Council of Economic and Development Affairs Saudi Arabia

The Saudi Arabian government was overhauled by King Salman on January 29th, following his ascension to the throne on January 23rd. Among the sweeping changes of office holders and institutions he created a Council of Economic and Development Affairs to be led by Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz who also serves as Minister of Defense and is a son of the king. The Economic and Development Affairs Council includes 22 members and was the subject of a wide-ranging FocusKSA (SUSTG.com/SUSRIS.com) interview this week with Dr. Theodore Karasik, a geo-political expert in Gulf affairs. He said the creation of this council as well as the Security and Political Affairs Council, established in the same move, were important steps in Saudi policymaking. He told SUSRIS: “This body encompasses all of Saudi domestic affairs – everything from health, labor, Islamic affairs, and so on. It is to be headed by the Defense Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who we have to watch very carefully because here is a thirty-four year old prince, he’s the son of a King. A lot of us knew about him, knew that he was behind his father, but when he was appointed to become the head of MOD it took many of us by surprise that he would rise so quickly. This is an important point because his management capability has already been proven. He’s known to be a very solid administrator – tough and able to get things done. In the Council of Economic and Development Affairs there’s a lot to do in terms of where the Kingdom is going to go, and primarily that is in the education realm.” The Royal Order also formed the Council of Economic and Development Affairs as follows: 1- Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Member of the Council of Ministers, President. 2- Minister of Justice, Member. 3- Dr. Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, Minister of State, Member of the Council of Ministers, Member. 4 – Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Member. 5- Minister of Finance, Member. 6- Minister of Water and Electricity, Member. 7- Minister of Labor, Member. 8- Minister of Housing, Member. 9- Minister of Hajj, Member. 10- Minister of Economy and Planning, Member. 11- Minister of Commerce and Industry, Member. 12- Minister of Transport, Member. 13- Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Member. 14- Minister of Social Affairs, Member. 15- Mohammed bin Abdulmalik Al Al-Sheikh, Minister of State, Member of the Council of Ministers, Member. 16- Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs, Member. 17- Minister of Health, Member. 18- Minister of Civil Service, Member. 19- Minister of Culture and Information, Member. 20- Minister of Agriculture, Member. 21- Minister of Education, Member. 22- Dr. Essam bin Saad bin Said, Minister of State, Member of the Council of Ministers, Member. The Royal Order instructed that the Secretary General of the Council of Ministers shall be a Secretary of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs. Source: SPA