On Behalf of

Business & Finance Club - Education - Riyadh: Saudi Arabia must continue to focus on education so that the Kingdom's youth will become the business leaders of tomorrow, the country's commerce and industry minister has said.

Abdullah Zainal Alireza was speaking at the last session of the Saudi-American Business Forum, which ended Thursday.

Alireza was joined by US Undersecretary of State for Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs Robert Hormats and Bijan R. Kian, a director of Export-Import Bank of the United States.

The session was focusing on incentives for trade and investment, as well as general conclusions about the forum's success.

The panelists agreed that the overwhelming enthusiasm generated by the forum did not mitigate the fact that obstacles and hurdles still exist, although Hormats noted that difficulties such as settlement disputes, commercial policy issues and payment delays were relatively minor and easily addressed.

He did commend Saudi Arabia for its dedication to the protection of intellectual property rights, "compared with some other large countries where IP rights can be questionable. This gives the United States a great deal of confidence with regard to investing in the Kingdom."

Kian spoke about the sense of trust growing between the two countries and how face-to-face meetings similar to those that took place at the forum can solidify connections and relationships in unique ways.

"We need to be educated not just about policy or investment but educated about what is taking place in the Kingdom," he added.

Alireza reiterated the commitment of the Kingdom to a national industrial strategy, of which a key ingredient is the building of "a knowledge cluster".

"Investments are manned by people who can run them and ensure success. We must develop a base of intellectual capital," he said.

Alireza's commitment was echoed by Princess Lulwa Al-Faisal, who engaged with over 30 Saudi students who were in Chicago on a scholarship initiative by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.

She spoke to them about the importance of becoming highly educated and bringing their knowledge and skills back home to Saudi Arabia.

The princess said that she believed that the Kingdom was entering a golden age and that both young men and women needed to benefit from support and opportunities.

What she wants to see, she emphasized, was the development of a new methodology of teaching, one that not just extends access to technology and is based on state-of-the-art facilities, but one that fosters a spirit of problem-solving and creativity.

Alireza met with the same students afterward.

At the closing session, he noted that when he was a student, he studied subjects like history, sociology and political science.

"Now it's IT, systems analysis, systems management. This is a huge leap from what it was to what it could be," he said. "I've never felt so enthusiastic about the prospects of Saudi Arabia because we're building the future today."

Feedback from the event was positive.

"I so enjoyed seeing how for these two days the corridors of the Sheraton were transformed into a gigantic souk — people from different cultures talking, laughing, exchanging cards," said Robert Lacey, author of Inside the Kingdom. "I also thought that the Imax film, Saudi Arabia, which was entirely made in the Kingdom, was one of the great successes, emblematic of just how much things have changed. This event was a great bear hug between the US and Saudi Arabia."