The 2011 Jeddah Economic Forum (JEF) was successfully held from March 19th to March 22nd in the second largest city of Saudi Arabia， with over 2000 Saudi and international participants for this four-day event.It was the 11th Jeddah Economic Forum held since the year 2000. This year’s forum was titled “A 21st Century Transformation: The Impact of Global Forces”， and involved 42 speakers， of which 18 were Saudi princes and officials. Other speakers included Recep Tayyip Erdogan， the Turkish Premier; Nelson Mattos， Google’s Engineering and Product Management Vice President for Europe， the Middle East and Africa; and other well-known economic decision makers who introduced their ideas on how to best achieve local and international prosperity.The forum discussed the next decade’s economic powers， the challenges facing countries and companies， the large transformation of global economies， and the future of partnerships between the private and public sectors. One of the most important issues discussed was “the building of a successful middle class”.During the forum， a special session was held to discuss technological changes and how this could be used to boost Saudi Arabia’s productivity. Another session focused on building a prosperous and stable society with Islamic financing， for which Saudi Arabia is a pioneer. The Islamic financing sector is estimated to be worth more than a trillion dollars currently， but it still represents one percent of the world’s finance.Saleh Kamel， Chairman of the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry， said: “We will exert every effort to make this year’s forum an event that leads to mutual investment between large and small companies. I think that this initiative will help to increase economic integration between small businesses in Saudi Arabia and foreign investment companies. It is hoped that this Forum will have its message delivered in the proper way and will consequently open the door for major contracts and alliances.” He added that he had “huge hopes that the forum’s outcome would address the future of the Saudi economy and benefit the world”.JEF is a wide and welcoming envi- ronment for dialogue and discussion on matters of local， regional， and universal importance. It has scored considerable success throughout the years by pursuing and offering new ideas， and by highlighting the experience of global markets and large companies. It has also attracted investors and served as a means for expanding their economic horizons.
