Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia and the World Bank Group have joined forces to establish the World Bank Group–Saudi Arabia Knowledge Hub (K-Hub) in Riyadh.
Announced on Tuesday, the initiative positions Saudi Arabia as a central player in facilitating the global exchange of transformative ideas, actionable policies, and best practices in sustainable development.
The agreement was formalized in Riyadh with the signing by World Bank Group President Ajay Banga and Dr. Majid Al-Kassabi, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Commerce and Chairman of the National Center for Competitiveness (NCC).
“Diversifying economies and driving policies that lead to a more competitive and efficient business environment are key to success,” remarked Ajay Banga.
“The new Knowledge Hub being created by the World Bank Group and Saudi Arabia is a key step forward to scale up and extend the wide reach of global knowledge critical to delivering such impact,” Banga added.
Dr. Al-Kassabi echoed these sentiments, highlighting Saudi Arabia’s growing leadership in fostering competitiveness and innovation. “Through the NCC, Saudi Arabia has developed a model for competitiveness, attracting interest from nations eager to replicate the Kingdom’s success,” he said.
“The K-Hub will serve as a dynamic international platform, empowering countries to leverage the extensive knowledge and experience of the World Bank Group, combined with the rich experiential expertise found within Saudi Arabia,” Al-Kassabi said.
Hosted by the NCC, the K-Hub is set to serve as a dynamic platform for knowledge sharing, policy innovation, and capacity-building programs that will empower nations to design and implement solutions for pressing economic and social challenges.
A platform for progress
The K-Hub will focus initially on two key themes: Competitiveness and Diversification. Within these broad areas, the K-Hub will explore sub-themes such as business environment reforms, innovation policy and quality infrastructure, export diversification and trade policy and facilitation.
The launch of the K-Hub reinforces Saudi Arabia’s position as a key stakeholder in global development efforts, complementing its ambitious domestic reform agenda under Vision 2030.
For the World Bank Group, this partnership represents an opportunity to amplify the impact of its expertise by working with a nation that has become a model of transformation in areas like competitiveness and economic reform.
