Riyadh: The General Authority for Defense Development (GADD) and SAMI today launched two programs to support the localization of the defense development sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The two programs, valued at SAR 664 million, will run over 4 years and represent the first batch of GADD incentive programs for the sector. These include grants awarded by GADD for research in targeted areas and the construction of special facilities to support the development of related technologies.
Under these new programs, SAMI will form partnerships with various national development centers and Saudi universities to support the design and eventual industrialization of the results of their defense development activities and to meet military and security needs.
Speaking on the occasion, GADD Governor Dr. Faleh Al-Suleiman said: “The Authority seeks to direct defense development activities at national development centers and universities to the requirements of defense and security end-users.”
The governor also stressed the need to invest in national universities that have qualified personnel to support the development of local defense in the Kingdom.
Meanwhile, the Assistant to the Governor for Technology Planning at GADD, Dr. Hatim Behairi said, “This support aims to leverage national capabilities to locally develop various defense systems such as Software Defined Radio (SDR) systems and defense surveillance and intelligence systems against UAV systems’.
SAMI CEO Walid Abukhaled said this support shows the pioneering role SAMI is playing in localizing the defense industry, adding that the results of these programs will bear fruit in the next four years and that these efforts are in line with the Saudi Vision objective 2030 to localize 50% of defense spending by 2030.
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