Saudi- Finance minister key speaker at SME conference 

(MENAFN - Arab News) The "Saudi Small and Medium Enterprises Forum" will open Tuesday with a keynote speech from Minister of Finance Ibrahim Al-Assaf in Riyadh.

The Al-Iktissad Wal Aamal Group is organizing the event in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance.

Trade and Industry Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah and Labor Minister Adel Faqeih will deliver important speeches at the opening session.

The will highlight their ministries role and plans to support small and medium enterprises in the Kingdom.

Abdullah Alambti, president of the Council of Saudi Chambers, will also address the opening session.

The forum ends on Wednesday and the discussions will cover all relevant issues.

About 30 speakers representing government officials, executives and international experts are taking part in the sessions.

The Saudi SMEs forum is spread into six sessions.

Headed by Abdullah Al-Rajhi, managing director and chief executive officer of Al-Rajhi Bank, the first session will deal with the role of SMEs as an engine of economic growth, in addition to four worksheets introduced by Ibrahim Alhanichl, general manager of Credit and Savings Bank, Ali bin Saleh Al-Barrak, CEO of Saudi Electricity Company, Abdulkareem Abu Al-Nasr, CEO of National Commercial Bank, and Dimitrios Tsetseragos, vice president of IFC.

The Saudi SMEs Forum will also delegate ways to care and develop individual initiatives and entrepreneurship through a session headed by Several companies and institutions in Saudi Arabia such as National Commercial Bank, Saudi Research and Marketing group, Construction Products Holding Company (CPC), Riyad Bank, Saudi Hollandi Bank, Ernst & Young and Al-Jazeera Bank are sponsoring this major forum.

It is also supported by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Riyadh, Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry, National Institute of Entrepreneurship, and International Finance Corporation.