Saudi mobile operator Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) will be the chief sponsor of the upcoming 4th Global Competitiveness Forum (GCF) on Jan. 23-26, 2010 at the Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh. An agreement to that effect was signed by Amr Al-Dabbagh, Governor of Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (Sagia) - organizer of the forum and Khaled Al-Kaf, CEO of Mobily at the Sagia headquarters in Riyadh Monday. The 2010 forum is unanimously themed “Sustainable Competitiveness” to symbolize the start of a new decade of thinking. Speakers include, among others, John Chambers, chairman and CEO, Cisco Systems; Michael Dell, founder and CEO, Dell Inc.; and Mark Hurd, chairman & CEO, HP. Dabbagh described the sponsorship contract as a strategic partnership with Mobily that stands as one of biggest telecommunication companies in the region. Mobily has now won the chief sponsorship of the forum for three years in a row. The forum will announce new initiatives to boost the level of competitiveness in both private and government sectors to compliment previous forum initiatives, including Responsible Competitiveness Index, King Khaled Award for Responsible Competitiveness, the Saudi Fast Growth 100, the Michael Porter Prize for he Michael Porter Prize for Creative Strategies, Dabagh said. The initiatives would also include Development of Administrative Leadership in partnership with Harvard Business School, he added. The Saudi Fast Growth 100 winners are ranked according to their revenue performance over the last five years. The success of Mobily acquired at the previous forums patronized by King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, has boosted its competitive edge, Al-Kaf said. Sagia has played a major role in organizing this annual meeting of top business leaders, international political leaders, and selected intellectuals and journalists, he added.
