Fahad Hamidaddin, CEO of the Saudi Tourism Authority, made his Cannes Lions debut, speaking to a sold-out audience about his vision for the Kingdom’s creativity-driven future economy.
“We are experiencing a transformation that is moving Saudi Arabia from an oil-dependence to a fully diversified hyper-growth economy that is at the economic, social and creative heart of the world,” Hamidaddin said.
About 70 percent of Saudis are under 35, so if you think you know Saudi Arabia, think again. Even Saudis who live in the country no longer recognize the country, he said. Saudi Arabia’s modernization has been driven by a younger population.
“Young, talented, determined creatives, young women and men who are willing to take risks, and creatives who not only have open minds and hearts, but open arms to all the other creatives in the world,” he said.
Hamidaddin went on to profile four women and three men who have started creative businesses in the tourism sector – a small sample size given that the tourism industry’s spending on CAPEX projects is close to $1 trillion.
He went on to speak about the cultural developments that have taken place in Saudi Arabia over the past few years, highlighting the world’s largest electronic festival, which was headlined by legendary DJ Calvin Harris and attracted more than 600,000 attendees.
Surprisingly, he said Saudi Arabia’s approach to tourism is to “analyze the world’s failures rather than successes,” highlighting the problems of over-tourism and failure to protect biodiversity.
While many think of Saudi Arabia as a desert, it also boasts 2,000 kilometers of pristine Red Sea. He further noted that sustainability is an important phrase on everyone’s lips, but not many actually put it into practice – not for lack of will or goodwill, but because it is difficult and comes at a great cost, especially for an economy that was previously dependent on extractive industries. He said Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in the region because it believes it will ultimately reap rewards from the most demanding travelers.
“One of the biggest challenges the world is witnessing today is polarization. It’s okay to have differences of opinion, but that’s not polarization. 90 percent of the world’s people have only visited 10 percent of the world. For example, when you go to France, most people only visit Paris. We want to change this so that the whole of Saudi Arabia can benefit from tourism and all travelers can see the beauty of the whole country,” he said.
“On behalf of the Saudi people, we welcome you to the heart of Arabia with open hearts,” Hamidaddin concluded.
