SJBC agrees to strengthen cooperation in SMEs

The Council of Saudi Chambers (CSC) announced on Thursday an agreement to strengthen cooperation in the small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
This decision was taken at the conclusion of the 14th Saudi Arabia-Japan Business Council (SJBC) meeting in Tokyo. In a concluding statement, the two parties underlined the support of the leadership in Saudi Arabia and Japan to promote economic cooperation between their respective countries.
Some 200 Saudi and Japanese businessmen from various sectors participated in the discussions on Tuesday to finalize an agenda for multilateral cooperation in training, industry and advanced technologies.
The event was attended by Abdullah Al-Mubti, president of the CSC and Abdulatif Al-Othman, governor of Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA). Both sides appreciated the positive outcome of the visit of Crown Prince Prince Salman, deputy prime minister and minister of defense, to Japan that has given further boost to bilateral cooperation in the industrial and investment sectors.
Crown Prince Salman and the Japanese prime minister witnessed the signing of the agreements which included a MoU between SAGIA and Japan Cooperation Center for the Middle East (JCCME) for a joint investment cooperation and the establishment of a Saudi-Japanese company in the industrial field.
The Council also expressed its satisfaction with the various sectors for the efforts being undertaken by a team of industrial cooperation and services to promote industrial cooperation between the two countries in various fields. They recognized the importance of strengthening cooperation in the SME sector, as it would create jobs for young Saudis in the education, technical and vocational training.
One of the main SJBC’s achievements is the creation of the Saudi Institute for Electronics and Household Appliances (SEHAI), described as a symbol of cooperation between government and private sectors of the two countries
In the context of supporting the various initiatives to promote cooperation in the field of SME, the communiqué said both Saudi and Japanese businessmen will increase exchange of visits between young entrepreneurs and owners of business projects.
They also resolved to intensify meetings related to SME projects in both countries , and work to promote the participation of Japanese experts in various fields to transfer the experience of Japanese excellence management to the Saudis by offering seminars and lectures in the Kingdom.
Both sides also agreed to exert maximum efforts to promote initiatives that concluded by the visit and stressed the importance of the role of the Joint Business Council to activate the role of the private sector and increase transactions, investments and business opportunities between the two countries. They renewed their commitment to joint efforts to promote the growing business ties between the two countries .
Japan is the second largest global economy, the second trading partner of the Kingdom with 58 years of commercial and economic cooperation, according to CSC President Al-Mubti, who said that Japanese companies have a great opportunity to increase their penetration in the Saudi market in the light of the Kingdom's current budget allocations for mega-projects.


In his speech, Tariq Al-Qahtani, SJBC president on Saudi side, stressed the need for Japanese partnership, especially in the industrial and training sectors for acquiring technical know-how and other skills. He called for enhancing partnership in bilateral trade between the private sectors of the two countries.
Japanese Vice Minister of Trade and Industry Midori Matsushima said that the volume of trade between the two countries rose to $56 billion reflecting the strong partnership among various bodies, including the Joint Business Council. She expressed her country’s interest in further cooperation in the areas of trade and investment.