Khalid al-Falih, who was removed from his position as Saudi Arabia’s energy minister last year, has returned to lead a new government ministry for investment as part of a cabinet reshuffle announced last week.
The state news agency published a series of royal decrees that also announced the creation of new ministries for sports, tourism and human resources as well as new government appointments.
Until last year, Mr Falih was one of the highest ranking officials in the kingdom. An oil industry veteran for decades, he oversaw a Saudi super-ministry that straddled energy, industry and mining.
But his inability to deliver a rapid overhaul of industrial strategy and a cautious approach to the stock market offering of Saudi Aramco - much sought after by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman - were among reasons he fell from grace in a dramatic fashion. Within a few days in September he lost a series of positions including his role as the head of oil policy and the chairman of the state energy giant, moves that revealed the ruthless nature of governance in the kingdom.
The new investment ministry that would oversee, regulate and promote foreign flows into the kingdom replaces the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority. Saudi Arabia has sought foreign investment to help diversify its economy and end its dependence on oil revenues.
How Mr Falih’s new ministry will work alongside the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund is unclear.
The PIF, which has invested in companies such as ride-hailing app Uber and space tourism company Virgin Galactic, has until now been Prince Mohammed’s chosen vehicle to lead economic reforms. But it has come under fire as these big ticket investments have yet to yield the kinds of returns that will meaningfully shift the country away from hydrocarbons and generate millions of jobs Saudi Arabia needs.
In one decree it was announced that the media minister Turki al-Shabana would be removed from his position after less than 14 months on the job.
