As part of the partnership between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia -represented by the National Competitiveness Center- and the World Bank Group, the Knowledge Hub office has launched today in Riyadh. The opening was officiated by H.E. Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Kassabi, Minister of Commerce and Chairman of the Board of the National Competitiveness Center, and Ms. Anna Bjerde, Managing Director of Operations at the World Bank Group.
During the inauguration, H.E. highlighted that the directives and close supervision of HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister -may God protect him- have played a decisive role in advancing economic and development reforms, enabling the Kingdom to achieve notable progress in global competitiveness indicators and rankings.
He noted that the beginning of the Knowledge Hub's work to promote reform culture among beneficiary countries coincides with the NCC approaching the implementation of 1,000 economic & development reforms delivered in collaboration with 65 government entities to enhance Saudi Arabia's competitive business environment.
H.E. added that the Knowledge Hub will enable countries around the world to benefit from the Kingdom's distinguished experience in building a highly effective operating model that has achieved reform objectives, strengthened compliance rates, and delivered nearly 1,000 economic and development reforms.
For her part, Bjerde stated that the World Bank Group - Saudi Arabia Knowledge Hub builds on more than five decades of partnership and reflects our shared commitment to delivering results. She noted that as Saudi Arabia advances its Vision 2030 agenda, the Knowledge Hub offers a valuable platform to share its reform experience and global best practices, particularly in areas such as competitiveness, job creation, and economic diversification, with countries pursuing similar development goals across the region and beyond.
The inauguration ceremony, attended by senior officials from the World Bank Group and the NCC, included an introductory tour and a presentation outlining key focus areas and priority workstreams.
The Knowledge Hub focuses on several core themes of sustainable economic development, foremost among them business environment reform, the strengthening of innovation and infrastructure policies, productivity growth and entrepreneurship, export diversification, and trade facilitation. The K-Hub efforts will concentrate on research, advisory, and analytical work, knowledge exchange and capacity building, as well as the development of innovative solutions and policies.
