Mazen Baleelah Al-Madinah The consul for culture and tourism at the Turkish Embassy has said that Saudis could obtain entry visas to Turkey in a matter of few minutes at the country's airports without the need to go to any Turkish embassy or consulate in their country. A British official has, on the other hand, revealed that a number of British companies were now in negotiations with Saudi companies to form an alliance to compete for the execution of the Jeddah public transport project that was recently approved by the Council of Ministers. The official said the British companies are determined to compete for the trains and public transport projects in Saudi Arabia and to make strategic alliances with Saudi companies to execute these projects with the highest degree of quality and competence. Presently, 13 British companies are visiting the Kingdom to make their pitch in the fields of contracting, logistical support, technology, research, inventions and others. The cake is worth the effort. The estimated cost of the Jeddah pubic transport project is about SR45 billion. The project is to be executed in seven years during which the need for more projects may arise and companies from all over the world may come. The reason for the influx of the international companies into the Kingdom is obvious. Fitch Credit Rating Agency has changed the sovereign rating of the Kingdom in the future from stable to positive. This announcement is a further confirmation of the viability of our economy and financial position. The positive rating, coming from one of the world's largest rating agency, further promotes confidence in the strength of the Saudi economy, its sustainability and diversity. This is of course a result of the Kingdom's successful financial and economic policies. The Kingdom has allotted large sums of money for government spending on basic infrastructure and development projects in various important sectors, especially housing and public transport. The positive rating, the Turkish welcome, the British support and the international boost given to the Saudi economy as one of the strongest 20 economies in the world are good omens. However, they will place us under the microscope. They will put us in the heart of the world. The media with its scrutinizing eye will be focusing on us. We have to stick firmly to the international standards of transparency and integrity. We should stop subletting of projects to contractors. The subletting may begin in Britain and end in Bangladesh. So we have to be very watchful and vigilant.
