Change in Saudi Arabia has been disrupted by Covid-19, but not blown off course. While the economy has suffered, not least from tumbling oil prices, the country’s crown prince, Mohammad bin Salman, is pressing on with his ambitious spending plans. He is, however, looking increasingly beyond oil revenues for other funding sources.
Last year, the country’s economy underwent its worst contraction since 1999. Before the pandemic, growth had been expected to exceed 2% in 2020, but gross domestic product (GDP) actually shrank by 4.1%.
