Saudi innovators need private sector’s support

Jeddah: Ibrahim Naffee

Negligence of technical innovations in private sectors and lack of attention to research and development by universities is a major hurdle in the country’s march toward progress.
That the private sector is yet to adopt several technical innovations credited to Saudis speaks volumes of the indifference.
Saud Ghaith, a Saudi student in King Abdul Aziz University, said, “I have developed a number of technical programs on my own. These softwares enable users to protect computers against virus attacks. But I cannot sell my programs in the Saudi market without the private firms’ willingness to adapt them.”
King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), represented in the Bader program, is expected to play a vital role in supporting and sponsoring technology projects and encouraging Saudi business pioneers and innovators.
KACST aims to help Saudi innovators transform their ideas into successful commercial projects that will contribute to diversifying sources of income, the progress of the national economy, and in providing more job opportunities for youths.
Abdul Aziz bin Ibrahim Al-Harqan, director of Bader program for technological incubators at the KACST, said: “In 2012, the individual-investors network ‘Sirb’ was launched to overcome problems of financing that had become stumbling blocks for projects."
He said: “‘Sirb’ comprises a number of distinguished businessmen and individual investors who want to support small and medium projects financially and administratively to contribute to increasing the projects’ success, growth potentials and guarantee their continuation.”
There is no dearth of creative talent as is evident from the participation of as many as 200 Saudi inventors, most of them students, male and female, from various universities in the Ibtikar 2013 Expo in Riyadh. On display were their innovations covering various fields including petrochemical, renewable energy, information and communications technology, water, petroleum and gas and technology.
A young Saudi woman has invented an electronic Arabic coffee maker for commercial purposes. According to an official from the Bader program, the new machine, which is available in the market, is similar to the popular Keurig machines.
He said the machine, which is the first of its kind, was produced in the Kingdom by the Saudi woman who had successfully completed her MBA at a university in Washington. “We are proud of her achievement,” he added.