Visa partners with Monsha'at to support Saudi SMEs and female entrepreneurs - Arab News
Visa partners with Monsha’at to support Saudi SMEs and female entrepreneurs | Arab News
RIYADH: American digital payment solution provider Visa has partnered with Saudi Arabia’s Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority, known as Monsha’at, to build capacity for a digital economy while enabling female entrepreneurs in the Kingdom.
A memorandum of understanding in this regard was signed during Biban 23 in Riyadh to foster an environment that facilitates the Kingdom’s SMEs with digital capabilities and business skills, revealed a top Visa official.
“With Monsha’at, we’re signing an MOU to support and enable small and medium businesses in the Kingdom,” Visa’s Regional General Manager for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman, Ali Bailoun told Arab News.
The contract was signed by Bailoun and Saud Alsabhan, the Vice Governor of Entrepreneurship at Monsha’at.
Furthermore, Bailoun revealed that they also took several initiatives aimed at fostering the economic empowerment of female entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia.
“This year we're partnering with Monsha’at to support women startups and women entrepreneurs,” he said.
The program will offer women the tools, training and networking to progress with their business, with grants and prizes to be handed out around June or July.
He added that such a collaboration is set to drive the country’s economic growth, as well as bring the Kingdom one step closer to its Saudi Vision 2030.
The world’s leader in digital payments also launched a program for merchants called SoftPos, a software-based solution that allows them to download software and accept payments through mobile.
“Click to Pay is another solution that we're working on with the merchant and small and medium enterprises or entities to support,” he added.
SMEs have come a long way over the past years through digital transformation and digital experience, the general manager noted. He added that Visa is working closely with SMEs, in collaboration with the central bank, and Saudi payments, to launch numerous programs.
Bailoun revealed that they have reached around 41 million enabled SMEs globally, adding that “by end of 2023, we will enable 50 million.”
During the interview, the general manager stressed the progressiveness of e-commerce, delivery applications and digital payments in Saudi Arabia ever since the pandemic.
“The digital transformation and the future of payments in Saudi are moving very fast,” he added.
He pointed out that delivery apps are now able to provide almost all goods and services across different sectors, “whereas the cash on delivery drastically fell by 85 percent post-COVID.”
As for contactless payment, the Visa executive said the Kingdom transitioned from 4 percent to 95-96 percent, ranking among the top in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Saudi Arabia is “moving very fast in line with the Vision 2030 in a cashless society, and enabling entrepreneurs, and enabling SMEs,” said Bailoun.
Biban 2023 is organized by Monsha’at, and this year’s theme is ‘Attract-Connect-Achieve’.
SVB collapse: Mideast markets also feel the jitters The startup-focused lender became the largest bank to fail since the 2008 financial crisis Updated 13 March 2023
Most stock markets in the Middle East ended lower on Sunday, with the Egyptian bourse leading the declines, in response to Friday’s fall in global shares over fears of contagion following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.
The startup-focused lender became the largest bank to fail since the 2008 financial crisis on Friday, roiling global markets and leaving billions of dollars belonging to companies and investors stranded.
In Qatar, the index slid 1.6 percent, as almost all the stocks were in negative territory including Qatar Islamic Bank, which tumbled 3.9 percent.
According to Daniel Takieddine, CEO MENA at BDSwiss, the Qatari market could also be exposed to the tensions that emerged in the US this week and could put pressure on the local banking sector’s stock prices.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index dropped 0.8 percent, weighed down by a 1.7 percent fall in Al Rajhi Bank and a 0.8 percent decrease in Retal Urban Development Co.
HIGHLIGHTS
In Qatar, the index slid 1.6 percent, as almost all the stocks were in negative territory including Qatar Islamic Bank, which tumbled 3.9 percent.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index dropped 0.8 percent, weighed down by a 1.7 percent fall in Al Rajhi Bank and a 0.8 percent decrease in Retal Urban Development Co.
Egypt’s blue-chip index tumbled 3.1 percent, with 28 of 31 stocks on the index trading red.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR3.42 billion ($910 million) as 75 stocks of the listed 224 advanced and 132 retreated.
National Shipping Co. of Saudi Arabia, also known as Bahri, was the topmost performer of the day as its share price shot up 9.93 percent to SR29.90.
Thimar Development Holding Co. was the day’s next best performer as its share price surged 9.87 percent to SR33.40. The stock rose 76 percent in the last seven sessions.
Saudi Ground Services Co., Wafrah for Industry and Development Co. and Jabal Omar Development Co. were the other top performers of the day.
Bank Albilad took the worst hit as its share price fell 3.55 percent to SR38.
The other poor performers of the day included Theeb Rent a Car Co., Riyad Bank and Saudi Arabian Amiantit Co.
Oil behemoth Saudi Aramco ended flat, despite reporting a steep rise in 2022 profits.
Aramco posted a record annual net profit of $161.1 billion for 2022, up 46 percent from the previous year on higher energy prices, increased volumes sold and improved margins for refined products.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index tumbled 3.1 percent, with 28 of 31 stocks on the index trading red, including top lender Commercial International Bank, which was down 1.8 percent.
Energy transition toward renewables ‘unstoppable,’ but fossil fuels ‘cannot shut down in a day,’ says IRENA chief Francesco La Camera International Renewable Energy Agency director-general says COP28 summit in the UAE “will be historic” La Camera has “no doubts about the ambition of Saudi Arabia” becoming a leading green hydrogen exporter Updated 12 March 2023
Arab News
DUBAI: For the world to transition to green energy without disrupting existing supply lines, divestment from fossil fuels must be a gradual process, Francesco La Camera, director-general of the International Renewable Energy Agency, told Arab News.
“We have to understand that the old system, the one that is centralized and based on fossil fuels, cannot shut down in a day,” La Camera told Katie Jensen, host of the Arab News program “Frankly Speaking.”
“There will be a slow decline of oil and gas. And to maintain a smooth decline of oil and gas, we need some investment again in oil and gas. If not, there will be a disruption.”
A steady transition away from fossil fuels toward solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and other renewables would help maintain a stable supply for the industrialized world, while also meeting the energy demands of developing nations, he added.
“Everything should be balanced. We have to understand that we have a demand for energy that is needed for development. And this demand will be increasing, especially in Africa and Southeast Asia.”
Frankly Speaking host Katie jensen, left, interviewing Francesco La Camera, director-general of the International Renewable Energy Agency.
IRENA is an intergovernmental agency for energy transformation, supporting countries in their energy transitions and providing data and analyses on technology, innovation, policy, finance and investment.
La Camera, who has served as the agency’s director-general since April 2019, has helped forge a series of strategic partnerships with UN organizations, including UNDP, UNFCCC and the Green Climate Fund, to implement a more action-oriented approach.
However, the Italian diplomat is realistic in his expectations of the pace of the energy transition, especially in the context of the war in Ukraine, which has led to a spike in world energy prices, pushing several nations to readopt cheaper but dirtier alternatives like coal.
Environmentalists have accused developed nations of hypocrisy following recent moves in Europe and the UK to reopen coal mines, at a time when most countries are phasing out fossil fuels.
“In the very short term, to avoid collapses and disruption in the energy supply, countries are trying to do what is possible,” said La Camera. “In some cases, this has been reactivating coal mines, but they are not investing in new coal mines. At least we are not aware of that.”
However, La Camera believes these are only short-term measures, implemented in response to rising energy costs caused by Western sanctions on Russian oil and gas. The long-term trajectory toward green renewables, he says, is “unstoppable.”
He said: “We have to understand that we are living in the time of the Ukrainian crisis and countries have to respond to the lack of the gas coming from Russia. We have to always distinguish between the very short term and the medium to long term.
“In the short term, countries are trying to do what they can to not deprive their own public of the heating and cooling that is needed … they’re trying to find remedies to the shortage of Russian gas. But their policies in the medium to long term are very clear. We are not going backward.
“The last year has been a record year for investment in renewables. We have broken new records in the new installing capacity of renewables. We now have 81 percent of the new installing capacity of renewables.
“This process is unstoppable. The only question that we have now is not the direction of travel — that is clear and nothing can change it. The question is the speed and the scale of this transformation, because it is not at a pace that can achieve the Paris Agreement goals and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”
The Paris Agreement is an international climate treaty adopted in 2015, covering climate change mitigation, adaptation and finance. The agreement’s overarching goal is to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
“We are not in line with the Paris Agreement goals,” said La Camera. “We say very clearly that we need, this decade, $57 trillion in investment in the energy transition. We are not there at all. We say that we need to triple our installing capacity of renewables by 2030, and this is not happening.
“Where does this money come from? We have a clear idea on that. There is a lot of liquidity in the market. The question is our point of view that today there are not the right policies in place to activate the demand, for example, for green hydrogen.
“And there is not yet enough focus on the infrastructure needed to sustain the building of the new energy system. And when we talk about the infrastructure, we talk about the physical, the legal and the institutional capacity and professional skill careers.”
Saudi Arabia has pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2060. It has undertaken $1 billion in climate change initiatives as part of the Saudi Green Initiative, which seeks to establish a regional carbon capture and storage center, an early storm warning center and cloud seeding programs as part of its efforts to create a greener future.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the Kingdom will plant 450 million trees and rehabilitate 8 million hectares of degraded lands by 2030, reducing 200 million tons of carbon emissions with additional initiatives to be announced in the years to come.
Saudi Arabia has also announced its ambition to generate 50 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2030, with the remaining 50 percent coming from natural gas.
It has launched several major renewable energy projects, taking advantage of its natural potential in solar and wind, including the Sakaka solar power plant, the first utility-scale solar power project in Saudi Arabia, and Dumat Al-Jandal, its first utility-scale wind project.
Furthermore, the Kingdom aims to become the world’s leading hydrogen producer and exporter. Saudi Aramco and SABIC, in partnership with the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan, announced in 2020 the world’s first blue ammonia shipment from the Kingdom to Japan.
NEOM, the Kingdom’s smart-city giga-project taking shape on the Red Sea coast, has also announced plans to build one of the world’s largest green hydrogen plants.
“They (Saudi Arabia) have ambitions for green hydrogen,” said La Camera. “They are ready to sign contracts to sell not oil and gas, but to sell green hydrogen. The question is that the demand is still not there. And so, the partners of demand have to be one of the elements to be considered for making things happen.”
So, what can be done to encourage greater demand for hydrogen products to make them a viable alternative energy source?
“First is industrial policies,” said La Camera. “Developed countries and others have industrial policies that may favor a demand for green hydrogen instead of fossil fuels. This is very important. This means the legal environment is critical.
“In the meantime, we need the infrastructure to bring what we are producing in terms of green hydrogen into the market. North Africa, they have five pipelines that can perhaps be adapted to transport, not gas, as such, but hydrogen. We may be able to have more ships for trading ammonia. We can think about electroducts that may let countries exchange energy in an efficient way.
“All these are elements of a comprehensive package that may, hopefully, push countries to go faster. But again, I have no doubts about the ambition of Saudi Arabia. I have no doubt about the ambition of the UAE, and I’ve also seen other countries in the Gulf that are moving quickly with this trend.”
COP28, the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, convenes from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12 this year in the UAE — marking only the second time the summit has been held in the Arab world following Egypt’s presidency last year.
La Camera believes participating nations must use this year’s summit to go beyond pledges and promises and instead take concerted action on cutting greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning to renewables.
“We need everyone in the discussion. Oil and gas companies, governments, and countries where gases are relevant from an economic point of view. They must be part of the discussion,” he said.
“The UAE and Saudi Arabia have already shown big ambition in going for renewables. Here is a place where you can produce electricity at lower cost. And we have seen that countries in the Gulf are going for net zero, setting their own hydrogen strategy.
“For the first time, COP in the UAE will certify that we are not on track. This COP has to come up with a way to close the gap between where we are and where we should be. IRENA is trying to work on building this narrative, beyond COP28, offering the presidency something to base their work on, in funding compromise among all the other countries.
“We are quite sure that this COP28 will be historic.”
Given the widespread pessimism in many quarters, La Camera’s optimism about the transition to renewables and the proactive role played by the Gulf Arab oil producers is reassuring.
He is not complacent, however, and says he will continue to push for a faster and more ambitious adoption of clean energy at COP28 and beyond.
“Renewables are playing and will play a central role,” he said. “We are going to a new energy system that will be dominated by renewables and with the complement of hydrogen, mainly green hydrogen, and the sustainable use of biomass.
“There is no way to stop this process. The question is how to sustain this process happening at the speed and scale needed.”
Financial experts to gather in the Saudi capital on March 15 and 16
Updated 12 March 2023
Arab News
RIYADH: Amid global calls to increase environmental, social, and governance investments, asset managers and investors in Saudi Arabia want a more nuanced approach that balances ESG demand with today’s challenging economic reality, according to a Pricewaterhouse Cooper’s survey.
As per the findings of the global survey, institutions are expected to increase their ESG-related assets under management to $33.9 trillion by 2026, from $18.4 trillion in 2021.
Environmental activists and many institutional investors are taking a hard-line stance by insisting on making investments only in ESG. However, as the survey showed due to high demand 30 percent of the investors say they struggle to find attractive ESG investment opportunities.
Saudi investors, the PwC report, said warn against basing decisions “solely on ideological investments” and caution that such an approach “could lead to the misallocation of capital,” which would negatively affect investors many of whom are allocating part of the salaries for retirement.
Saudi Arabia is taking effective measures to boost ESG and is an advocate of a diversified energy mix and environmental strategies.
Saudi Aramco, for example, has implemented an internal governance model that integrates sustainability principles into business strategy, as the oil giant aims to balance profitability, environmental protection, and the growth and prosperity of the communities in which it operates.
The Saudi Stock Exchange, meanwhile, has already issued ESG disclosure guidelines in 2021. The guidelines will help more than 200 listed companies and prospective firms looking to go public with their ESG reporting and will raise awareness about it in the local market. They will encourage companies to voluntarily disclose their ESG performance.
Last year, the Saudi Stock Exchange also launched a partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Cultural Development Fund to provide a channel through which Saudi companies can connect with and invest in cultural and heritage projects. It was part of a comprehensive plan to promote robust compliance with international and local ESG standards.
“Despite the difference in approach and emphasis about the future of ESG investments, Saudi Arabia is committed to bringing people together to find solutions to the challenges we must confront,” the report said.
The issue of investing in ESG will be one of the hot topics for the world’s financial services community gathering in Riyadh for the second edition of the Financial Services Conference on March 15 and 16.
Updated 12 March 2023
Arab News
RIYADH: The Biban 23 Forum witnessed the signing of more than 10 deals and memorandums of understanding worth over SR10.6 billion ($2.8 billion) on its third day, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The agreements aim to contribute to the growth and sustainability of Saudi Arabia’s pioneering SME sector.
During the forum, the Small and Medium Enterprises Bank announced the provision of financing products for enterprises with a value of SR10.5 billion for a period of 3 years.
The Saudi Export and Import Bank signed an agreement with the Saudi National Bank with the aim of providing financing solutions for the export of non-oil commodities with a value exceeding SR99.3 million.
In addition, the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority — also referred to as Monsha’at — signed an MoU with Riyadh-based business management consulting firm Accenture Saudi Arabia Ltd.
Monsha’at also signed another MoU with the Youth Club Investment Co. to propel cooperation in providing initiatives and projects supporting SMEs specifically in the field of sports.
Nusaned Investment Co. and Banque Saudi Fransi signed an SR200 million cooperation deal with the objective of financing emerging SMEs in which the company invests and in the companies that benefit from SABIC’s localization initiative, also known as NUSANEDTM.
Moreover, Monsha’at sealed a deal with King Faisal University to provide a set of programs and projects supporting entrepreneurship and innovation, in addition to an agreement with GoDaddy to enhance the capabilities of SMEs in the field of e-commerce.
“We have seen exceptional entrepreneurial resilience, determination, and creativity in Saudi Arabia and GoDaddy would like to support their potential every step of the way to help them create and grow their businesses online with the aim of achieving Saudi Arabia's '2030 Vision', which envisions a sophisticated digital infrastructure to boost fundamental competitiveness of the Saudi economy,” said Selina Bieber, GoDaddy commercial strategy senior director, International Markets.
A cooperation agreement was signed between Monsha’at, SEDCO Holding Co., and the Agricultural Tourism Association to provide training programs for entrepreneurs through the Monsha’at Academy platform.
An MoU was also signed with Zoho Trading Software Ltd. to accelerate 30,000 SMEs’ digital transformation and e-commerce adoption.
This partnership aims to make Saudi businesses more digital-savvy and lead a smooth transition to a fully digitized and cashless ecosystem.
“By leveraging Monsha'at digital platforms and reach, we will work with Zoho to accelerate the digital transformation of Saudi SMEs, providing them with a set of cloud-based solutions, self-based learning, and services of added value," General Manager of Retail at Monsha'at Mahmoud Mazi said
Another similar MoU was signed with Global Digital Solutions Co. to provide financing solutions and electronic payments to retail and online stores.
The authority also launched a cybersecurity challenge with the Saudi Information Technology Co. and announced the launch of the program for developing the capabilities of SMEs in the export field in cooperation with the Saudi Export-Import Bank and the International Islamic Trade Finance Corp.
On the fourth day of the event, Diriyah Gate Development Authority signed an MoU with Monsha’at to boost entrepreneurship in and around the city of Diriyah.
“This MoU’s importance lies in its potential to promote collaboration, data, and information exchange, and greater coordination across several joint initiatives,” said Guy Perry, president of Diriyah Development Co.
On the fourth day of the event, Sadara Chemicals signed an agreement with Monshaat to join the authority’s Jadeer portal to facilitate the access of SMEs to purchasing opportunities at Sadara to develop local content and achieve economic diversification in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.
“These partnerships highlight Monsha’at’s keenness to enhance cooperation with the public and private sectors and to create an environment that stimulates the growth and prosperity of small and medium-sized enterprises,” Mohammed Alamro, general manager of entrepreneurship planning, at Monsha’at said.
Updated 12 March 2023
Arab News
RIYADH: Egypt’s export to China increased by 20.8 percent to $1.7 billion in the first 11 months of 2022, compared to $1.4 billion in the same period in 2021, according to Egypt’s Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics, also known as CAPMAS.
Egypt’s imports from China totaled $13.2 billion from January to November 2022, up from $13.1 billion in the same period in 2021, representing a 0.6 percent increase.
According to the official data, trade between Egypt and China increase by 2.6 percent during the first 11 months of 2022, reaching $14.9 billion from $14.5 billion during the same period in 2021.
The top 10 categories of goods sent by Egypt to China during the period were fuel, mineral oils and distillate products, cotton, and fruits, totaling $1.3 billion, $104.3 million, and $76.8 million, respectively.
Organic chemical items worth $868.5 million and equipment and electrical gadgets totaling $2.6 billion were among the top 10 commodity categories imported by Egypt from China.
China’s total investments in Egypt were $563.4 million in the fiscal year of 2021-2022, marking a 16.1 percent increase from $485.2 million in the fiscal year 2020-2021.
Egypt’s value of exports increased by 80 percent, reaching $4.5 billion in Nov. 2021
However, the trade balance deficit of Egypt decreased by 63.1 percent in November 2021 on an annual basis amounting to $1.9 billion. This is compared to $3.22 billion during the same period in 2020.
Meanwhile, the value of imports declined by 0.5 percent over the same period, reaching $5.6 billion.