Saudi Arabia is planning an 8 billion riyals ($2.1 billion) boost for its space program, The Saudi Space Commission (SSC), by 2030 under an economic diversification plan that aims to attract foreign investment and create thousands of jobs for young Saudis, Reuters reports.
The SSC, which was set up by a royal decree in late 2018 to stimulate space-related research and industrial activities, has finalized a plan for the government, expected to be revealed later this year, under which the sector’s budget would receive an initial boost of 2 billion riyals, according to Reuters, which cited comments from Prince Sultan bin Salman.
“In the time where we live now, space is becoming a fundamental sector of the global economy, touching every aspect of our lives on Earth. Space business and space economy are expected to grow into the trillions of riyals as we go forward,” Prince Sultan bin Salman told Reuters in an interview.
Prince Sultan bin Salman is the first member of a royal family to fly in space, the first Arab to fly in space, and the first Muslim to fly in space, as well as (at 28 years old) the youngest person ever to fly on the Space Shuttle.
