Ambassador of Kazakhstan Berik Aryn held a meeting with famous Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal

On July 28, 2020, H.E. Mr. Berik Aryn, the Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Saudi Arabia held a meeting with HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, the Chairman of the Kingdom Holding Company – a member of the Saudi Royal Family, who is not only one of the richest people on the planet but also a famous philanthropist who invests multimillion grants for poverty alleviation, education and healthcare development around the world.

During the meeting, the parties discussed various areas of bilateral cooperation in the economic sphere, including the opportunity of participation of Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal in the implementation of investment and socially significant projects in Kazakhstan. In this regard, the Kazakh diplomat briefed the prince on the current internal political and socio-economic development of Kazakhstan, the favorable investment climate established in the country, and large projects being implemented in essential areas as healthcare, tourism, hotel real estate, petrochemicals, etc.

Another discussion topic was the establishment of interaction and exchange of experience between Kazakhstan and the “Alwaleed Philanthropies” charitable organization headed by Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal.

The parties also exchanged views on the current unstable situation in the world caused by the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic's spread. In this context, the Ambassador briefed about the measures taken by the Government of Kazakhstan to counter the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal fondly recalled his visit to Kazakhstan in 2008 and his meeting with the First President of Kazakhstan – Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev. The Saudi businessman noted that he was impressed by the development of the new Kazakh capital, and expressed his willingness to pay a new visit to Kazakhstan after the global pandemic. He conveyed his greetings to Kazakhstan's leadership and wished well-being and continued prosperity to the people of Kazakhstan.

In 2017 Forbes listed Prince Al Walid bin Talal as the 7th-richest man in the world. At present time Kingdom Holding is one of the largest investment conglomerates in the world. Its activities cover various areas such as aviation, financial services, real estate, tourism, media, petrochemicals, healthcare, education, technology, and more.

Currently, Kingdom Holding owns shares in such global brands as Citigroup, Twitter, Uber, AccorHotels, Four Seasons, Savoy, Fairmont, Jingdong Inc., Rotana, etc. The Saudi holding also has a portfolio in several international hotels located in Kazakhstan.

The Alwaleed Philanthropies is a large charitable and philanthropic organization whose main activity is to alleviate poverty around the world, aid the victims of natural disasters, empower women and children, and support academic centers through sustainable long-term philanthropic investments. Over the forty years of its existence, the Foundation has provided different assistance to more than 1 billion people in 189 countries with an amount of more than 4 billion U.S. dollars. The Foundation has also allocated 30 million USD to the World Health Organization in May of this year to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.