WEF26: Saudi Arabia becoming ‘a connector economy’ as world trade evolves

His Excellency Majid A. Alkassabi, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Commerce, today at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos said the Kingdom stands to benefit from ongoing shifts in global supply chains.

Speaking in a session titled ‘Many Shapes of Trade’, HE commented: “Trade today is definitely shifting from fair trade to a managed and rule-driven trade model. For us in Saudi Arabia, we have a strategic location, we have a lot of resources, we could become a bridge economy. We could become a connector economy where we can connect with Africa, with Europe, with Asia, becoming a logistic hub.”

His Excellency Ahmed A. Alkhateeb, Minister of Tourism, in a session called ‘The New Geography of Travel: Elevating Destinations, Expanding Opportunity’, said: “UN Tourism is projecting the number of tourists to grow to 2 billion by 2030, which means adding 500 million. This is a lot, and this is very encouraging for Saudi Arabia – for its hotel operators, investors, technology providers. This is an industry of amazing potential.”

His Excellency Mohammed A. Aljadaan, Minister of Finance said: “Our role as policymakers is to ensure that a predictable environment is provided for businesses, and we are doing so by strengthening the resilience of our economy and giving the private sector the confidence it needs.”

His Excellency Abdullah A. Alswaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, in ‘Converging Technologies to Win’, said: “In AI, the Kingdom is tackling the energy wall and the memory wall. We’re issuing a call to our partners, that in the Intelligence Age, you need a partner that can accelerate AI, but more critically adopt AI; and the Kingdom stands as your partner of choice.”

His Excellency Bandar I. Alkhorayef, Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, in ‘A Collective Voice on the Future of Minerals: Aligning Policy, Investment and Supply’, said: “The Kingdom adopts a multilateral approach to international cooperation, creating platforms that enable dialogue and partnership. The Future Minerals Forum stands at the forefront, now a global convening platform uniting governments, industry, finance, academia, and technology leaders.”

Speaking in ‘Redefining Economic Partnerships: From Dialogue to Delivery’, His Excellency Faisal F. Alibrahim, Minister of Economy and Planning, said: “I believe there is a world where every country can unlock its economic potential and still keep dialogue open.” He added: “There has never been a more blank canvas or a wider opportunity for us to design the future.”

On Thursday, the Global Innovation Platform, a strategic partnership between Saudi HoldCo and GoldenPoint Global, launched the Saudi–U.S. Innovation Partnership. It is a nationally anchored platform designed to accelerate bilateral collaboration in life sciences, artificial intelligence, and advanced manufacturing. Anchored by the cities of Riyadh and Austin, the partnership aligns two of the world’s most dynamic innovation ecosystems.

Additionally, Amplifai Health was announced as a winner of the second cohort of WEF’s MINDS - AI Global Alliance initiative.