Mariam Nihal

Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH – Economists and businessmen welcomed the decision of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to switch the official weekend to Friday-Saturday, a move which brings the Kingdom’s workweek more in line with other countries.



The King issued the Decree on Sunday following a recommendation in April by the Shoura Council.



The change, which starts on June 29, applies to all government bodies and monetary agencies, including the central bank, the Capital Market Authority and the stock exchange, said the Saudi Press Agency (SPA). The weekend switch will be implemented by schools and universities from the start of the next academic year.



Mohammed Shabib Al-Ghamdi, Administrative and Finance Manager in a leading Engineering Consultancy Company in Jeddah, called it a historic decision, adding that it will help boost the economy.



“It will keep us more in touch with the world trading centers,” he told Saudi Gazette.



Saeed Al-Shehri, a private trader, said: “Gaining one day will help a lot.”



According to the Decree, the change was made to better serve “the Saudi economy and its international commitments” and coordinate with the workweek in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the world.



It will “reduce the negative effects on economic and financial activity in the Kingdom and make up for lost economic opportunities,” said the Decree.



“It will increase interface with the rest of the world, now things will move faster,” Ali Al-Ajmi, a former vice president at Saudi Aramco who now runs a project management business, was quoted as saying by a news agency.



Abdulrahman Al-Ubaid, a former vice president at Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), the world’s biggest petrochemcial company, and now managing director of Saudi Development and Innovation Group, also welcomed the change.



“We expect the impact to be positive on the Saudi economy, we think our business will be easier,” he told Reuters.



Saudi Arabia, the biggest Arab economy, had been the only member of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to have a Thursday-Friday weekend after Oman shifted to a Friday-Saturday weekend last month. However, some Saudi companies, including food producer Savola had already announced they would change their own weekend to Friday and Saturday to improve their coordination with regional partners.



The decision aligns Saudi Arabia’s work schedule with everybody else, John Sfakianakis, chief investment strategist at MASIC, a Riyadh-based investment company, was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. “It will make the Saudi market more aligned with regional markets,” he said.



Kalid Khudair, founder of Glowork told Saudi Gazette that from a business perspective the move will have a huge impact on foreign and local markets.



“We are aligning ourselves with the regional financial market. It will also give us an extra day with international organizations within the Kingdom. It does not add anything to an individual but definitely adds value to banks, businesses, monetary services and financial agencies,” he added.



Marwan Hussein, a 36-year-old Saudi banker in Jeddah said: “This is such great news. You know we have five working days, but only three days had matched those of the main global markets. This move brings us closer to the working hours of international financial markets and businesses.”



Saba Mohammad, a 44-year-old teacher, living in Jeddah said: “This is a fantastic move!”



“We are all very happy. We can plan and coordinate our syllabus schedules; exams and conferences in line with activities around the GCC. This move will also see huge efficiency in the financial markets in Saudi Arabia,” Saba said.



International Indian School-Jeddah (IISJ) Principal Syed Masood Ahmed said the weekend switch will have a good impact in many respects. “The decision obviously does not affect directly the functioning of private and international schools in the Kingdom, but, of course, there will be indirect impact if the corporate and private sector firms switch to Friday and Saturday weekend, he said.



Muhammad Alungal, Chairman and Managing Director of Al-Abeer Medical Group, said Al-Abeer Group, will immediately apply Friday and Saturday weekend for all Saudi employees. “The King’s decision has come at a time when we worked out a  plan of eight-hour in five-day weekly work for Saudi employees. Almost all private hospitals and clinics give one day (Friday) to their staff and in that sense, the new directive won’t affect the medical sector.”



Sanil Balakrishnan Nair, Head of Operations, State Bank of India, said the decision will mainly benefit international transactions of the leading companies and businesses. “The Kingdom’s banking sector will be the secondary beneficiaries of this decision, and of course the banks would take advantage of the increased business transactions.”



Dr. Kavungal Mohammed, Assistant Vice President of Marsh Saudi Arabia of the New York-based global risk management consultants Marsh Inc, called it a very good decision, which will considerably improve businesses, especially international transactions. “At present, we have three working days to deal with our international partners and clients. The King’s order will give us one more working day and that is wonderful for the entire business community.”

– With input from Hassan Cheruppa