His Excellency the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Doctor Tawfiq bin Fawzan Al-Rabiah, extended his deepest thanks and appreciation to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz, may Allah protect him, on the occasion of the Council of Ministers’ approval, at its session held today, Monday, of the establishment of the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority, given its great importance to the commercial and industrial sector in the Kingdom.

On this occasion, His Excellency emphasized that the creation of the authority contributes to improving the economic climate of the business environment in order to achieve the objectives the state is pursuing, such as diversifying the economy, creating jobs, and building a strong economic base. The authority is set to be the official entity concerned with SMEs, responsible for coordinating with government and non-government entities and for representing these enterprises domestically and abroad.

His Excellency the Minister of Commerce and Industry explained that the establishment of the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority aims to regulate the work of SMEs in the Kingdom and to support, develop, and nurture them in line with global best practices, helping increase their contribution to GDP and expand the absorptive capacity of the Saudi economy, so that it can generate jobs and create employment opportunities for Saudi youth, in addition to contributing to the localization of technology and raising the productivity of SMEs.

The Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority will prepare a national strategy for SMEs and follow up on its implementation, in addition to proposing the regulations, rules, and policies for developing and supporting SMEs and following up on their application once they are officially approved.

The authority will also set policies and standards for financing and supporting SMEs, support the establishment of specialized financing companies, activate the role of banks and lending funds, work to remove the administrative and financial obstacles facing SMEs, develop programs and initiatives to create investment opportunities for them, and organize technology and business incubators.