The World Bank’s partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia started in 1975. The Kingdom supports the World Bank Group efforts in its mission of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity. Since then, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has embarked on a major economic and social transformation outlined in its Vision 2030: diversification away from oil and a renewed social contract. It is expected that the "thriving economy" foreseen in Vision 2030 will be achieved through major change in the economic model, with a shift towards a new paradigm based on increased productivity. To achieve this, the role of the state is changing from driver of the economy to enabler of private sector-led growth.

The World Bank brings technical expertise and global knowledge to government entities in the Kingdom to support the country’s development agenda. The advisory program is aligned with, and supports, the implementation of Vision 2030 and the National Transformation Program. Over the last few years, the program has been expanded to cover various sectors, including improving the investment climate, education, health, labor markets, transport, energy, urban planning, economic management and planning, public financial management, digital economy, PPPs, and SME strategy.

In 2025, The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the World Bank Group agreed to establish a Knowledge Hub in Riyadh to drive the global exchange of ideas, experiences, and best practices to tackle the world’s most pressing development challenges. The World Bank Group–Saudi Arabia Knowledge Hub (K-Hub) will serve as a platform for knowledge generation and exchange to drive greater development impact for countries.

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