Prime Highlights:
- The National Development Fund (NDF) is helping diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy and create jobs for citizens.
- Over SR430 billion has been used to set up new funds focused on tourism, SMEs, culture, import-export banking, and events.
Key Facts:
- The NDF mobilizes over SR60 billion annually without needing extra government funding.
- Plans are underway to sell part of its portfolio and issue international bonds to increase investment efficiency.
Background:
The NDF is boosting Saudi Arabia’s economy and Vision 2030. On the first day of the Momentum 2025 Development Finance Conference in Riyadh, NDF Governor Stephen Groff highlighted the fund’s focus on boosting investment in non-oil sectors and supporting entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs).
Groff explained that the conference aims to show how the NDF and its 12 partner funds and banks are helping diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy and generate jobs for its citizens.
The NDF combined money from six older funds, totaling about SR430 billion, to create six new funds focused on tourism, SMEs, culture, import-export banking, and events. These efforts have enabled the fund to invest over SR60 billion each year without needing extra government funding.
Groff emphasized that the fund measures its success by job creation, private sector support, and growth in non-oil industries. He also pointed out new opportunities in Saudi Arabia’s growing tourism sector.
Looking ahead, the NDF plans to sell part of its portfolio and issue international bonds, a strategy aimed at making its capital work more efficiently and supporting further economic growth.
“The objective of the NDF is to support economic diversification, encourage private investment in new sectors, and ensure sustainable and resilient growth for the country,” Groff added.
