Young leaders, country in implementation phase gives Saudi edge in defense: GAMI CEO

The confidence in a “young” Saudi leadership coupled with a country that is past its planning and into the implementation phase is giving the country an edge in the defense sector, Saudi Arabia’s defense regulatory chief said Tuesday.

Speaking to Al Arabiya English, the CEO of the General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI) Ahmad al-Ohali said: “From a geopolitical and economic perspective, [Saudi Arabia] has a young leadership, very focused leadership with a clear vision,” adding that the country is currently actively seeking to implement the plans that were made in the past few years.

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Investing in the Kingdom is further incentivized because of an open-door policy and the availability of a large budget. For 2024, Saudi Arabia has earmarked 269 billion riyals ($71.73 billion) – up from 259 billion riyals in 2023.

Localization is a major focus for the Kingdom, across sectors, and is among the leading condition for foreign companies looking for a Saudi presence. It is also the most talked about scheme at the event by government entities and defense firms alike.

The availability of human capital is among the few challenges in the industry that are being tackled through in-country programs and partnerships that enable knowledge transfer. Various programs and policies have been implemented to upskill Saudi nationals and increase job availability in Saudi Arabia.

The sector is expected to contribute as much as $25 billion (SAR93.75 billion) to the country’s GDP by 2030. It is also expected to support 40,000 direct and 60,000 indirect job opportunities, according to government estimates.

Saudi Arabia has a five to ten-year plan to account for the requirements of its defense forces, al-Ohali said, adding that it helps give clarity on the steps towards localization.

“There are challenges related to human capital availability. This is a new sector we’re talking about. We have addressed this in our human capital structure,” the GAMI chief said.

With Vision 2030 goals in focus, al-Ohali said new technology like artificial intelligence will play a major role in defense. It is one of the key themes and focus areas of the defense show.

“Most technologies, innovative technologies, start in defense – internet, satellites, robots, AI,” al-Ohali said.

“All [tech] starts from defense industry, and then migrates to civilian. We are at the beginning in Saudi Arabia of defense industry localization and technology improvements. Our target now and aim and focus is in 2030 reaching 50 percent localization,” he added.

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