Sovereign
wealth funds in the oil-rich Gulf should pledge a portion of their capital to
support local businesses, former US President Bill Clinton has said.
Speaking
at an event in Riyadh, Clinton said small and medium-sized businesses were key
to diversifying the Gulf’s oil-dependent economies and creating jobs for its
youth.
“I
believe a lot of countries’ sovereign wealth funds are set up make major big
investment. A portion of [their capital] should be set aside for small to
medium sized enterprises for new businesses and expansion,” Clinton said. “All over the world most people are employed by SMEs that
are trying to get bigger and get better.”
Saudi Arabia’s Labour Minister said Tuesday that the Gulf’s
wealthiest economy must create five million jobs for its nationals by 2030.
Unemployment in the kingdom last year was 10 percent.
One
of the challenges for the region was to allocate its petrodollars to ensure
they benefitted the poorest members of society, Clinton said.
“We need to use the resources underneath the ground to
create more opportunities for those people that are on top of it.”
Abraaj
Capital, the Middle East’s largest private equity firm, this week launched a
SR2bn ($533m) fund to invest in up to 60 small companies in Saudi Arabia.
The
firm, a joint venture with the Saudi Arabia General Investment Authority, aims
to target sectors including healthcare, education and retail.
“[SMEs
are] in desperate need of finance, whether equity or debt finance,” Amr
bin Abdullah Al Dabbagh, governor of SAGIA, said.
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