Saudi’s Logistics Get a Boost with Mawani signing MoU with GACA and ZATCA

On its course to emerge as a competitive logistics hub in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia’s three entities – Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani), General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA), and the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) – on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance air-sea logistics connectivity and ensure a seamless flow of goods across the Kingdom.

The agreement was signed at the GACA HQ in Riyadh by its EVP for Economic Policies and Logistics Services, Awad AlSulami, as well as ZATCA’s Vice Governor for Trade Facilitation and Customer Experience Sector Abdullah Al-Funtukh, and Vice President for Commercial Business at Mawani Abdullah AlMunif.

According to the Saudi government’s plan, there will be a 4% increase in the logistics sector’s contribution to national GDP, from 6% to 10%, and will place Saudi Arabia among the top 35 countries in the cross-border trade index.

The Kingdom will also rise to sixth in road quality and ship just over 4.5 million tonnes of goods by air annually and this strategy will increase destinations to more than 250 countries.

The three-party deal aims to upgrade the Kingdom’s logistics and customs services and boost the nation’s foreign trade and economic development by integrating freight operations at air and sea terminals, simulating cargo transportation scenarios to identify and address any underlying challenges hindering a smooth delivery of service, and leveraging the country’s strategic geographical position.

More Collaboration

The MoU further seeks to intensify collaboration and coordination between the public sector entities through a common framework designed to enable knowledge and resource transfer, fulfil shared objectives, and synergize efforts to transform the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia into a global logistics hub as per the ambitions set by the Saudi Vision 2030.

Saudi Arabia is home to about 35 airports, inclusive of domestic, military, and international airports. Out of these some of the airports have even ranked as the busiest airports in the world.

They include three major international airports – King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, which is also the largest airport in the world by area.

There are 14 major seaports located in the Gulf and Red Sea in Saudi Arabia, which are under the control of Saudi Ports Authority, and they include Jeddah Islamic Port, King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam, King Fahad Industrial Port in Yanbu, King Fahad Industrial Port in Jubail, Jubail Commercial Port, Yanbu Commercial Port, Jizan Port, Dhiba Port, Port Ras Al Mishab, Port of Duba, Port of Rabigh, Port Ras Tamura, and Ras Al-Khair Port.

The government has been supporting the port sector and as a result, the size of cargo tonnage handled grew by 7.18% during the first three months of 2022, reaching a total of 74 million tonnes. In addition, the number of containers shipped from Saudi ports increased by 5.91%, representing a rise of around 1.5 million standard-sized containers, compared to the same period last year.