Saudi Arabia dismisses investment minister ahead of Vision 2030 plan update
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman dismissed Investment Minister Khalid bin Abdulaziz al-Falih on Thursday by royal decree as part of a reshuffle ahead of a revised five-year economic plan in the wake of falling oil revenues.
A longtime energy executive, Falih has served as investment minister since 2020. He will retain his position as a minister and member of the cabinet but without a portfolio.
He has been replaced by Fahd bin Abduljalil bin Ali al-Saif, currently head of global capital finance at the Public Investment Fund (PIF), who previously led the fund’s investment strategy and economic insights division.
The reshuffle comes as the Saudi government prepares to unveil a revised five-year plan for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030, amid lower-than-expected revenues and an economy that slowed to 3.3 percent growth in 2025, down from 5.3 percent previously.
The updated plan is expected to place greater emphasis on emerging sectors, including minerals, artificial intelligence and tourism.
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Falih had been credited with helping open up the kingdom’s economy to foreign investment and supporting efforts to diversify it away from oil.
Previously, he was minister of energy, industry and mineral resources from 2016 to 2019, and minister of health from 2015 to 2016.
Before joining the government, he had a long career at state oil giant Saudi Aramco, including serving as president and CEO between 2009 and 2015.
Low growth
Sources told Reuters that low oil prices have limited the country’s ability to fund some of its most ambitious projects, forcing authorities to scale back certain initiatives and seek additional financing through foreign investment.
The kingdom has already suspended construction of the Mukaab, a cube-shaped structure planned for downtown Riyadh.
A proposed ski resort in the futuristic mega-city of Neom has been downsized, and most notably, the 170-kilometre linear city known as The Line is also being scaled back.
Saudi officials have defended the revisions. Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan said in December: “If we announce something and we need to adjust it, accelerate it and make it a priority more than others, or defer or cancel it, we will do so without blinking.”
Some major spending plans remain on track, including billions of dollars in investments to help rebuild Syria – such as a joint Saudi-Syrian airline and telecommunications company – as well as a large-scale expansion of the area surrounding the Grand Mosque in Mecca.
The project, known as King Salman Gate, includes new towers for prayer, accommodation and hospitality.
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