Saudi Arabia Builds Momentum for Diverse, Sustainable Development Finance

10/12/2025 03:43 AST

Saudi Arabia is moving into a pivotal phase driven by development financing that prioritizes impact, diversification, sustainability and the growth of human capital, while lifting overall quality of life.

This shift, which marks a move from traditional financial support to measurable and lasting results, was reflected in the announcement that the National Development Fund system delivered more than 52 billion riyals, 13.9 billion dollars, in financing in one year, adding around 47 billion riyals, 12.5 billion dollars, to non-oil GDP.

The figures were unveiled at the Development Finance Conference Momentum 2025.

The event opened on Tuesday in the Saudi capital under the patronage of Crown Prince and Prime Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman and in the presence of Riyadh Governor Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, marking a development push aimed at creating opportunities and shaping the future.

The conference draws more than 150 speakers, 120 countries and 30 exhibitors to discuss global financing challenges and opportunities in industry, sustainability, innovation and economic resilience.

Development financing
Mohammed Al-Tuwaijri, Vice Chairman of the National Development Fund, stressed in his opening remarks the importance of this global platform, which he said launches a new phase in the development financing journey with the goal of achieving sustained impact.

He said, From Riyadh, and through this conference, the National Development Fund presents promising insights across development fields, with contributions from prominent speakers and experts from around the world. The fund is helping to generate new momentum for development.

Al-Tuwaijri said the fund system provided more than 52 billion riyals in financing in one year, adding about 47 billion riyals to non-oil GDP.

He added that the system, which includes 12 development funds, supported more than one million beneficiaries and enabled thousands of citizens to access financing and entrepreneurship opportunities, alongside quality projects that helped diversify the economy, enhance sustainability and create long term jobs.

Sustainable energy
He said the Tourism Development Fund supported more than two thousand tourism projects, while the Cultural Development Fund financed more than 1,500 cultural projects, and the Industrial Development Fund financed 400 projects during the same period.

He added that the industrial fund allocated more than 20 % of its portfolio to sustainable energy projects, including green hydrogen capacity of 3.8 gigawatts and solar power projects totaling 2.6 gigawatts, as part of the kingdom's efforts to strengthen the global green economy.

Infrastructure investment
Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih said the kingdom is a leading destination for global capital, particularly from advanced economies, adding that by 2030, or two years after, about one trillion dollars will be invested in infrastructure.

He said, Capital from advanced economies, such as Europe and Japan, is seeking destinations that offer long term certainty and stable returns, and Saudi Arabia is among the most prominent of these destinations.

Al-Falih said a large part of these investments is tied to pensions and insurance, which makes certainty about returns essential.

He noted that the kingdom is focused on developing sustainable infrastructure projects that include major airports, desalination, ports and distribution centers, in line with green financing standards to attract billions of dollars in investment that support Vision 2030.

Green bonds
Al-Falih said the kingdom holds the largest share of the market in green financing and represents two thirds of regional efforts, adding that the Public Investment Fund has several unique investment vehicles for century-long green bonds that have already begun trading.

He said these projects aim to deliver long term sustainability and enhance global capital participation in helping the kingdom achieve its medium and long term ambitions.

The workforce
Tourism Minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb said in a panel discussion on the sidelines of the conference that the tourism ecosystem employs about 10 % of the global workforce, or roughly 350 million people, and that the sector is one of the key drivers of diversifying the Saudi economy and advancing Vision 2030.

According to Al-Khateeb, Saudi tourism has seen unprecedented growth over the past decade, especially in the past five years. He chairs three of the twelve development funds in the kingdom, including the Tourism Development Fund, the Saudi Fund for Development and the Events Investment Fund.

He said the development funds play an important role locally, regionally and internationally, working with national and regional financing agencies such as the World Bank, other development funds in the region, the Islamic Development Fund and the French Development Agency, to support more than 800 projects that include clean water, hospitals, schools, roads and airports.

Tourism Development Fund
He said the Tourism Development Fund was created to stimulate the sector and is essential to achieving Vision 2030, noting that the private sector is the main player in tourism because of its major role in job creation.

The number of people working in tourism is expected to rise to about 500 million by 2034. Small and medium enterprises, which represent about 80 % of travel and tourism activity, will benefit greatly. The fund financed more than 10,000 SMEs over the past three years, he said.

Events Investment Fund
Al-Khateeb said the Events Investment Fund was created to develop events related infrastructure such as marinas, theaters and tourism facilities, and to finance the private sector to build and operate these sites at attractive financing costs, enabling investment in soft infrastructure after the government provides the hard infrastructure such as roads, airports and electricity.

He said developing mega projects such as the Red Sea project and its islands creates diverse jobs and helps diversify the economy and increase prosperity, noting that development financing plays a central role in unlocking economic and social value for any tourism site.

National strategy
He said Saudi tourism grew six % last year, nearly double the global average, and that tourism spending rose 11 % to 284 billion riyals, 75 billion dollars, in 2024, underscoring the sector's strong investment potential over the next ten to twenty years.

He discussed the national tourism strategy launched in 2019, which focuses on visitor spending and its impact on GDP and employment. The tourism sector's contribution to GDP rose from 3 % in 2019 to about 5 % last year, he said, with a target of reaching 10 % by 2030 and expanding later to 13 to 15 % to become the kingdom's second largest economic contributor.

Al-Khateeb concluded by stressing the importance of planning for the next generation of tourism, including the use of artificial intelligence to enhance visitor experience and prioritizing the consumer. He said the kingdom is working to develop the sector in an innovative and sustainable way so it becomes a strong driver of the non-oil economy.