RIYADH — SABIC’s national initiative, Nusaned, qualified 43 entrepreneurs to invest in the Saudi market whose projects will create 6,610 job opportunities and contribute SR8.8 billion to GDP. Their qualification was celebrated at SABIC Plastic Applications Development Center (SPADC) in Riyadh during which several agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoU) for strategic partnerships were signed to empower small and medium enterprises and to create commercial products. The MoUs and agreements also aim at strengthening cooperation with the Saudi business community and universities in the fields of sustainability and innovation as well as developing training and industry programs, which will contribute to localizing technologies and industries in Saudi Arabia. According to the agreements, the initiative with the General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (Monshaat) aims to connect the enterprises with purchasing opportunities in the public and private sectors. As part of the agreement, BASF, a German multinational chemical company and the largest chemical producer in the world, will also present its advanced technologies, products, and training programs related to business and education sectors on SABIC"s Home of Innovation platform. Meanwhile, Emerson, a US-based company that manufactures products and provides engineering services for a wide range of industrial, commercial, and consumer markets, will provide its solutions to localize a number of manufacturing technologies and control systems and valve assembly. These agreements and projects will cover several sectors including building materials, equipment and tools, medical supplies, metals, plastics, renewable energy, and specialty chemicals. Nusaned’s Council was established at the beginning of 2018 to follow up and implement the objectives of Nusaned to develop local content. The council convenes three meetings annually. Its membership includes the ministries of energy and labor and social development, the Small and Medium Enterprises Authority, the General Investment Authority, and the Local Content and Governmental Procurement Authority. —SG