Recently, Saudi tweeters launched an e-campaign under the hashtag #mirage2030 aiming to expose the fake promises of Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman, with which he deluded the Saudi public opinion more than once since he took office. The bloggers provided a number of projects that MBS described to be the lifeline of the Saudi economy, with which he aims to diversify the economy instead of completely relying on oil as the main source.
The e-campaign coincided with the 5th year anniversary of the launch of Vision 2030, from which nothing has been achieved so far.
Rather, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has experienced economic problems including the depletion of the Kingdom’s funds and the Saudi Investment Fund used in huge projects that foreign investors have refrained from working in due to the ambiguity of its vision and future.
The bloggers confirmed that their expectations for bin Salman’s dreams had been fulfilled, as they stated that these projects were nothing but advertisements for the Crown Prince in order to calm the public opinion, after the massive arrests, the war on Yemen, and revealing the figures with which he bought a palace, a painting, and a tourist yacht.
Many activists also pointed out that all the promises to rely on a diversified economy other than oil are nothing but fake promises, in addition to the crises caused by MBS’s policies which increased its debts and budget deficit, in addition to the decline in freedoms, especially the freedom of expression.
The Dignity of Citizens
The bloggers also questioned the truth about the slogan of Vision 2030, “Citizen’s Dignity” in light of the decline in citizen’s dignity, in reality, the restriction on freedoms, the arrest of all figures of society, the killing and dismemberment of the Saudi citizen Jamal Khashoggi, the decline in foreign investment, the rise in prices, and the increase in taxes, the rise in the prices of government services, the increase in the unemployment and poverty rates among the citizens, and the displacement of the people of Al-Huwaitat tribe to build the city of Neom.
It is worth noting that Forbes magazine had previously stated that indications have begun to abound about the existence of real problems threatening the project of Saudi Crown Prince for development and economic reform, known as “Vision 2030.”
The magazine stated that among those indicators are the sharp decline in foreign investments during the past year, the high unemployment rate among Saudis, especially with the increase in the rate of leaving workers, and the suffering of the private sector to achieve some growth.
The magazine adds that the biggest “dramatic” evidence that the Saudi economy is not doing well is the sharp decline in domestic investment, as a net foreign direct investment – according to UN figures – fell to $1.4 billion, and it was about $7.5 billion a year earlier.
Analysts emphasized that KSA’s endeavor to diversify the economy and move away from dependence on oil by developing the private sector is a difficult goal for bin Salman to achieve in light of the current reality in the Kingdom.
