Saudi initiatives driving female participation in defense industry

Jeddah - Yasmine El Tohamy - RIYADH: Saudi Arabia Railways transported more than 11 million passengers in 2023, a growth rate of more than 50 percent.

The company said on Wednesday that the total amount of cargo transported increased by more than 25 million tonnes, which represented a growth rate in excess of 10 percent. This resulted in the removal of more than 2 million trucks from the nation’s roads each year, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The figures were revealed on Wednesday as the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones, also known as MODON, and SAR signed two memorandums of understanding for the development of rail transport and logistics solutions in industrial cities, in support of the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program.

During the signing ceremony, which took place in Dammam’s 2nd Industrial City, Saleh Al-Jasser, the minister of transport and logistic services and chairman of SAR’s board of directors, said that the latest international indicators, including the Logistics Performance Index, the Quality Interdependence Index and the Maritime Interdependence Index, showed that the Kingdom is making progress in global rankings for transportation and logistics as a result of major projects in the country.

“The partnership with the industrial sector is a long-established one, which started with the construction of roads over the decades that benefit the industrial sector,” he said.

Various projects, including the development of the northern railway, have helped support the industrial and mining sectors by connecting the cities of Dammam, Jubail and Ras Al-Khair to ports in the Eastern Province, he added, and other projects are under way that will provide more benefits.

Efforts to improve the integration of transport and logistics systems with the industrial sector, through the work of the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program, reflect the importance of cooperation and integration between government sectors, Al-Jasser said, which aids the development of Saudi industry.

Speaking at the same event, Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef stressed the importance of the role of the transportation and logistics sector in developing the industrial and mining industry, and consolidating the Kingdom’s position as a global logistics hub in line with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030.

Linking the industrial cities in the Riyadh and eastern regions to the train network will contribute to raising the efficiency of logistical operations in the industrial sector and opening new paths for trade and export, he said.

Alkhorayef emphasized that NIDLP plays an important role in maximizing the benefits achieved from the four sectors that it supervises — industry, mining, energy, and logistics services — noting that the cost associated with transportation is an essential element for the penetration of industrial goods and their access to local and global markets.

He went to say that railway transportation is one of the best means in terms of cost, price of products and the environment.

The minister concluded by saying that the signing of the MoUs between MODON and SAR aims to enhance integration and partnership between the industrial and transportation systems, empower industrial sector supply chains in the central and eastern regions and support supply chains with global standards.