Saudi Arabia has directed SAR 489B in financing to small and medium-sized enterprises, representing 11.8% of the country’s total financing portfolio, according to comments by Saud Al-Sabhan, deputy governor of the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority for entrepreneurship.
Entrepreneurs can also access more than 174 government initiatives and support programs. The number of SMEs in the Kingdom has grown to 1.8 million, up from 480,000 when Saudi Vision 2030 began.
The national strategy aims to increase SMEs’ contribution to GDP to 35% by 2030 and create 500,000 new jobs in the local market over the coming years.
Funding remains only one part of the challenge. Rising commercial rents, particularly in Riyadh and other major cities, are putting pressure on service businesses and restaurants. The strategy is focused on increasing the supply of commercial space and improving entrepreneurs’ ability to deploy financing into scalable businesses.
Support platforms include the SME Bank, Kafalah and the Financing Gateway, which gives entrepreneurs access to more than 47 financing institutions through a single interface.
Service businesses account for around 89% of Saudi SMEs, while high-growth companies represent about 4.5%. Programs such as Jadeer are designed to connect SMEs with more than 120 large companies and help them compete for public and private sector contracts.
Source: Jawlah
