LONDON: The Saudi-British Joint Business Council (SBJBC) on Wednesday unveiled a number of initiatives to develop two-way trade with the UK. The disclosures, following a special meeting in London, were designed to coincide with the visit to Britain by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Developments included a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Council of Saudi Chambers, British Chambers of Commerce and SAGIA (Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority) to facilitate trade and investment; an MoU between SBJBC UK and Institutional Investor to promote deal flow and knowledge exchange in the technology sector and further action to support SME development including SBJBC’s third SME Partnership Forum in London on April 24. That event aims to bring together innovative Saudi and British SMEs in sectors spanning smart cities, fintech, cybersecurity and e-commerce. Also, support was expressed for conferences in London on April 9 to promote opportunities under Saudi Aramco’s IKTVA local content program, and on April 16 to present opportunities under Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy program. Majed Al-Qasabi, minister of commerce, Mohammed Al-Tuwaijri, minister of economy & planning and Ibrahim Al-Omar, governor of SAGIA, attended the meeting and updated members on recent reforms. Members expressed their determination to build on the Crown Prince’s visit to increase business-to business cooperation in support both of Saudi Vision 2030 implementation, and the UK’s post-Brexit trade relations. SBJBC is a not for profit and private sector membership association with over 150 Saudi and British members dedicated to the development of business relations at all levels between Saudi Arabia and the UK.