Under the auspices of the Advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, Governor of Makkah Al-Mukarramah Region, Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, and honoring the Deputy Governor of Makkah Al-Mukarramah Region, Prince Badr bin Sultan, the Chamber of Commerce in Makkah Al-Mukarramah, in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce in Madinah and the Islamic Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, launched the “Manafea” forum in its first edition, at the main headquarters. The Chamber of Commerce in Makkah Al-Mukarramah in the presence of a number of Excellencies, Excellencies and business owners.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Commerce in Makkah Al-Mukarramah, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, Sheikh Abdullah bin Saleh Kamel, inaugurated the forum program by thanking and appreciating the patronage of Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, and the honor of Prince Badr bin Sultan for the forum, saying: “This generous support and honor indicates solid confidence Granted by the wise leadership, which enhances our ambition and sharpens our motivation to work and achieve all without exception.
He added: Since we started planning for a partnership of benefits, our aspirations are increasing with the demand we find from various Islamic countries represented by business owners in them. Everyone is willing to participate, and everyone is happy with these initiatives. Therefore, Your Highness, I find it an appropriate opportunity to confirm our firm commitment to fulfilling our duty to achieve our vision that We set it for benefits, which is to invest the sacred status of Makkah Al-Mukarramah and Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah in the world to turn them into a center of attraction for business activities, and a springboard for knowledge and creativity related to the Islamic world and Islamic knowledge. The unique one of its kind that embodies in all meanings the Almighty’s saying: “So that they may witness benefits for themselves.”
After that, the Deputy Emir of the region, and the main sponsor of the first “Manafea” forum, was honored by the CEO of Umm Al-Qura Development and Reconstruction Company, the owner and developer of the Yasser Abu Ateeq Masar destination. Then the attendees watched an introductory film about the Manafa Forum, which dealt with the investment status of the two holy cities, bringing together experts, specialists and decision-makers in one place, achieving the objectives of the Kingdom's vision and the Guests of Rahman Program, empowering the private sector and opening more investment opportunities to raise the domestic product of the two holy cities.
In his speech, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Madinah Chamber, Munir Muhammad Nasser bin Saad, confirmed that the “Manafea” forum aims to support the promising partnership between the government and private sectors, by providing more investment opportunities that will contribute to raising the gross domestic product of the cities of Makkah and Madinah. And enhance their sacred status, and they also have a major role in supporting the “Made in Saudi Arabia” program aimed at stimulating national industries through “Made in Makkah” and “Made in Medina” as industrial brands, to enrich the experience of the guests of Rahman and enhance the penetration of national products to various parts of the world.
And he added, "We, as chambers of commerce, believe in the great responsibility and the great role of strengthening the strategic partnership with the government sector, and benefiting from the incentives and unlimited support provided by our wise government, to achieve economic development in all fields."
The main sponsor of the forum, “Manafea”, the first CEO of Umm Al-Qura Development and Reconstruction Company, the owner and developer of the Masar destination, Yasser Abu Ateeq, said in his speech: “The destination industry is almost one of the most prominent development trends that characterized this new transformational stage; Therefore, we witness a diversity of destinations, which make the mother destination multiply and vary in rich experiences.
He added: «Perhaps the most important destinations in the Kingdom are the two cities of Makkah and Madinah, and God has honored us with the honor of serving the guests of Rahman. The most comprehensive experience economy to be more enriching for the guest of Rahman.
After that, the first dialogue session of the forum began under the title “Major Development Developments in Makkah and Madinah” and was moderated by the journalist Muhammad Al-Tumaihi, in which the Minister of Hajj, Umrah and Visitation, Dr. Objectives and vision of the program Facilitate arrivals from all over the world and enrich the experience, and the sustainability of the sector ensures the achievement of the goals, and this year there are record numbers, and there are currently 1.300 million people from outside the Kingdom between Makkah and Madinah, and all procedures have improved and there is a major shift in movement and work within the Two Holy Mosques Tremendous efforts are being made.
He said, "We are working to enrich the experience so that visitors can enjoy this ancient history, and we are working on many historical sites, and we have more than 100 historical sites in the two cities, and Makkah and Madinah are changing for the better." Indicating that the Ministry is a large system to serve pilgrims and Umrah performers, and the procedures are going well, the Hajj of the year will return to more than two million pilgrims, among the changes is that there is a historical legacy in which there is no external competition, and now the raft institutions have turned into companies, and there will be competition, and we expect quality, which will affect the The investment environment, and we are keen to open the market to large institutions, and we have found a level of satisfaction higher than the state. And the establishment of a Kadana company that will redevelop the infrastructure and increase the capacity.
The Minister of Investment, Engineer Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih, affirmed that the wise leadership is working to strengthen the Kingdom’s role and embody our tolerant Sharia and the principle of moderation, and that the Kingdom advances from huge budgets that have spent hundreds of billions in the Two Holy Mosques, and as much as we are proud of the experience of the pilgrim, it still lacks more intonation and work. The experiment is underway to complete, indicating that one of the elements of the vision is to activate the role of the private sector and embody it digitally by increasing small and medium enterprises, and for the first time a government agency assumes the responsibility of partnering with the private sector in business, and he said: “We look at the value chain in an integrated manner in Hajj and Umrah to find hotel complexes of value High spending in the Kingdom, shopping is important, visits are important, health services are also very important, and we have attracted investors to build clinics with international specifications, and it is very important that the Ministry of Investment cares about the Saudi investor to the same degree of interest as the foreign investor, and the establishment of partnerships with the private sector, and the Federation of Chambers has a role in partnerships and we aspire to There will be a role for financing channels, facilitating them, issuing sukuk and shares, and adding capital to support local capital.
The Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing, Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail, indicated that the municipal and housing sector is going through a clear period in partnership with the private sector, and within 4 years we have 400 Saudi developers, and there are 600 developers coming and we are building on them in real estate development. Legislation and oversight or compliance We benefit from entrepreneurs and invest in 11 sectors and entrepreneurs invest in compliance and oversight. We are optimistic about sharing business with us and the experience we are proud of.
And the Minister of Transport and Logistics, Eng. Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, stated that the holy sites, Makkah and Madinah represent a unique global challenge in terms of transport and logistics services, in a disciplined and organized manner, and the Kingdom has gained expertise and has large investments in that, and the two airports in Jeddah and Madinah have major expansion plans in them, and there is the Haramain Train. It launches 100 trips per day with a smooth journey, and it is one of the 10 fastest trains in the world with facilitated services. We have a huge road network, and modern modes of transportation that are tested and modern technologies. We launched the first electric bus in the city, and there is integration between ministries and agencies to improve service. He said that Makkah and Madinah are expected to increase the number of visitors, and in the municipal sector we have worked on more than one element, including ensuring the removal of 43 elements of visual distortion, and it is a complete journey that we are walking on, including 80% of the population, and we will add the green patch.
And he added: We worked on smart municipal services, which are among the smart cities, and we are working to transform them into smart cities. We worked on community participation and for the community to be part of the solutions. Makkah and Madinah have a number of slums, and we are working to deal with them so that they are part of the integrated fabric. And King Abdulaziz Airport reached 12 million passengers in the quarter, and the Kingdom exceeded the 2019 numbers, and there are great stability coming and a great development renaissance coming, all of which require infrastructure development and partnerships with the private sector. Indicating that all the different modes of transportation are on the table and we will provide alternatives, and priorities must be formulated and we evaluate the available alternatives and evaluate the best of them in terms of financial terms, and the pilgrim pilgrim finds a continuous connection of related services, which is a good work of frequency services to make the travel experience comfortable.
Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, Engineer Osama bin Abdulaziz Al-Zamil, said that 212 industrial investment opportunities are available to investors through the “Invest in Saudi” platform, of which 82 opportunities were announced within the 163-opportunity national strategy for industry, and all investment opportunities provided by the strategy will be added through The platform during the year 2023, indicating that Makkah Al-Mukarramah today hosts more than 2,000 factories operating in more than 23 industrial activities with investments of more than 205 billion riyals, while Medina embraces 461 factories in more than 20 industrial activities with investments amounting to 120 billion riyals.
Al-Zamil added: Makkah Al-Mukarramah and Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah have huge capabilities in supporting the “Made in Saudi Arabia” program, through the numbers of pilgrims and pilgrims who come to the Kingdom for Hajj and Umrah every year, and that there are more than 1,600 national companies joining the “Made in Saudi Arabia” program. » Including about 20 factories and companies affiliated with its two identities “Made in Makkah Al-Mukarramah” and “Made in Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah” when they were launched.
The forum's work continued with two sessions, one of which was entitled "Future Plans for Makkah and Madinah and their Integration with Vision 2030" and the role of Modon in enabling industry in the two holy cities, and the other was entitled "The Role of the Private Sector in the Development of the Cities of Makkah and Madinah". It dealt with the successful investment experience of the entities in the two cities and future expansion plans.
In turn, the General Supervisor of the Studies and Research Center at the Chamber of Commerce in Makkah Al-Mukarramah, Secretary General of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, reviewed a summary of an economic report entitled “Cities of the Islamic World in Global Indicators”, which was prepared by the Center for Studies and Research at the Makkah Chamber, in which the city of Doha ranked first as the best city for business. In the Islamic world, achieving the 11th place in the global business cities index, with a total score of 88.7. The Global Business Cities Index includes four sub-indicators: society, economy, operating environment, and attractiveness.
The report recommended the necessity of directly linking investors and entrepreneurs between the databases of the regulatory authorities, the importance of enabling them to access global markets, and providing more facilities and incentives to the private sector to support the integrated process of partnership between the government and private sectors.
It is noteworthy that the “Manafea” forum is considered one of the projects that translates the goals of the triple-benefits agreement that brought together the Makkah Chamber, the Madinah Chamber and the Islamic Chamber with the aim of transforming Makkah and Madinah into a center of attraction for business activities, and providing permanent international tools to promote all partnership outputs globally.
Ahmed Al-Lahani – Noura Al-Maliki (Makkah Al-Mukarramah) @ okaz_onlin