The International Monetary and Financial Committee of International Monetary Fund (IMF) held its 23rd meeting here on Saturday. The delegation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the meeting was headed by Dr. Ibrahim Bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, the Minister of Finance and the Kingdom's Governor to the IMF; with the participation of Dr. Mohammed bin Suleiman Al-Jasser, the Governor of Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA); and Eng. Yousef bin Ibrahim Al-Bassam, Vice President and Managing Director of Saudi Fund for Development. Addressing the Committee, Dr. Al-Assaf dealt with the economic situation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the current situation of the global economy, and the role of the International Monetary Fund in confronting the challenges of the global economy. Dr. Al-Assaf noted that the royal decrees recently issued by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdulaziz, aimed to provide temporary subsidies to the unemployed people and to increase spending on housing programs that would strengthen the social safety networks. As regards the Saudi economy, Dr. Al-Assaf said the continuing strong performance of the Saudi economy supported by great governmental investments in infrastructures projects and social sectors, has contributed to increasing the IMF forecasts for the economic growth in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in this year. In terms of fiscal policy, the Minister of Finance pointed out that the overall policies pursued by the Kingdom during the past years, have contributed to the provision of adequate fiscal rooms to take strong actions in confronting the global financial crisis. Dr. Al-Assaf asserted the strength and safety of the banking sector which enjoys high profitability and financial solvency. For the developments in oil markets, the Minister of Finance stressed the Kingdom's commitment to strengthening the stability of the oil markets for the interests of producers and consumers alike and supporting the global economic growth, commending the progress in cooperation between oil producers and consumers, especially through the International Energy Forum and the signing of the Charter of the Forum in Riyadh last February.
