Saudi Arabia announced the launch of the National Automotive and Vehicles Academy, the first of its kind in the kingdom. In addition, it established the Automotive Manufacturers Association to develop the sector and protect the interests of manufacturers and stakeholders in the industry.
The announcements were made by H.E. Bandar bin Ibrahim Al-Khorayef, minister of Industry and Mineral Resources, in a ministerial panel entitled “The Importance of the Private Sector in Achieving Vision 2030,” at the second edition of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) Private Sector Forum.
National Automotive and Vehicles Academy
Al-Khorayef confirmed that the ministry aims, with the establishment of the academy, to develop local capabilities in the electric vehicle (EV) industry. It will develop and implement a training program that seeks to produce graduates who are qualified to work in the Lucid and Sir factories.
In addition, the ministry aims to raise awareness among local communities about the automotive industry. Moreover, it seeks to build human capabilities in manufacturing and maintaining cars within a high-tech ecosystem by establishing the Automotive Manufacturers Association and national supply chains.
Read: Saudi Arabia’s tech firm ‘Alat’ names Amit Midha as global CEO
Improving imports
Al-Khorayef shed light on the important role the Automotive Manufacturers Association and National Automotive and Vehicles Academy will play. First, they will maximize the benefit of strengthening local capabilities through major projects and programs. They will also improve imports of mandatory list products vis-a-vis Saudi Arabia’s general imports. To put this in context, the increase in the kingdom’s imports between 2020 and 2022 amounted to about 38 percent. Meanwhile, the increase in imports of mandatory list products for the same period was approximately 15 percent. Moreover, the number of factories for mandatory list products reached 1,437 factories within 3 years.
In addition to the National Automotive and Vehicles Academy, Al-Kharif reported that investments will provide promising career opportunities. They will also contribute to accelerating growth through the use of modern technologies. He also stated that the kingdom will become a technology exporter in the future. Finally, Al Khareef emphasized the role of the PIF, which contributed to the inauguration of the automotive industry sector in Saudi Arabia. The PIF also worked on bringing a greater number of international companies into this sector and the associated supply chains.
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