It is clear that although the State must continue to play a key role in the Kingdom’s economy, the Saudi Government is eager to see the private sector assume increasing responsibility for the country’s economic development.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia follows a free trade policy, believing that such a policy and the competition it encourages is the most effective way of utilizing resources efficiently, of employing those resources to meet the changing needs of society, and of providing consumers with the greatest degree of choice.

This policy has led the Government to encourage the private sector of the economy to become as efficient and competitive as possible. Fledgling Saudi industries need help (in the form of grants, soft loans, or, in some instances, even protective tariffs), but the longer-term aim is to generate a private industrial sector capable of facing local and fair foreign competition, of meeting the Kingdom’s own industrial needs as far as practical and, indeed, of exporting Saudi goods to other Arab States and beyond.

As part of this economic strategy, the Government is progressively privatizing public organizations, encouraging both domestic and foreign investment in the Kingdom’s industrial sector.

The clearest indication of the Kingdom’s future policies for the private sector is provided by the Seventh Development Plan and the fifth plan to be published in the course of King Fahd’s reign.