EMPOWERING INDUSTRIES

Majed Al-Argoubi, CEO of the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (MODON), is reshaping Saudi Arabia's industrial landscape, driving growth across 39 industrial cities spanning over 220 million sqm. His focus: modernizing the sector, empowering SMEs, and positioning the kingdom as a global manufacturing and technology hub.

- BY HAGAR OMRAN

For decades, oil powered Saudi Arabia's rise.

Today, industry fuels its future. Under the National Industrial Strategy (NIS), Saudi Arabia aims to boost manufacturing's GDP contribution from $88.3 billion in 2020 to $238.7 billion by 2030 and $376.8 billion by 2035. Over the same period, manufacturing exports are projected to grow from $45.1 billion to $148.5 billion by 2030 and $237.9 billion by 2035, while sector employment is set to triple, from 893,000 to 3.3 million.

Reflecting this momentum, Saudi Arabia ranked 41st globally on UNIDO's latest Industrial Competitiveness Index 2023, second in the Arab world after the U.A.E., highlighting its rapid transformation under Vision 2030.

Established in 2001, the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (MODON) leads this shift, overseeing industrial lands and integrated cities across the kingdom. It now manages 39 industrial cities covering more than 220 million sqm and supporting emerging industries, technologies, and logistics. "Under MODON's umbrella, our industrial cities now host over 7,500 manufacturing facilities, 450 logistics facilities, and 20 data centers, generating more than 600,000 jobs and drawing $122.7 billion in private sector investments," says Majed Al-Argoubi, MODON'S CEO.

MODON continues to broaden its industrial landscape. In the first nine months of 2025, MODON attracted nearly 1,000 new investors, raising total investment in its cities to $7.4 billion, up from $5.5 billion in the same period of the previous year. It also allocated 15 million square meters of industrial land from January to September 2025, highlighting the sector's growth. To strengthen this expansion, MODON signed agreements in February 2025 with local and international partners to establish four data centers worth $1.7 billion, advancing the kingdom's vision for a digitally integrated ecosystem.