Saudi Arabia’s grand plan to move beyond oil: Big goals, bigger hurdles
The message to bankers, business people and high-rolling investors was clear – the once-insular kingdom is now open for business
More than 3,500 private-equity investors, corporate chief executives, heads of global organisations and government officials from dozens of countries flocked to this week’s conference
Despite a royal rollout here proclaiming that the once-insular kingdom was open for business, the prince’s grand economic plans have proceeded haltingly. Photograph: Tasneem Alsultan/The New York Times
A Saudi man chats with a robot on the sidelines of the three-day Future Investment Initiatives conference in Riyadh. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
Guests at the Future Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Photograph: Tasneem Alsultan/The New York Times
Saudi Arabia threw an economic coming-out party of sorts last week, hawking its efforts to liberalise its conservative society and diversify its economy in a sweeping overhaul of the way the wealthy Arab kingdom has long operated.