Saudi Finance Ministry launches second edition of Revenue … – Arab News

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CAIRO: In an effort to develop and empower the financial sector in Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom’s Ministry of Finance launched the second edition of the Revenue Ambassadors program that will host 180 male and female employees from 50 government agencies.   
The program will form a network of empowered individuals in the field of government revenue and finance by providing them with intensive training courses in forecasting, risk management, and data analysis. 
In a course of two months, the program will raise work efficiency and financial literacy skills that will unify the knowledge used between the Saudi Revenue Agency and governmental entities. 
Revenue ambassadors will also enrich the government agencies as a source of knowledge while linking them with the National Center for Government Resource Systems. 
The second edition will see a total of 230 employees from 50 government agencies taking part as opposed to 25 employees from 10 government agencies in the first edition held last year. 
The program has also increased the number of training hours to 128 to further empower employees by using the appropriate financial resources. 
This edition will also add a training track entitled ‘Effective Use of Data’ to the previous tracks Financial Analysis, Financial Projections, Forecasting Revenue, and Financial Risk Management. 
The launch of this program is part of developing financial skills amongst employees in the government sector as Saudi Arabia is keen to empower its financial sector. 
The ministry has put out several other programs to develop the sector including its Financial Leaders program which aims to improve leadership skills and the Budget Ambassadors program which aims to enhance the level of financial planning. 
This comes in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 Financial Sector Development Plan which is committed to educating the Saudi population about financial literacy. 
The development plan stated that the Ministry of Education will also play a role in educating employees with training programs related to Islamic Financing. 
Although the Ministry of Education has not yet launched any official programs, the plan stated that the entity is responsible for providing minimum hours of training for auditing, compliance, and direct interaction with services related to Islamic finance. 
RIYADH: Digital transformation investments in the Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa are set to more than double across the 2021–2026 period, according to the latest forecast from International Data Corporation. 
The global technology research, consulting, and events firm says spending in the region will accelerate at a compound annual growth rate of 16 percent over the five-year period, topping $74 billion in 2026 and accounting for 43.2 percent of all information and communications technology investments made that year.
“For many organizations, the digital and tech investments they made during the pandemic to build resilience could be put to test in 2023 across key business dimensions such as customer experience, operations, and financial management, among others,” says Jyoti Lalchandani, IDC’s group vice president and regional managing director for the META region. 
“The implementation of further digitalization in critical areas and a more rapid shift to a ‘digital business’ approach will be key to separating the thrivers from the survivors.
 Lalchandani added that organizations must not lose sight of their digital aspirations “no matter what the economy throws at us over the coming 12 months.”  
He called for a focus on “clear and measurable outcomes”, with digital spending needed to transition from building to scaling.
“Indeed, IDC predicts that by 2027, at least 30 percent of the C-suite’s focus will be on scaling innovation and operating a truly digital business. Automation will sit at the heart of this process, helping to reduce the cost of IT operations, address labor shortages, and increase the velocity of innovation,” he said.
Globally, IDC expects spending on digital technology by organizations to grow at eight times the economy in 2023, establishing a foundation for organizations to drive operational excellence, competitive differentiation, and long-term growth.
RIYADH: Serco, a British transport, defense, and public services provider, is planning to launch its space division in Saudi Arabia in 2023, a leading official told Arab News in an exclusive interview.
The company has been providing support services to the European Space Agency for over 40 years, assisting many of its significant interplanetary, Earth observation, and astronomical space missions, and is now looking to bring that expertise to the Kingdom.
Serco opened its regional hub in Riyadh in September as part of a long-term strategy to develop its Saudi-based resources and leverage its location as a driver for local and regional trade, and is now looking to expand further.
“We are set to launch our space division in the Kingdom next year and will offer some highly innovative services for the first time in the region at a time when space-related technology, data, and science are now increasingly becoming part of the national agenda,” Phil Malem, CEO of Serco Middle East, told Arab News. 
“We are continuously reviewing and looking to build on our capabilities, such as supply chain services where smart asset management is key. We place huge importance on technology and providing the right tools for our clients so that they can make the right decisions for their customers,” said Malem. 
The company is also planning to expand its customer insight and service design agency known as the Experience Lab in the region. It is built on insights and evidence gathered from people and processes that drive the services. 
The agency engages service users and those delivering the service to ensure the final product is viable, feasible, and desirable. It also iterates prototyping, experimenting, and testing its ideas and solutions throughout the process to deliver results quicker and more effectively.  
“We will also continue to expand on Serco’s customer Experience Lab by investing in its capabilities and ensuring that the team driving it will be from the Kingdom, thus ensuring that we will maintain a strong focus on service excellence,” added Malem. 
Outlook for 2023 
The company has released the 2023 business outlook for Saudi Arabia, which forecasts growth for the outsourcing industry, the space sector, fire and rescue services, and the emergence of a one-consultancy approach. 
Its research arm Serco Institute revealed that 76 percent of the respondents within the Kingdom agreed that the government should work with international businesses to improve the quality of services and reduce costs. 
“The need for delivering improved customer experiences across all fronts, at the same time as increasing flexibility and ensuring cost efficiencies, outsourcing will become paramount for the public and private sectors alike,” stated the study. 
It further said the space sector will increasingly gain more focus in the region throughout 2023, particularly in the Kingdom.  
It has proven to be a powerful catalyst for technological advancement in several countries worldwide. Therefore, it will be as critical in this region as technology transfer and the development of domestic science and engineering capabilities play a vital role in the national visions of countries, the study said. 
“We look forward to continuing our conversations with various entities where the assimilation of strategic data from public satellite projects is becoming a fundamental national requirement, which we see as being vitally important to managing the ongoing development of the new world-class urban environments currently being constructed,” said Malem. 
Privatization of fire and rescue 
Additionally, the company expects a positive move toward privatizing fire and rescue services in the Kingdom, primarily focusing on creating world-class living environments through developing exciting new urban centers of excellence. 
The challenge many organizations face is that FRS is not what they specialize in; it is a fundamental safety requirement they must have, therefore considering outsourcing is becoming a viable imperative for decision-makers. 
It will gather momentum in 2023, particularly as the region is hosting high-profile events on the world stage, especially in Saudi Arabia. 
“Serco’s dynamic approach to training allows us to provide an accredited and certified fire and rescue workforce either through the use of Serco’s own training facilities, at our International Fire Training Centre in the UK, here in the Middle East or at client facilities,” added Malem in the report.  
ESG in spotlight 
The study was also bullish about the region’s emerging environmental, social, and governance trends. With an increasing focus on sustainability, in part by the recent hosting of the UN Climate Change Conference in Egypt and the next one in the UAE, ESG strategies will become a strategic focus and a business imperative for many companies and organizations. 
Despite the prevalence of greenwashing in corporate reporting, companies will see a concerted shift toward integrating ESG measures as a key component of annual reporting procedures. Two key factors will drive this. Firstly, many employees, particularly the younger generation entering the job market, seek organizations aligned to a strong “purpose.”  
Consequently, they need to feel empowered by an attachment to positive corporate values, and therefore ESG will become an essential part of this fabric moving forward in the region.
In the case of Saudi Arabia, this is not just about establishing the highest possible standards but also about providing employment opportunities to young job seekers. Therefore, strong nationalization policies are central to ESG in the Kingdom and beyond. 
“Secondly, we will see a greater emphasis on advisory services in the region to support various entities and companies to embrace and implement relevant ESG practices into their organizations, not as a ‘nice to have,’ but as a fundamental strategic imperative, as legislation and operating standards will demand a stricter adherence to critical ESG measures,” the report said. 
If these predictions come true, the Kingdom can expect to effectively cover much ground to achieve the Vision 2030 blueprint and reinforce its position as the regional industrial hub and economic superpower.
CAIRO: US-based streaming app Fireside is expanding its reach to the Middle East and North Africa region with Web3-enabled technology set to change the entire media and entertainment industry.
Co-founded by renowned entrepreneur and billionaire Mark Cuban, Fireside’s ambition is to create a streaming app for the future and use the MENA region as a stepping stone to reach global markets.
In an exclusive interview with Arab News, Fireside Co-founder and CEO Falon Fatemi said that the region presents a huge opportunity for growth thanks to its diverse and tech-savvy population.
“There’s a huge appetite for media and entertainment. I think there’s an incredible opportunity here from an infrastructure perspective, especially with the Saudi Vision 2030 and a lot of the media and entertainment initiatives that Abu Dhabi and Dubai have already invested in,” she stated.
Fatemi is extremely excited about the Middle Eastern market, which she stated is full of market opportunities because of its large entertainment consumer base.
Founded in 2021, Fireside is the first interactive Web3 streaming platform that enables user interaction with live shows and content creators to deepen the relationship between both sides.
“It is the only tech platform out there that turns talent, athletes, brands and organizations into the studio network and streaming services of the future,” said Fatemi.
She further explained that content creators could invite their audiences to be part of their show and get full ownership over their data.
It transforms audiences from being content consumers to partnering with the entertainment network and getting access to behind-the-scenes operations and exclusive merchandize through a subscription to the platform.
Taking the platform to the next level, Fireside closed the acquisition of open-streaming TV platform Stremium last month, which Fatemi explained was part of the company’s strategy to move forward on its interactive live shows.
She also gave the example of Gordon Ramsay’s live cooking show, where users will be able to cook along, interact, ask questions, and Ramsay will then invite consumers to turn the camera on their phone and join the show in real time.
“The whole point is deepening fan relationships and loyalty. Then, at the end of the show, you could reward them for participating by giving them a collect-a-recipe card, a signed copy of the book, and make it easy for them to engage in commerce,” Fatemi said.
The interactive model is still under development which will also include non-fungible tokens and decentralized technology as part of the consumer rewards process that Fatemi stated is set to go live in the first quarter of 2023.
The company is already in talks to develop partnerships with organizations, governments, and individuals to further empower the media industry in the region.
“We want to bring the brands, the athletes, the studios and the broadcasters working with us in the US to the MENA region and deepen their relationship with the audience and the fans they have here,” she added.
She further explained that the company would also be able to identify opportunities to export local talent, brands, and organizations to the global market.
Strategic partnerships
Fatemi added that the company is exploring opportunities with Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment and the Public Investment Fund besides seeking synergies with Huda Beauty from the UAE.
The company is also looking to partner with media production and broadcasting outlets like Saudi Research and Media Group and Arabia Pictures.
Fatemi further lauded the PIF for its interest and investments in the entertainment industry as the sovereign wealth fund announced a $13 billion commitment to develop 21 entertainment destinations across 14 cities through its fully-owned subsidiary Saudi Entertainment Ventures.
It is also worth noting that MISA invited Fatemi to participate in its entrepreneurship event Catalyze Saudi held in Riyadh from Dec. 9-11.
Last February, the company raised $25 million in its series A funding round that valued that company at $125 million, with another $8 million fundraise before that.
Investors included the Chainsmokers, HBSE, Goodwater, Animal Capital, NFL stars Larry Fitzgerald and Kelvin Beachum, former NBA star Baron Davis and billionaire Mark Cuban.
Born and raised in Silicon Valley, Fatemi started her journey in the technology world when she was 19 and working for global giants YouTube and Google by building strategic partnerships for these companies.
Fatemi co-founded another venture called Node, an artificial intelligence platform that leverages customer relationship management data to increase business performance, which SugarCRM later acquired.
CAIRO: Saudi Arabia-based grocery delivery startup Jumlaty has announced a cross-border merger with Egyptian counterpart Appetito to form a new company NOMU that will be headquartered in Riyadh.
Founded in 2020 by Salman Attieh, Jumlaty provides a grocery delivery platform for consumers and businesses. Appetito was founded in the same year and recently signed a partnership with Saudi-based IT company Purity Information Technology to expand into the Kingdom.
“Appetito and Jumlaty have been, separately but similarly, working hard to reinvent the grocery supply chain. Both have focused on reliability, speed, and affordability, building a solid reputation and a loyal customer base of families and F&B businesses,” CEO of Appetito, Sheham Mokhtar, said in a statement.
Mokhtar will be the CEO of NOMU as he stated that the merger is set to put the company on course to reach $25 million in revenue and achieve a positive earning income by 2023.
Aiming to become the leading foodtech platform in the Middle East and North Africa region, NOMU is currently present in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco.
“Together we capture the entire value chain, from monthly shopping to weekly refills and outdoor dining. Most importantly our journey now as one company will be accelerated thanks to an incredible team of international talents and supportive investors,” Attieh, now chairman of NOMU, said in a statement.
The new company will have a holding structure in Abu Dhabi’s International Financial Centre as it plans to expand into Pakistan and sub-Saharan countries in the near future.
Saudi Arabia’s Nama Ventures crafts Muqbis’ pre-seed round
Saudi Arabia-based venture capital firm Nama Ventures has invested in Egypt-based online handicrafts marketplace Muqbis for an undisclosed amount.
Launched in 2021 by Iman El Wasifi, Mohamed Nasser, and Kareem Hussein, Muqbis positions itself as the Etsy of the MENA region providing a platform for local artisans to sell their products online.
“We are super excited to be one of Nama’s Portfolio companies in our first round. Nama is an extraordinary VC that showed a strong belief in what we do and aim to deliver, even before we signed the final agreement for the investment, they bridged all possible ways to support our business growth through recommendations and business matchmaking,” El-Wasifi said in a statement.
Nama Ventures has been one of the most active venture capitals in the region supporting startups in their earliest stages with a focus on investing in pre-seed rounds.
We’ve always wanted to make a bet on ‘the Etsy of Mena’ for a while now, the opportunities are massive and our region enjoys a great deal of artists and talented craftsmen that need the right medium to monetise their craft. Yet we were always challenged in finding the right complementary team to go after the opportunity,” said Mohammed Alzubi, Founder of Nama Ventures.
The funding will support Muqbis in providing the right facilities for their artisans to reach more customers.
Uniting the food and beverage industry
Saudi Arabia’s venture builder Revival Lab signed an investment agreement worth $13.6 million with the Kingdom’s United Investments company to support startups in the food and beverage sector.
Founded in 2022, United Investments supports scalable brands to find market opportunities and seeks to acquire more than 30 F&B companies in Saudi Arabia.
“We seek to strengthen local brands in the food and beverage sector and help build their plans for growth and expansion inside and outside the Kingdom by improving expenditure efficiency and developing operational excellence plans,” Mohammed bin Abdulhadi Al-Qahtani, CEO of United, said in a statement.
Al-Qahtani co-founded Shawarma Hilayel and led its expansion to reach more than 26 branches in addition to 20 other brands with almost 100 branches in total.
“The agreement will provide unique opportunities to support male and female entrepreneurs as the industry shifts to cloud kitchens. It also seeks to develop startups in this field by building an integrated system that supports financial sustainability and good return on investment for investors,” CEO of Revival Lab, Mohammed Al-Maghlouth, stated.
The partnership will aim to encourage the growth of new ventures in the F&B sector in the Kingdom while promoting the shift towards cloud Kitchens.
Supplies simplified by Suplyd
Egypt-based restaurant logistics startup Suplyd secured $1.6 million in a pre-seed funding round led by Endure Capital, Seedstars, Camel Ventures, and Falak Startups.
Established in 2022, the company provides a platform to digitise the procurement supply chain process for hotels, restaurants, and cafes to buy stock directly from suppliers.
“Suplyd offers a smooth purchasing experience, clarity of product availability, guaranteed delivery dates as well as transparent pricing. Coupling that with its useful analytics, reporting, and digital records enables suppliers to handle their complex internal logistics and optimize their assets,” Ahmed El-Mahdy, COO of Suplyd, said in a statement.
The company will utilize its acquired funding to support its tech stack, grow its team, and scale its operations.
LONDON: Oil prices rose by more than 2 percent on Friday on expectations of a drop in Russian crude supply, which helped offset worries of a hit to US transport fuel demand growth as a looming Arctic storm threatens travel during the holiday season.
Brent crude was up by $1.72, or 2.10 percent, to $82.70 a barrel at 1305 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $79.37 a barrel, up $1.88, or 2.37 percent.
Both contracts were up by more than $2 per barrel earlier on Friday and on track to post their second weekly gain.
Russia’s Baltic oil exports could fall by 20 percent in December from the previous month after the European Union and G7 nations imposed sanctions and a price cap on Russian crude from Dec. 5, according to traders and Reuters calculations.
Russia may cut oil output by 5 percent-7 percent in early 2023 as it responds to price caps, the RIA news agency cited Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak as saying on Friday.
“Crude prices are higher as energy traders focus on Moscow’s response to the price cap put on Russian oil and not so much the thousands of flight cancelations that will disrupt holiday travel,” OANDA analyst Edward Moya said.
More than 4,400 US flights have been canceled over a two-day period due to the winter storm, coinciding with a holiday travel season that some predict could be the busiest ever.
On Thursday, oil prices on both sides of the Atlantic settled lower as flights were scrapped. The snow storm could also upend motorists’ plans to travel during Christmas and New Year, curbing gasoline consumption.
However, heating oil demand could be boosted as the extreme weather is expected to cause power outages.
“As US crude oil inventories fall and winter storms hit the US, cold temperatures are expected to extend southward to Texas, Florida, and the eastern states. Demand for heating oil will soar,” Leon Li, an analyst at CMC Markets, said.
US crude stocks fell more than expected in the week to Dec. 16 as imports dropped sharply.
However, surging COVID-19 cases in the world’s No.2 oil consumer China, concerns about further rate hikes globally and recession curbing fuel consumption limited oil’s price gains.
“The oil market’s biggest wildcard is China and optimism is still strong that the reopening will continue and eventually lead to more demand,” OANDA’s Moya said.

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