Business & Money | Thursday 29 January, 2015 12:02 am |

Sidra Capital, the CMA licensed financial services provider, has announced its sponsorship of the Madinah Job Market and Employment Forum, which is being organized by the Ministry of Labour and will be held from 4-5th February 2015 under the auspices of His Royal Highness Prince Faisal bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Madinah.

Commenting, Hani Baothman, CEO of Sidra Capital, stated that the company is committed to supporting the efforts of the Ministry of Labour to develop the local labour market and increase the availability of jobs for Saudi youth of both genders in order to enable them to perform their role in elevating the kingdom’s economic and social development.
"As a Saudi company it is our responsibility to support all initiatives that help in achieving national objectives in respect of the labour market. Moreover, we believe that the Madinah Job Forum represents a great platform for private sector companies to meet, share experiences and discuss key initiatives related to the job market including the recent government laws and Saudization.

“Private sector activities are mainly focused on the three big cities in Saudi Arabia; Jeddah, Riyadh and Al Khobar. However, the development of other regions in Saudi Arabia is often overlooked. Madinah’s population has recently crossed the 1 million mark and is officially the 4th largest city in Saudi Arabia, growing at around 3.4% per year ahead of the national average. The growth figures coupled with mega projects such as the expansion of the holy mosque, the Haramain high-speed railway, Knowledge Economic City as well as the expansion of the airport will have a significant impact on the economic growth of the city which in return will increase the demand for skilled and qualified labour.”
Referring to the investment banking sector Mr. Baothman praised the intensive efforts by the CMA to enhance financial literacy and qualification for young men and women working in the sector.

"We encourage and support the adoption of special programs to raise financial literacy among the Kingdom’s students. Sidra Capital provides Saudi youth a look into various career opportunities in the Kingdom’s financial service sector by providing them with internships." added Mr. Baothman.

It is noteworthy that Sidra Capital excels in providing Shariah compliant financial services and holds CMA approval to operate in the areas of asset management, Corporate Finance & Advisory. Sidra currently manages assets worth a total of US $400 million (SR1.6 billion), which are invested in alternative investments.
The company’s Corporate Finance & Advisory team has completed numerous transactions across a variety of different sectors and in total has raised capital amounting to SAR 800 million.