ArabWeeks

During the scheduled visit of His Royal Highness Prince Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Crown Prince and Chairman of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs to China, Huawei; a leading global ICT solutions provider, received on Wednesday August 31 2016 an investment license from his excellency Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi, Minister of Commerce and Investment, as part of the activities of the Forum held by Aramco in Beijing to introduce the Kingdom’s vision 2030.

Huawei, represented by Pang Jimin, Director of Huawei Global Government Affairs, received the license to start the Company’s business in the Kingdom with a 100% ownership privilege. After submitting a comprehensive action plan to the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) that includes several initiatives to contribute to the localization of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry in the Kingdom, the new license would allow the company to sell its products directly in the Saudi market.

This is the first commercial license in the field of ICT in the Kingdom, and it is also the first commercial license in Saudi Arabia to a Chinese company.

His Excellency Minister of Commerce and Investment explained that granting the license to Huawei was based on the regulations and conditions approved by the Council of Ministers to license foreign companies to invest in the wholesale and retail trade sectors with a 100% ownership. The Minister also reiterated his keenness to attract and empower qualitative investments in the promising sectors and stimulate international companies in the target sectors to invest and guarantee all the necessary facilities to help them implement the commitments and initiatives to promote the investments in the Kingdom in order to contribute to the achieving the Kingdom’s strategic vision 2030.

Mr. Ramadan Ding, CEO of Huawei Tech Investment Company in Saudi Arabia, stated:

“Huawei is proud to be in the market of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia since 1999, where we have launched the latest technological innovations, in addition to our support to young talents by investing to improve their skills through establishing a technology center . We look forward to future achievements and transforming ideas into reality using our latest innovations and the confidence of our customers in order to support the Kingdom’s vision 2030”.

Mr. Ding indicated that Huawei will immediately start implementing all the requirements and regulations according to the action plan submitted to SAGIA.

An action plan has been approved by SAGIA and Huawei. The plan stipulates that Huawei will establish an exhibition showcasing innovations,  arrange an annual and quarterly competition in the Kingdom to encourage young talents to innovate; in order to make this exhibition a platform for innovations, foster small and medium companies, establish a center for  ICT competencies which aims to train 4,500 of the qualified professionals in the ICT sector in the coming three years; including 900 Saudi people in the field of ICT, as part of the social responsibility activities of the Company to improve the Saudi competencies in ICT and finally to build a showroom for retail sales; in addition to three service centers.

Huawei will focus on building effective partnerships with local distributors and enhancing local content through its purchases from the local market at 300 million Saudi Riyals in the coming five years. In addition, the company will focus on maintaining and promoting its alliances with the leading telecommunication companies, as well as investing heavily in the creative brands and local marketing activities.

A delegate from the Ministry of Commerce and Investment visited Huawei’s center for research and development in Beijing. The delegation expressed their appreciation to the company for expanding its investments in the Kingdom and its decision to establish a center for innovation. They also maintained that the Kingdom’s vision 2030 focuses on the importance of promoting creativity and innovation in the universities, up skilling graduates for the job market and training the Saudi students, either through laboratories in universities or through its new center.

It is worth mentioning that the size of the ICT market in the Kingdom is estimated to be around 135 billion Saudi Riyals with a growth rate of 3.8% per annum. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is considered to be one of the largest consumer markets for Huawei in the Middle East. The number of employees in the Kingdom is currently more than 1,000 male and female employees.

The Public investment fund (PIF) represented by the Saudi Real Estate Development Company (Dar Al-Hijrah) and Dur Hospitality, the Saudi Company specialized in hotel development and operation through local & international hotel operators signed two Letters of Intent, whereby Dur Hospitality will be operating two hotels at Dar Al-Hijrah project in Medina.

The LOIs were signed on Wednesday 13, Thul Qedah 1438 H, corresponding to August 17, 2016 G, by Assistant Minister of Finance Mr. Mohammed bin Hamoud Al-Maziad who is the Chairman of the founding committee of the Saudi Real Estate Development Company (Dar Al-Hijrah), and Mr. Fahad bin Abdullah al-Qasim, Board member at Dur Hospitality.

Through its own Saudi Hotel Brand specialized in operating hotels in Mecca and Madina “Makarem”, Dur Hospitality will operate the first Hotel that will boast 614 rooms and hotel apartments which will further boost the brand’s leading position in the holy cities of Saudi Arabia.

The second hotel will incorporate 380 rooms and hotel apartments and will be operated by Marriott Courtyard, making it the second hotel managed by Dur Hospitality through Marriot International as per the franchise agreement signed with Marriott last April.

Dar Al-Hijrah project will be developed over an area of 1.6 million sqm, 3 km southwest Al-Masjid an-Nabawī and 900 m away from Quba mosque, with a total cost of 55 Billion Saudi Riyals. It is one of the monumental projects foreseen to develop Al Medina AL Munawara city further, and contribute in upgrading the level of services in the area, as it includes more than 100 executives, commercial and hospitality towers, in addition to Public utilities and administrative centers and pilgrims’ services.

In recognition of its unique services and success record, Makarem Hotels, the Saudi-grown Hotel Brand designed by Dur Hospitality, specialized in operating in the cities of Makkah and Madinah was recently awarded a set of three awards during Transform Mena prestigious awards Ceremony held in Dubai.

Transform MENA, the global celebration of brand development, reputation management and rebranding, is the only awards program awarding the best brand work in the Middle East and North Africa. The program provides an important platform from which to benchmark and showcase the fantastic work being done in the region.

Makarem Hotels were awarded The Silver Award for “Best brand evolution”, the Silver Award for the “Best use of typography” and the Bronze Award for “Best visual identity from the travel & leisure sector”.

On this occasion, Dr. Badr Al Badr, CEO Dur Hospitality, said: “Transform Mena Awards is an important platform for showcasing the successful brands of companies globally and highlights the importance of building strong brand identities. Winning these awards is the result of Makarem’s success during the past few years, where we revamped our corporate identity that stems from our belief in delivering the Saudi hospitality in a modern environment thus setting a new benchmark for hospitality in the Kingdom. “

He added: “These awards urge us to pursue our mission of delivering world class hotel experience designed to the best Saudi spirit as per the finest industry standards.”

He concluded “We seek to be the first Saudi brand in the mind of our business partners and guests, and accordingly, Makarem unveiled a bouquet of unique services including its spiritual concierge, “Karam Club” loyalty program, and its7 languages website to cater to its diversified guests’ portfolio visiting Makarem from all over the world.”

It is worth mentioning that the whole evolution of Makarem’s Brand, is the result of the mutual collaboration between Landor and Makarem.

German Saudi-Arabian Liaison Office for Economic Affairs (GESALO) hosted today the HEALTH CARE|Made in Germany event. It is being supported by the Ministry of Health – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia together with the German Embassy in Riyadh and the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Berlin brought, together sophisticated German companies providing healthcare technology, medical treatment, hospital planning and patient transportation services.

The Delegate of German Industry and Commerce for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Yemen Mr. Oliver Oehms held opening remarks and pointed out that “a world-class health care system is the foundation for a vibrant society as defined by the Vision 2030” and that German excellence and know-how in this sector can help to achieve these goals. Dr. Rashed Kawan the Acting General Supervisor of the Transformation Center, Ministry of Health, highlighted in his presentation the planned role of the private sector in the healthcare sector in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the new German ambassadorto Saudi Arabia, H.E. Mr. Dieter Haller, Ambassador of Germany to Saudi Arabia, said the event is a good opportunity to introduce newest developments and highlighting latest technological German advancements. He encouraged more German companies for more know how transfer in kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The event culminated with the participation of Dr. Nayfeh Shaalan, responsible for Health Affairs for patients in the Saudi military attaché at the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – Germany, where she noted the the importance of cooperation between the two countries.   

The event was a highly busy place today, roaming with representatives of the Saudi Arabian health care sector from the government, the business and scientific communities. On the other side, high profile German businesses like Lufthansa, Siemens, Drees & Sommer, the Vivantes Hospital Group and Gerolsteiner, exhibited their products and services. The Health Care event was a successful display of German-Saudi Arabian cooperation and demonstrated the bright future outlook of a continuing and prosperous partnership.