Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Official Web Site
MECCA – SABA
The Yemeni-Saudi Business Council announced the launch of initiatives to enhance trade and investment exchanges between the two countries and support economic development efforts in Yemen.
This was stated at the opening of the council’s meeting, which commenced Sunday in the Mecca region of Saudi Arabia with the participation of more than 300 Saudi and Yemeni investors to discuss investment opportunities in sectors such as renewable energy, agriculture, livestock, telecommunications, and exports.
The initiatives announced during the opening of the council’s meetings include developing the border crossings between the two brotherly countries by improving infrastructure and logistics services to increase trade volume, and establishing a club for Yemeni investors in the Kingdom to boost Saudi and Yemeni investments and pursue partnerships and joint projects.
The council called for the establishment of health quarantine facilities to inspect Yemeni livestock and agricultural and fishery products to increase Yemeni exports to the Kingdom, and for the creation of smart food cities in border areas to enhance food security and create a sustainable economic environment for cooperation in this sector by improving the use of natural resources and developing modern technologies to support local food production.
It emphasized the need to overcome banking and credit challenges facing Saudi and Yemeni traders in exporting their products by addressing the situation of Yemeni banks, opening channels for cooperation with Saudi banks, and developing the remittance sector in Yemen.
At the opening of the meeting, the head of the Yemeni side of the council Abdulmajid al-Saadi praised the new Saudi investment system, noting that many Yemeni capital investments in Arab countries are starting to head towards the Kingdom amid significant opportunities, estimating Yemeni investments in the Saudi market at about 18 billion riyals, thus ranking third.
For his part, the head of the Saudi party of the council Dr. Abdullah bin Marai bin Mahfouz stated that an agreement has been reached to establish three Saudi-Yemeni companies: The first for renewable energy aimed at producing electricity from solar energy with a capital of 100 million dollars to supply Yemeni territories with electricity.
The second company is for telecommunications through the “Starlink” satellite communication network; and the third for exhibitions and conferences in Yemen to market Saudi products and hold exhibitions that contribute to the reconstruction of Yemen.