The 4th anniversary of King Abdullah's allegiance-pledge:

Saudi Arabia, since allegiance pledge, has witnessed more giant development achievements in all sectors

Kingdom preserved Islamic principles, pursued the path of founding King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman

Report reviews most prominent achievements

Prince Saud al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister, has commended the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for his keenness on the principle of dialogue as one of the major principles of the Kingdom's foreign policy and the promotion of the good principles of all religions which called for them as bases and guides for building human relations.

In an article titled "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Culture Of Dialogue" marking the 4th anniversary of allegiance-pledge to the King, Prince Saud said that when the King announced his initiative for Arab reconciliation at Kuwait Arab Economic, Social Developmental Summit, it came to meet the urgent need for the Arab nation to close and unify its ranks behind its vital issues to face serious challenges, noting that the initiative was based on the principle of dialogue to purify the atmosphere, to support inter-relations, to achieve Arab solidarity and to preserve the higher national interests.

Prince Saud indicated that this call was not the first one, but it was preceded by the King's patronage of the World Islamic Conference for Dialogue which was held in the vicinity of the Grand Mosque in Makkah and attended by more than 500 Muslim scholars from various parts of the world with various religious and intellectual doctrines.

He added that after the Conference, the King proposed his world initiative for Dialogue Between Followers of Religions and Cultures and he patronized its first round in Madrid with the participation of Spain's King Juan Carlos. The Conference issued important recommendations calling for promotion of good principles of all religions which called for them as bases and guides for building human relations.

These recommendations, including the noble principles, have enjoyed the attention and the blessing of the United Nations General Assembly in its declaration of its high-level meeting held with the participation of many world leaders in mid-November.

Prince Saud said that there are many examples of the principle of dialogue pursued by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz in his foreign policy, including the dialogue between Palestinian factions and calling for dialogue between different Iraqi sects, strata and ethnic groups.

He noted that the King's vision and keenness on the principle of dialogue as his approach to a foreign policy have not stopped here only, but the National Dialogue Center represents an actual translation of his earnest and sincere desire to promote the culture of dialogue among Saudi citizens with all their intellectual strata, which aims not only to strengthen the cohesion between the leadership and citizens in drawing the policy of the country and formulation of its future according to national visions based on the teachings of the Holy Quran and Prophet's Sunnah, but also aiming to found an example of our rich Islamic culture and civilization heritage to form a basis for openness to the world and integrating into it under the latest accelerating developments and changes.

The government of Saudi Arabia has implemented a number of political and economic reforms to encourage political participation, promote economic growth, increase foreign investment and expand employment opportunities. The Kingdom is updating and modernizing its academic curricula as well as monitoring its religious schools. It held municipal elections as part of a comprehensive streamlining of local government.

In addition, the Kingdom is promoting its free market economy by privatizing major state enterprises, establishing regulatory authorities to carry out reforms, improving foreign investment laws, revising a broad range of commercial laws and implementing intellectual property rights to foster innovation. It also became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in December 2005. In February 2009 King Abdullah reorganized the Council of Ministers and senior advisors, appointing the first woman to the Council in an effort to demonstrate his commitment to change.

The construction of new facilities and upgrades to existing educational institutions throughout the Kingdom reflect the King’s desire to continue modernizing the country’s education system.

King Abdullah laid the foundation of the King Saud University for Health Sciences in Riyadh in April 2008. The University will comprise a college of medicine, a college of nursing and allied medical sciences, a college of public health and health informatics, in addition to departments relating to academic affairs, training and development. It will be able to accommodate 17,000 students.

Dar Al-Hekma, the Kingdom’s first private college for women, will become a university after Minister of Higher Education Dr. Khalid Al-Anqari approved four new faculties in September 2008. Dar Al-Hekma’s new faculties will include a Faculty of Health Sciences and Humanities, a Faculty of Law and International Relations, a Faculty of Business and Economy and a Faculty of Design and Architecture.

King Abdullah laid the foundation stone for the Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University for Girls, one of the world’s largest institutions of higher learning exclusively for women, in October 2008. The new university will have a 700-bed hospital and 15 colleges, including those for medicine, dentistry, nursing, naturopathy and pharmacology. The project is expected to be completed by 2010.

The 2009 national budget allotted $32.6 billion for educational development. The budget will help fund construction of 1,500 new schools in addition to helping the 3,240 schools currently under construction; the rehabilitation of 2,000 schools and a new female university campus at Princess Norah University. Additionally, King Abdullah allocated $2.1 billion for the implementation of the National Plan for Science and Technology.

King Abdullah approved the reorganization of the Saudi judicial system in October 2007.

Changes to the existing system include the establishment of a Supreme Court and labor and commercial tribunals. The Supreme Court will assume authority over judicial affairs and take over the functions of the Supreme Judiciary Council, previously the Kingdom’s highest tribunal. The Supreme Judiciary Council will retain its administrative powers of the judiciary including judge selection and personnel affairs.

Saudi Arabia passed the Law of Procedure Before Shari’ah Courts to regulate the rights of defendants and legal procedures in September 2001, including, the right to legal representation, the law outlines the processes by which pleas, evidence and experts are accepted by the court.

The Code of Law Practice went into effect in Saudi Arabia in January 2002. The law outlines the specific requirements necessary to become an attorney, including education, registration and admission to the courts as well as licensing. The law also defines the duties and rights of lawyers, including the right of attorney-client privilege.

The Criminal Procedure Law, a 225-article bill, was passed to regulate the rights of defendants and suspects before the courts and police in May 2002. The law protects a defendant’s rights with regard to interrogation, investigation, and incarceration and also by granting the defendant access to the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution.

Members of the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution are to ensure, through visits, that the rights of the defendants and persons in custody are being protected. The law also outlines a series of regulations that justice and law enforcement authorities must follow during all stages of the judicial process The Ministry of Justice organized a symposium on the Kingdom’s judicial system in April 2004.

The communiqué declared that Shariah [Islamic Law] is viable at all times and places; that legal procedures should be filed in a manner that supports the individual’s rights and penal procedures should reflect human dignity in accordance with Shariah; and that equal rights should be extended to individuals with regard to legal aid in all phases of penal lawsuits of a public nature.

The Supreme Commission of Tourism (SCT) was established in April 2000 to help the tourism sector grow and encourage investment from the private sector. Each year, about two million Muslims from all over the world visit Saudi Arabia to perform the Hajj, and many more come to perform the pilgrimage of Umrah.

The Kingdom is a popular destination for non-religious activities as well. Saudi Arabia is rich in history and culture and has a variety of tourist attractions, including archeological sites, varied landscapes and shorelines rich in marine life. In March 2004, the Cabinet approved a general strategy for developing the nation’s tourism to be carried out by the SCT.

The Kingdom’s tourist industry is expected to create 489,000 jobs, a number that could reach as high as 2.3 million. In 2006, tourism accounted for three percent of the Kingdom’s GDP according to the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA).

In March 2008, SAMA announced that it forecasted total income from domestic tourism to reach $19.5 billion in 2010 and $27 billion in 2020.

In November 2007, the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) announced the Kingdom would invest more than $64 billion to develop a solid information technology infrastructure. In July 2008, Saudi Arabia announced plans to spend $20 billion on Information and Communications Technology (ICT), making the Kingdom a top investor in ICT.

Launched in May 2006, the Center will serve as headquarters for the Capital Market Authority, the Saudi stock exchange, the commodities market and a large community of financial professionals. When completed, it will be the largest financial center in the Middle East.

The Foreign Investment Law, enacted by SAGIA was set up to allow foreign investors to own property, transfer capital and profits, claim full ownership of their projects and enjoy a reduction in tax rates. The law protects foreign investors from confiscation of property without a court order or expropriation of property, except for public interest, against an equitable compensation.

The best indicator of Saudi Arabia’s economic growth is the increase in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), from $20 billion in 1970 to $467.5 billion in 2008. Saudi Arabia’s economy is the largest in the Middle East. The Kingdom ranked 27th overall in the Global Business Competitiveness Report for 2008 - 2009. The Report was released in October 2008 by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and featured 134 countries.

On February 28, 2009, the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA), the central bank of Saudi Arabia, announced that Saudi banks posted a 17.3 percent increase in net profit in the last quarter of 2008. SAMA also said that Saudi Arabia’s commercial bank’s overall profit increase was worth $1.73 billion. The banks did experience a 1.1 percent drop in annual average growth rate.

In December 2008, the Ministry of Finance announced 13 new IPOs introduced into the Saudi Arabian stock market, raising the number of companies on the stock market to 127.

Saudi Arabia has the largest stock market in the region.

On December 22, 2008 the Ministry of Finance estimated that the 2008 total revenue will be $293.3 billion and total expenditures will be $136 billion. They also estimated that public debt will drop to around $63.2 billion which represents 13.5 percent of the GDP.

King Abdullah announced the 2009 budget of $126.7 billion, an increase of $17.3 billion from 2008. The budget will allocate $32.5 billion for education and research, $52 billion for healthcare and social development, $19 billion for transportation and telecommunications and $49 billion for water, municipal services and agriculture.

Saudi Arabia has been recognized by international organizations such as Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s as an excellent place to do business. In July 2008 Fitch Ratings upgraded Saudi Arabia’s foreign currency and local currency Issuer Default ratings from A+ to AA- and Saudi Arabia’s Country Ceiling rating from AA- to AA.

Standard & Poor’s raised the Kingdom’s foreign and local currency long-term sovereign credit ratings from A+ to AA- in July 2007.

Saudi Arabia is the largest trading partner with the U.S. in the Middle East and the U.S. is the Kingdom’s largest trading partner both in terms of imports and exports. In 2008, bilateral trade volume exceeded $68 billion compared to $160 million in 1970.

Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter with the largest proven oil reserves and the largest spare production capacity. The Kingdom has utilized oil revenues to expand and diversify the Saudi economy to reduce its dependence on oil, which has resulted in impressive gains in the non-oil sector. In 2008 the non-oil GDP grew by 4.5 percent to $223 billion.

Saudi Arabia’s non-petroleum exports increased to $2.7 billion in May 2008, up from $2.3 billion in May 2007. The most significant commodities exported included petrochemicals, plastics, ordinary metals and their products, and re-exported commodities. Major imports in May 2008 increased to $8.49 billion from $7.6 billion in 2007, a 12 percent increase. The most significant imported goods were electrical appliances and equipment.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has taken steps to privatize many of its vital economic sectors. The SEC has led these efforts by specifying the sectors to be privatized and establishing strategic plans to implement the change.

Sectors that are now open to privatization include: telecommunications, civil aviation, desalination, highway management, railways, sports clubs, health services, government hotels, municipal services, education services, operation and management of social service centers, Saudi employment services, agricultural services, construction and management of abattoirs, public parks and recreation centers, and cleaning and waste collection.

In 2008 the private sector contributed an estimated 46 percent to the GDP. The private sector also grew by 8 percent in 2008. During 2008 the government signed 2,500 new projects with the private sector worth a total value of $32 billion.

Below are examples of privatization efforts:

Telecommunications:

Saudi Arabia’s telecommunications sector is growing rapidly and facilities and services are constantly being expanded to accommodate increasing consumer demand.

The Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology oversees all modern communications technologies in the Kingdom. The Saudi Telecommunications Company (STC) is the main telecommunications service provider in the Kingdom.

The STC was privatized in December 2002, and 30 percent of its shares were sold to the public in an Initial Public Offering (IPO) that raised more than $4 billion.

The telecommunications sector is also open to foreign investment. Companies, such as Verizon and Motorola, have licenses in Saudi Arabia.

Media:

The Prince Ahmed bin Salman Applied Media Institute opened in Riyadh in April 2008. The specialized institute is the first of its kind in the Arab world and provides technical, design and practical training to prospective journalists and media persons.

Postal Services:

In 2002, the Saudi government transferred the responsibilities of the state-run postal services from the Ministry of Posts, Telegraphs and Telephones (PTT) to the private sector.

There are now about 100 agencies established by the private sector running the postal service.

Railways:

Saudi Railway Organization (SRO):

The SEC approved the implementation plans for the following projects under the direction of the Saudi Railways Organization:

1. The Saudi Landbridge: The Saudi Landbridge Project will connect Jeddah on the Red Sea with Dammam and Jubail on the Arabian Gulf via Riyadh. The existing Dammam-Riyadh line will also be upgraded as part of the project.

Once completed, the Landbridge railway will have the capability to move large quantities of cargo over long distances at competitive rates, providing a considerable savings in shipping time for goods from Europe and North America. It will also offer high-speed passenger transport.

The Kingdom will grant concessions to the private sector on the basis of a BOT (build-operate-transfer) contract. This will be one of the largest BOT schemes ever undertaken in the region.

2. Makkah-Madinah Rail Link: This railway will link Makkah and Madinah to the western port city of Jeddah.

The project will provide a fast and reliable mode of transport for Umrah visitors and Hajj pilgrims traveling to Makkah and Madinah via Jeddah.

The Kingdom will grant concessions to the private sector on the basis of a BOT contract as well. On February 20, 2008, King Abdullah ordered that the construction of the Makkah-Madinah rail link project be financed by Saudi specialized funds. The move is expected to speed up implementation of the project.

Express Train Project for the Two Holy Mosques On March 4, 2009 the Minister of Finance and Chairman of the Board of Directors of General Investment Fund and the Minister of Transport and Chairman of the Board of Directors of General Organization for Railways, represented the Government of Saudi Arabia during a contract signing with Al-Rajhi Consortium. The contract marked the beginning of the Express Train Project for the Two Holy Mosques.

The project will take three years to complete and will cost $1.8 billion. The project is one of the most important transportation projects in Saudi Arabia.

Railway Authority:

The establishment of a Railway Authority was approved by the Cabinet in January 2008.

The new authority will organize railway transport and safety, issue licenses to railway service providers, monitor unfair competition, and investigate railway accidents and losses.

It will operate as an independent body in terms of finance and administration, and its governor will be appointed by royal decree. The Cabinet stipulated that the Saudi Railway Organization (SRO) would continue to function until the Authority’s rules and regulations are in place.

Airports:

The Kingdom is privatizing the management and operation of local and international airports. However, airport security will remain in the hands of the government. Saudi Arabia has 24 domestic airports and three international, in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam.

In October 2007, it was announced that a fourth international airport is scheduled to be built in Madinah within four years. In addition, four new airports are planned throughout the Kingdom with plans to invest $5.4 billion in new aviation-related projects.

Airlines:

The Saudi aviation sector was opened to private enterprise in June 2003. Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAA) is one of the largest airlines in the Middle East. Plans to privatize SAA have been completed and the airline is moving ahead to privatize a number of its sectors. The cargo division of SAA has been privatized with other divisions to follow.

Ports Authority:

The Ports Authority has assigned several projects to the private sector to expedite the handling of goods and maritime services at the Kingdom’s eight seaports. For example, at the Jeddah Islamic Port and the King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam, the King Fahd Vessel Repair Yard (located at both ports) and the two areas for processing re-exports are now leased by the private sector.

As of the end of FY 2007, the total private sector investment in the Saudi port system reached more than $1 billion.

Health Care Sector:

The Saudi health care sector provides free care to the general public. Health care in the Kingdom is primarily run by the Ministry of Health, which operates 62 percent of the hospitals and 53 percent of the clinics and centers. The remainder of clinics and centers are privately operated, but their functions and staff training are supervised and supported by the Ministry.

In October 2003, Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr. Hashem Yamani approved the formation of a joint stock company for medical care that would establish, own and manage health facilities, including hospitals.

National Company for Cooperative Insurance (NCCI) In May 2004, the SEC approved selling off government shares in the Arab world’s largest insurance company, the National Company for Cooperative Insurance (NCCI). The sale of government shares in NCCI opened up the Kingdom’s insurance market, which is estimated at more than $2.5 billion. Seven million shares of the NCCI were floated for public subscription in December 2004.

Saudi Arabian Mining Company ‘Ma’aden’:

Established as a government-owned, joint stock company in March 1997, the Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma’aden) facilitates the development of Saudi Arabia’s non-petroleum mineral resources and the diversification of the Kingdom’s economy away from the petroleum and petrochemical sectors.

The SEC approved the privatization of Ma’aden in May 2004. Shares of Ma’aden were offered in an initial public offering (IPO) on the Saudi stock market (the Tadawul) in July 2008.

Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC):

Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest producer of desalinated water. The Saline Water Conversion Corporation operates plants that produce more than three million cubic meters a day of potable water.

King Abdullah approved an executive program for privatizing the Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) in July 2008. Continuous privatization efforts are underway established at an increased total cost of $14.4 billion.

As of July 2008, 30 desalination plants were active in the Kingdom; six along the Arabian Gulf coast and 24 on the Red Sea coast.

Economic Cities and Industrial Areas:

The building of industrial plants and scientific and technological sites has given way to the construction of economic cities and urban centers. These areas are strategically located in regions of the country that allow for the utilization of support services including water and power. They are also large suppliers of employment and educational training.

The King Abdullah Economic City in Rabigh was launched by King Abdullah in December 2005. The largest private sector investment in the Kingdom, the $26.6 billion residential and commercial project near Jeddah will include an international airport, a dedicated port, a residential and hotel complex, and educational facilities. It is expected to generate up to 500,000 jobs in various industries. King Abdullah laid the foundation stone for educational, IT, electricity, real estate and infrastructure projects worth $34.6 billion at the site in June 2008.

An economic city in Jizan, launched by King Abdullah in November 2006, is expected to attract more than $26.7 billion in investment and create almost half a million jobs.

This city will feature an industrial zone, an energy/desalination plant and a residential area.

Saudi Railway Organization (SRO):

The SEC approved plans for two projects under the direction of the Saudi Railways Organization. The first, the Saudi Landbridge, will connect the port cities of Jeddah, Dammam and Jubail, passing through the capital city Riyadh. The second, the Makkah-Madinah Rail Link, will connect the two holy cities with the port city of Jeddah.

Energy Sector:

The Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), purchased by the Saudi government in 1980, is a leader of energy conservation research. It announced two joint venture agreements for the construction of refineries in Saudi Arabia with the Houston-based ConocoPhillips and a French company, Total, in May 2008.

The two full conversion refineries will produce 400,000 bpd. They will be built in Yanbu and Jubail, both Industrial Cities. Expected to open in 2013, the Yanbu refinery will produce high-quality, ultra-low sulfur refined products.

ConocoPhillips and Saudi Aramco are also planning to form a joint-venture company, with equal interests to own and operate the proposed new refinery. Both companies are planning to offer interests in the refinery to the Saudi public.

The Jubail refinery will process Arabian heavy crude and high-quality refined products and is expected to begin operations at the end of 2012. A joint venture company for the Jubail refinery will comprise Saudi Aramco, which will initially own 62.5% of the company, and Total, which will own the remaining 37.5%. The companies are planning to offer 25% to the Saudi public.

In December 2007 Samsung Engineering Co., South Korea’s top plant maker, signed a $431 million contract to build a refinery plant in Ras Tanura aimed at producing more eco-friendly fuel. The diesel hydro-desulphurization plant will be able to process 100,000 barrels of diesel per day.

Samsung Engineering is also in the process of building the world’s largest ammonia plant for ’Ma’aden. With a capacity of 3,300 tons/day the plant is scheduled for completion by December 2010.

Mining:

In April 2007, Ma’aden signed a $7 billion joint venture agreement with Canadian aluminum and packaging company Alcan Primary Metal Group. The fully integrated project will include bauxite mining, aluminum refining, a power plant and aluminum smelting.

Petrochemicals:

In May 2007, Saudi Aramco and U.S. chemical giant Dow Chemical Company signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish, own and operate a chemicals and plastics production complex in the Kingdom.

The complex, to be called the Ras Tanura Integrated Project, will be operationally integrated with the Ras Tanura refinery complex and the Ju’aymah gas processing plant, both of which are owned and operated by Saudi Aramco.

An agreement between the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) was signed with the New York-based computer giant IBM in February 2008 to establish an international center for advanced research on water desalination, energy and petrochemicals in Riyadh. Water and Electricity Sector:

Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest producer of desalinated water. The Saline Water Conversion Corporation operates plants that produce more than three million cubic meters a day of potable water.

In May 2008 that the Saudi Electricity Company signed contracts worth $500 million with American-based GE Energy to supply gas turbines and generators for power plant projects in the Kingdom.

OIL:

With one quarter of the world’s known oil reserves and 13 percent of world production Saudi Arabia is the world’s leading producer and exporter of oil. Its policies on the production and export of oil and petroleum products have a tremendous impact on the global energy market, as well as the global economy. Mindful of their responsibility, Saudi Arabia has remained committed to ensuring stability of oil supplies and prices.

At the G-20’s Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy in Washington, DC on November 15, 2008, King Abdullah stated, "Saudi Arabia has made many sacrifices, including maintaining costly additional productive capacity amounting to about 2 million barrels per day, seeking to promote global economic growth in a manner that serves the interest of all parties."

At the end of 2007 Saudi Arabia’s proven oil reserves consisted of 264 billion barrels. In addition, the undiscovered resources are estimated at 200 billion barrels.

At the current rate of production, reserves will last for approximately 80 years allowing the Kingdom to provide the global market with adequate quantities of crude oil the world can depend on for its prosperity and economic growth.

In 2008, Saudi Arabia’s oil sector grew by 8 percent constituting 54.4 percent of the GDP.

The Kingdom has always acknowledged that unstable energy markets and unrealistically low or high oil prices harm both producers and consumers. Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the Kingdom dispatched 9 million additional barrels of oil to the United States to ensure price stability and availability.

In the fall of 2002, in order to maintain market stability, Saudi Arabia boosted oil production to compensate for the fall in Venezuelan production, and in the spring of 2003, it boosted output to compensate for the loss of Iraqi production. To continue meeting ever-increasing global demands, Saudi Arabia increased its capacity in 2004 to 11 million bpd, and plans a further increase to 12.5 million by 2009.

Vast reserves will allow Saudi Arabia to continue to be a major oil producer for up to 100 years from now, even with an increase in production capacity to 15 million bpd. In this respect, national oil company Saudi Aramco continues to develop new oil fields such as the two discovered south of the Al-Ghawar Field in the Eastern Province on April 15, 2007.

Snamprogetti Saudi Arabia Ltd. and Saipem, TAQA and Al-Rushaid Fabrications Company (STAR) celebrated the beginning of fabrication activities on four offshore platforms at the newly constructed STAR Fabrication Facility in January 2009.

It is the first offshore facilities fabrication yard in Saudi Arabia, located at Dammam’s King Abdulaziz Port.