In this file photo taken on December 15, 2014 general manager of Alarab TV Jamal Khashoggi looks on during a press conference in the Bahraini capital Manama. (AFP/Mohammed Al-Shaikh)
DOHA: Saudi Arabia’s high-profile “Future Investment Initiative” (FII) conference suffered a major jolt with a number of global media organisations and top investment experts announcing their decision to drop out of the event over the ‘disappearance’ of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The global media giants like The Financial Times, New York Times, CNN, Bloomberg and CNBC have announced that they will no longer participate in the event.
Among those high-profile investment and business minds who have said they are keeping away from the conference are World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, British business magnate and Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson, Uber Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi, Viacom Chief Executive Bob Bakish, AOL co-founder Steve Case, Economist Editor-in-Chief Zanny Minton Beddoes and CNBC anchor and New York Times business journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin.
“What has reportedly happened in Turkey around the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, if proved true, would clearly change the ability of any of us in the West to do business with the Saudi Government. We have asked for more information from the authorities in Saudi and to clarify their position in relation to Khashoggi,” Sir Richard said.
“While those investigations are ongoing and Khashoggi’s whereabouts are not known, I will suspend my directorships of the two tourism projects. Virgin will also suspend its discussions with the Public Investment Fund over the proposed investment in our space companies Virigin Galactic and Virgin Orbit,” Sir Richard said in a statement issued yesterday.
Billed as the “Davos in the Desert”, the much anticipated investment conference is scheduled to be held between October 23 and 25. The New York Times announced it has pulled out of the event as a media sponsor. The Financial Times which said it was reviewing its involvement as a media partner earlier, announced later it will not be participating in the investment conference.
“World Bank President Jim Yong Kim will not attend a Saudi Arabian investment conference later this month”, Reuters quoted a World Bank official as saying yesterday, “citing a scheduling conflict.” Kim had been listed as a speaker at the three-day event.
Financial Times editor Lionel Barber tweeted: “The Financial Times will not be partnering with the FII conference in Riyadh while the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi remains unexplained. “Bloomberg will no longer serve as a media partner for the Future Investment Initiative. As we do with every major event in the region, we plan to cover any news from our regional news bureau,” the business-news provider said in a statement. Khosrowshahi said he was ‘very troubled by the reports and that he would not attend the conference unless a substantially different set of facts emerge. AOL co-founder Steve Case said he had put his plans on hold.
Former US Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said on Wednesday that he had suspended his role on the board of Saudi Arabia’s planned mega business zone NEOM until more is known about what happened to Khashoggi.
Meanwhile, the US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he would attend he investment conference, despite mounting criticism over the disappearance of Khashoggi. Speaking CNBC at the IMF World Bank Meeting in Bali, Mnuchin said that while the While House was concerned about the status of Mr Khashoggi “I am planning on going at this point.”
“Whilst it is disappointing that some speakers and partners have pulled out, we are looking forward to welcoming thousands of speakers, moderators and guests from all over the world to Riyadh from October 23-25,” Reuters quoted a conference spokesperson as saying. Saudi suffered a shock collapse in inward investment last year, according to newly published data from UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), raising serious question about the prospects for the economic reform agenda being pursued by the country.
The UNCTAD World Investment Report, published on June 7, 2018, foreign direct investment (FDI) into Saudi Arabia last year amounted to just $1.4bn, down from $7.5bn the year before and as much as $12.2bn in 2012, Forbes reported.
