RIYADH — On behalf of Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, Minister of Defense Prince Khalid bin Salman inaugurated the second edition of the World Defense Show 2024 in Riyadh on Sunday. The General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI) is organizing the defense exhibition that is being held under the patronage of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman. Several ministers of defense and senior defense officials from friendly countries attended the opening ceremony. At the outset, Prince Khalid bin Salman, who is also deputy head of GAMI, and other defense ministers and senior officials from friendly countries were briefed on the air shows and displays of planes at the fair. After that, Prince Khalid and other guests made an inspection tour of the exhibition pavilions, which witnessed the participation of more than 773 exhibitors representing more than 75 countries. This is in addition to a number of government agencies and major local and international companies in the defense and security industry sector, as well as from other sectors related to the military and defense industries sector. The Defense Show showcases the Kingdom's commitment to becoming a global hub for the defense industry. The show comes as an embodiment of the keenness of the Saudi leadership to organize one of the best specialized exhibitions in the defense and security industry in the world, and an affirmation of the Kingdom being a global center for organizing exhibitions in all fields, especially the field of military industries. Speaking on the occasion, GAMI Governor Eng. Ahmad Al-Ohali thanked King Salman and the Crown Prince for the special care and unlimited support that the sector enjoys to enhance the Kingdom's strategic independence and seek to support the process of nationalization of the national military industries sector in a way achieving the goals of the Vision 2030. "This support is a great motivation to advance the defense and security industry sector towards supporting the initiative for Saudization of the military industries sector in accordance with the directives of the Saudi Vision 2030, which called for the localization of 50 percent of government spending on military equipment and services. The Kingdom has begun to reap the fruits of this support, as the percentage of localization increased from four percent to 13.6 percent by the end of the year 2022," he said while noting that the number of permits and licensing for establishing military firms reached 477 for 265 companies operating in the military industries sector. "More than 74 investment opportunities have been launched to localize supply chains. The size of the sector's contribution to the expected gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated at approximately SR93.75 billion with the creation of a total number of 40,000 direct job opportunities and 60,000 indirect job opportunities," he pointed out. Al-Ohali said that the defense show is a global platform for experts, manufacturers and decision-makers in the defense and security industry sector. "The second edition of this leading global event in the defense and security industry sector in the Kingdom comes as an extension of the successes and achievements witnessed in the first edition of the exhibition, which was organized in the year 2022. This exhibition will represent a strategic tool that supports the endeavors of our dear nation towards achieving Saudization goals, and it will also provide an ideal environment for communication and interaction among attendees," he added.
