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Saudi Arabia Advances Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Al-Ahsa with New Agreement
Ministry of Investment partners with Sana to enhance business opportunities and innovation in the region.
RIYADH: A new cooperation agreement has been established between the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia and the Prince Ahmed bin Fahd bin Salman Center, known as Sana, to advance the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Al-Ahsa region.
This initiative aims to attract pioneering companies and innovators while promoting a business-friendly environment in the area.
The agreement, formalized during the Al-Ahsa Forum 2025, seeks to enhance engagement with creative thinkers and business leaders through a series of investment meetings and events.
Additionally, it will support the issuance of entrepreneurial licenses and improve access to essential services for businesses.
Saudi Arabia has been recognized for its expanding enterprise-friendly landscape, recently achieving the third position in the 2023-2024 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report, which assesses national entrepreneurial conditions on a global scale.
The Sana agreement intends to explore new investment opportunities, encourage strategic partnerships, and promote alliances that would enhance the competitiveness of the entrepreneurial sector within the Kingdom.
This initiative occurs amid a significant increase in venture capital investments into Saudi Arabia, positioning the country as the leading destination for such funds in the MENA region in 2024. Recent data indicates that the Kingdom raised $750 million from venture capital sources, accounting for 40 percent of the total venture capital deployed in the MENA region and closing 178 investment deals, the highest any country in the region recorded that year.
Comments from industry insiders highlight Saudi Arabia's growing influence in the regional technology ecosystem.
Mohammed Al-Zubi, a founder of Saudi venture capital firm Nama Ventures, noted that the nation is rapidly emerging as a key player for startups in the Middle East, labeling it as the "center of gravity" for innovation in the region.
Al-Zubi pointed out that government support for the startup ecosystem in Saudi Arabia stands unrivaled compared to other global tech hubs, drawing on comparisons with Silicon Valley and London.
In June, a report from the international policy advisory organization Startup Genome revealed that Riyadh ranked among the top five startup ecosystems in the Middle East and North Africa, in partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network.
This further underpins the region's significant shift towards fostering innovation and entrepreneurial growth.
This initiative aims to attract pioneering companies and innovators while promoting a business-friendly environment in the area.
The agreement, formalized during the Al-Ahsa Forum 2025, seeks to enhance engagement with creative thinkers and business leaders through a series of investment meetings and events.
Additionally, it will support the issuance of entrepreneurial licenses and improve access to essential services for businesses.
Saudi Arabia has been recognized for its expanding enterprise-friendly landscape, recently achieving the third position in the 2023-2024 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report, which assesses national entrepreneurial conditions on a global scale.
The Sana agreement intends to explore new investment opportunities, encourage strategic partnerships, and promote alliances that would enhance the competitiveness of the entrepreneurial sector within the Kingdom.
This initiative occurs amid a significant increase in venture capital investments into Saudi Arabia, positioning the country as the leading destination for such funds in the MENA region in 2024. Recent data indicates that the Kingdom raised $750 million from venture capital sources, accounting for 40 percent of the total venture capital deployed in the MENA region and closing 178 investment deals, the highest any country in the region recorded that year.
Comments from industry insiders highlight Saudi Arabia's growing influence in the regional technology ecosystem.
Mohammed Al-Zubi, a founder of Saudi venture capital firm Nama Ventures, noted that the nation is rapidly emerging as a key player for startups in the Middle East, labeling it as the "center of gravity" for innovation in the region.
Al-Zubi pointed out that government support for the startup ecosystem in Saudi Arabia stands unrivaled compared to other global tech hubs, drawing on comparisons with Silicon Valley and London.
In June, a report from the international policy advisory organization Startup Genome revealed that Riyadh ranked among the top five startup ecosystems in the Middle East and North Africa, in partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network.
This further underpins the region's significant shift towards fostering innovation and entrepreneurial growth.
