10 years of King Salman’s leadership with remarkable economic achievements 
Oct. 6 marked the 10th anniversary of King Salman’s ascension to the throne. Since the king assumed power in 2015, Saudi Arabia has achieved remarkable progress in areas such as healthcare, education, housing, technology, tourism, sports, industry and renewable energy.
The launch of Vision 2030, directed by King Salman on April 24, 2016, and led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has boosted the Kingdom’s economic standing in various global indicators.
Fitch Ratings affirmed Saudi Arabia’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating at “A+” with a stable outlook. These ratings reflect the performance of Vision 2030 over the past eight years.
During King Salman’s reign, the Kingdom’s economy shifted from a heavy reliance on oil to a more diversified model, with non-oil sectors contributing 50 percent to real gross domestic product for the first time in 2023.
Saudi Arabia’s GDP grew by 8.7 percent in 2022, the highest among G20 nations.
Despite voluntary oil production cuts of 1.5 million barrels, which caused a 0.8 percent contraction in overall growth for 2023, non-oil GDP grew by 3.8 percent, driven by sectors like tourism, private consumption and non-oil investment.
The International Monetary Fund recognized the Kingdom’s success in surpassing its Vision 2030 tourism target, significantly boosting economic growth.
In its 2024 Article IV Consultation, the IMF noted Saudi Arabia’s achievement of attracting 100 million visitors annually by 2023, seven years ahead of schedule, underscoring tourism’s role in economic diversification.
The IMF noted that headline inflation in Saudi Arabia rapidly decelerated from 3.4 percent in January 2023 to 1.6 percent in May 2024.
The Kingdom’s reserves remain robust, covering 15.8 months of imports and 208 percent of the IMF’s reserve adequacy metric by the end of 2023.
The IMF projects non-oil growth will reach 4.4 percent in the medium term, driven by strong domestic demand as project implementation accelerates. The phase-out of oil production cuts is expected to boost overall growth to 4.7 percent in 2025, averaging 3.7 percent annually thereafter.
The banking sector continues to perform well, showing resilience in stress tests conducted by the financial sector.
In 2023, more than 1 million jobs were added, primarily in the private sector.
The unemployment rate for the overall labor force and Saudi nationals fell to a historic low of 7.1 percent in Q2 2024. Additionally, women’s participation in the labor market reached 35.8 percent in Q1 2024, surpassing the Vision 2030 target of 30 percent.
King Salman’s 10-year reign has seen an unprecedented economic transformation, enhancing the Kingdom’s regional and international economic presence. This progress has also enabled Saudi Arabia to achieve high credit ratings of “A” from prestigious agencies like Fitch and Moody’s.
• Talat Zaki Hafiz is an economist and financial analyst. X: @TalatHafiz
