ANY business executive would be drawn to Saudi Arabia's world status and record of attracting business enterprises. With the world's 23rd largest economy, Saudi Arabia is one of only three Muslim majority countries in the G-20 economic group. A member of the World Trade Organization, Saudi Arabia is the 11th most economically competitive country in the world, according to the 2011 World Bank “Doing Business” report. According to the same report, Saudi Arabia ranked as the best place to do business in the Middle East and the Arab World, for the fifth consecutive year. Saudi Arabia is also in 10th place among countries with the safest sovereign debt in a recent report by the London-based Credit Market Analysis Vision, putting it in the same league as the ninth-place European economic powerhouse Germany. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and those who wish to do business here could not ask for a more promising assessment. What is even more uplifting is that King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, is tapping into the great talent of the Saudi people and is leading the Kingdom toward a knowledge-based economy. To succeed in this 21st century imperative and like many countries with “youth bulge” populations, Saudi Arabia is moving to create three million needed new jobs in the next decade. This is a daunting task but a necessary one to keep unemployment in check and provide a bright and productive future for the 50 percent of the Saudi population that is under the age of 20. This requires attracting new capital and technology into Saudi Arabia. Although Saudi Arabia has made great strides in improving its investment climate to attract foreign direct investments, additional steps would help the Kingdom realize its true potential. For instance, according to the 2011 World Bank “Doing Business” report, Saudi Arabia ranks only 140 out of 183 countries when it comes to enforcing contracts. Likewise, the success of the government's employment policies will very much depend on protection mechanisms for the unemployed and the provision of a minimum wage. Success in these areas will help provide attractive employment opportunities for Saudi nationals and reduce the dependence of the private sector on foreign workers. AS Secretary Hillary Clinton said at the Forum for the Future earlier this month in Doha, Qatar, “The Middle East is brimming with talent. It is blessed with resources, enriched by strong traditions of faith and family. This rising generation of young people has the potential to achieve so much, and we need to give them the chance to do so.” Saudi Arabia's dynamic entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are also vital drivers to assist in meeting these economic demands and supplying jobs and expertise. Worldwide, 99 percent of all businesses are small- or medium-sized and are the engines that produce 50 percent of the world's GDP. I am encouraged that the Saudi government has developed creative programs to assist entrepreneurs and new business owners in obtaining investment capital for their start-ups – the Saudi Industrial Development Fund's SME Loan Guarantee Program and the BADIR Program for Technology Incubators meet the needs of entrepreneurs in the technology sector. The United States would welcome the opportunity to share our experiences in helping SMEs grow and prosper in Saudi Arabia. For example, in the United States, one of the oldest programs established to help small businesses win government contracts is the “Small Business Set-Aside Program” (SBSA). SBSA helps ensure that small businesses are awarded a fair proportion of government contracts by reserving (i.e., “setting aside”) certain government contracts exclusively for participation by small business concerns. The United States is also a ready partner, lending our expertise in entrepreneurship for aspiring Saudi businessmen and businesswomen. President Obama hosted nine outstanding Saudi business innovators at the 2010 Summit on Entrepreneurship. We will continue to support the development of an entrepreneur base that meets the needs of the Saudi economy. SAUDI ARABIA is educating its youth and preparing them to operate in a globalized, knowledge-based economy. The King Abdullah Project for General Education Development is expanding mathematics and social studies offerings as well as enhancing the secondary school curriculum. The King Abdullah Scholarship Program is sending tens of thousands of students to study abroad and acquire the skills and expertise to transform the Kingdom's economy. The United States is proud to have a part in educating this next generation of Saudis. We have over 32,000 Saudi students in the United States today, expanding their knowledge of the world and learning skills that can be harnessed upon their return. Not only will young men drive Saudi Arabia's future development, so too will many young women. Young women currently constitute 60 percent of university graduates in Saudi Arabia and are a great untapped economic resource. Increasing their participation in the workforce could have a multiplier effect, which in turn could increase the country's overall productivity. Saudi Arabia's future economic development will derive from communities on the Red Sea to the Gulf, from arts and sciences and from men and women. When President Obama laid out his vision for resetting our relationship with the Muslim World, he stressed that this relationship should be based on mutual respect, interest, and responsibility. To me, this means in part that the US government will work together with the Saudi government to meet the Kingdom's economic development goals. It is in the strategic interest of our two countries to do so, and we stand ready to do what we can to help develop the human capital that will be so vital to both our nations' futures. We open our schools, our training centers, and our minds to help Saudi Arabia achieve these goals and fully tap the resources of the Saudi nation. As my Saudi friends tell me repeatedly, the country's human capital will do more to bring King Abdullah's vision to life than all the assets held in the country's oil fields or in bank accounts. The United States, as a partner and friend, remains committed to helping achieve this great vision. – The writer is the US Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia __
