source for enhancing a renewable energy market. (11) Saudi will additionally try to restrict a huge part of the inexhaustible vitality esteem chain in the Saudi economy, including innovative work, and assembling, among different stages.
6. A thriving economy opens for business: “opening Saudi Arabia further for business will boost productivity and smooth our journey to become one of the largest economies in the world. We will improve our business environment, restructure our economic cities, create special zones and deregulate the energy market to make it more competitive”. (3)
Saudi encourages the stream of private speculation and enhance its intensity. For example, the country will build the quality and dependability of its administrations to enhance the business condition and implementing contracts.
Moreover, the government collaborates with Aramco to rebuild Jizan Economic City and work with the organizations owning urban areas to patch up them and exchange crucial offices. The purpose is for these urban areas to contribute in the advancement of the economy and to draw in quality ventures and in addition neighborhood and global ability, all kept in accordance with the country’s national needs.
The country also establishes special zone in some focused areas. For example, the country may consider the near points of interest of the Kingdom’s distinctive locales, evaluate their attainability for promising segments. Furthermore, the country strives to increase the competitiveness of its energy sector to support other sectors in the development of the country’s economy.
7. A thriving economy leverages its unique position: “Saudi Arabia is right at the crossroads of important international trade routes, between three continents: Asia, Europe and Africa. We will therefore maximize the benefits from our exceptional and strategic geographic position, agree new strategic partnerships to grow our economy and help Saudi companies to increase exports of their products. We will leverage the close proximity of energy sources and our distinctive logistical offer to stimulate a new phase of industrialization and to catalyze exports and re-exports”. (3)
The country will change the King Abdullah Financial District into a special zone that has aggressive directions and methodology, with visa exceptions, and straightforwardly associated with the King Khaled International Airplane terminal increase the chances of profitability and success in developing the economy. (11) Restructuring King Abdullah Financial District to be the home office of the Public Investment Fund, the biggest sovereign riches finance, which will add to making a good condition alluring to financial, investment and different organizations.
Moreover, the country expects to invest million Saudis by 2020 in a developing retail segment that draws in present day, neighborhood, local, and universal marks over all areas of the nation. (12) The retail division accomplished a yearly development rate in abundance of 10 percent. (13) It presently utilizes 1.5 million specialists, of which just 0.3 million are Saudis. (13) Customary retail additionally still overwhelms 50 percent of the market in the Kingdom contrasted with 20 percent in various nations in the Gulf Cooperation Board (GCC). (14) Thus, Saudi intends to increase the commitment of current exchange and online business to 80 percent of the retail segment by 2020. (15) This will be accomplished by drawing in both provincial and worldwide retail financial specialists.
In addition, the country will build up the broadcast communications and data innovation foundation, particularly rapid broadband, growing its scope and limit inside and around urban areas and enhancing its quality. The objective is to surpass 90 percent lodging scope in thickly populated urban areas and 66 percent in other urban zones. (16) Also, the government will enhance Saudi’s controls and build up a successful association with telecom administrators to better build up systems in the media communications and data innovation divisions.
The goal of the country is to raise its global ranking in the Logistics Performance Index from 49 to 25 and ensure the Kingdom is a regional leader. (17) Thus, the country conducted a lot of projects for the development of ports, railroads, streets and airplane terminals. Air, sea, and other transport administrators will be urged to make the vast majority of their ability: accomplishing tough connections between existing exchange centers, and opening new trade routes. With a GDP of SAR 2.4 trillion, Saudi’s economy is as of now the biggest in the Middle East. (20) The government also works closely with the Gulf Cooperation Chamber and other Arab nations, and additionally productive relations with Islamic and outside nations.
8. An ambitious nation effectively governed: “the roles and requirements of government have grown significantly since the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s founding. Government – any government – needs to evolve and improve continuously, if only to keep pace with rising expectations and new challenges. This requires us to meet high standards of transparency and accountability. We are committed to managing our finances efficiently and effectively, and to creating agile public organizations and to tracking both their own performance and that of the government overall”. (3)
The objectives of Saudi are to raise its ranking on the E-Government Survey Index from its current position of 36 to be among the top five nations and increase non-oil government revenue from SAR 163 billion to SAR 1 Trillion by 2030. (21) To accomplish this objective, the government will keep on building protected and adequate vital nourishment stores, to effectively prepare for crises. In Saudi Arabia, the utilization of water in farming will be organized for those ranges with characteristic and sustainable water sources. Saudi will likewise keep on collaborating with purchasers, sustenance makers and wholesalers to diminish any asset wastage. The government will try to keep costs stable over the long haul, furthermore, give Saudi residents more prominent monetary security. Saudi’s desire is a more signed up government, with clearer interfaces between arrangement choices, conveyance, and execution observing. The government will keep on create checking units and help them with enrollment, spending plans and other hierarchical support, to ensure that Saudi administrations are performing great as per worldwide best rehearses. These units will push for coordination between government organizations, and also help screen and progress their execution.
9. An ambitious nation responsibly enabled: “the nation we aspire to build will not be realized without a grand, collective national effort where everyone contributes. We all have roles to fulfill, whether we are working in the public, private or non-profit sectors. We will therefore work continually to achieve our hopes and fulfill our aspirations and responsibilities to our country, our society, our families, and to ourselves”. (3)
The country aims to raise the non-profit sector’s contribution to GDP from less than 1% to 5% and increase household savings from 6% to 10% of total household income. (22) Thus, Saudi will empower the organizations that complete on this dedication to take an interest in its nation and to address national challenges. The country will formalize and reinforce the association of its social also and will keep on developing controls important to engage non-benefit associations. Government support will be coordinated to the projects with most noteworthy social effect and it will bolster preparing specialists to support volunteering and vocations in the non-benefit part. Empowering non-benefit associations to draw in the best abilities to guarantee best administration hones and the exchange of information, which will reinforce these foundations over the long term.
The country currently has less than 1,000 non-benefit and beneficent establishments and affiliations. They contribute only 0.3 percent of Saudi’s GDP, a great deal not exactly the worldwide normal of 6 percent. And only 7 percent of ventures are centered around producing social effect or are adjusted to the long haul national needs. (23) By 2020, more than 33% of Saudi’s non-benefit associations’ ventures ought to have quantifiable and profound social effect. (24)Hence, the government will bolster this development by making a strong and coordinate condition in which the part’s organizations and government offices can work together.