After the crises of major investors and international financial and media institutions boycotting the Davos in the Desert Conference in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which was launched by Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman, as a gesture to move the Kingdom’s economy from an oil-based economic system to a diversified economy, things in the Kingdom have become more complicated, and MBS’s failure has become more apparent.
After the involvement of MBS in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi became clear to the world, major investment companies suspended all economic agreements with KSA, as this brutal incident damaged the ideal image MBS was trying to market to the West about himself as a young reformer with sophisticated thinking, where the media's talk about him has changed globally, from a reformer to a reckless criminal killer, who brutalizes everyone, even the closest to him.
Economic observers have expressed their concerns about the partnership program launched by bin Salman to work with the private sector, considering that the program is a royal order that cannot be discussed and lacks the minimum understanding between the partners.
They also expected MBS to impose economic sanctions on those who refuse to work with him in the partnership program, which may affect their families as well.
In a report by Reuters, it highlighted the policies followed by the Saudi government to attract international companies to Riyadh against their owners’ will, by threatening to stop their services in order to force them to open their main offices in KSA. Observers called this “the carrot and stick policy”, as it is a stern warning to companies while attempting to attract investors to the Kingdom's markets.
The Reuters report said that Bin Salman’s warning to the companies to move their offices to Riyadh during 2024, has prompted some companies to rethink their strategy to work in the Gulf markets, but no one can guarantee the success of that policy. However, the report expected, with the rapid changes in the region that the United Arab Emirates, which is the headquarters of most companies, would not easily surrender as MBS believes, especially as it was known to be a follower to Mohammed bin Zayed.
