Demand for workers equipped with solid project management skills has increased in the Kingdom following the government's announcement of a 16 percent increase in project spending to SR260 billion in 2010. The substantial rise in project funding is part of governmental efforts to attain a 4.5 percent economic growth rate within the year, according to a press release issued Sunday by Management and Control Solutions (CMCS). Capacity building Saudi-based firms such as Collaboration, Management and Control Solutions (CMCS), a leading project portfolio management (PPM) provider in the region, are turning to training to fill the skilled workforce demand. Meanwhile, organizations such as Aramco, SABIC, Ministry of Interior, Royal Commission and other big players in Saudi are actively encouraging their staff to take up professional training and certification courses. Bassam Samman, Founder and CEO, CMCS, said: “Projects being planned throughout the Kingdom in 2010 will require systematic management and a Saudi workforce capable of dealing with any possible operational problems. Our challenge is to develop and build the know-how needed by the burgeoning local projects sector to fulfil its role in sustained economic recovery.” The Kingdom's public expenditure could reach 35 percent of GDP in 2010, a smaller share than last year's. King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, recently said that the national budget is 14 percent more than that of 2009. Saudi Arabia has just unveiled the largest budget in its history, forecasting SR540 billion in expenditures and SR470 billion in revenues. The government has allocated SR260 billion for new investment projects and SR137 billion for education. The municipal sector has been granted SR22 billion, the transport and telecommunications sector SR24 billion, and the water, industrial and agricultural sector SR46 billion. The Saudi real estate sector is expected to post a growth rate of between 5 to 7 percent this year until 2012, backed by strong domestic housing demand, expanding business development projects and a rapidly growing hospitality sector. Domestic property investments are expected to hit SR 1.5 trillion in 2010, opening up various opportunities for the project
