Mayday moment over the Saudi Arabia desert

Saudi Arabia has assumed the presidency of the Union of Arab Chambers, replacing Tunisia in a yearly alphabetical rotation of the position. The honor falls to Abdullah Saleh Kamel, the President of the Federation of Saudi Chambers and the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Development. This marks Saudi Arabia's first term as the Union's leader, concurrent with the execution of its 2026-2030 strategy.

The plan seeks to bolster Arab economic integration through investment promotion, joint production, capital investment, value chain development, SME empowerment, and private sector involvement in setting economic priorities for the Arab world. The next phase will focus on joint Arab investment, productive integration, food and industrial security, digital transformation, and deeper integration of the Arab business community into regional and global value chains.

Saudi Arabia assumes this role as it enters the third phase of Vision 2030, which began in 2026 and aims to intensify implementation and maximize impact. This phase relies on sustained government capital spending and a stronger role for the Public Investment Fund and the National Development Fund in encouraging domestic investment, paving the way for more investment and production partnerships.

The Union of Arab Chambers, founded on December 16, 1951, is based in Beirut. It functions as a non-governmental Arab economic organization promoting joint Arab economic cooperation and integration among Arab chambers of commerce, industry, and a network of joint Arab-foreign chambers.