The Saudi Arabia you’ve by no means been informed about

In 2010, I used to be residing in the USA for my research, surrounded by individuals who welcomed me with a kindness I’ll always remember. I stayed with an American host household your complete time, and the girl who owned the home — Holly — made America really feel like my second dwelling. Once I introduced my spouse and kids from Riyadh to Denver, she insisted on internet hosting them at no cost. She showered my youngsters with items and heat, and earlier than lengthy, our relationship had grown into a real friendship constructed on respect and easy, on a regular basis goodness. Holly adopted the information about Saudi Arabia, and a few of the criticism felt honest — all of us agreed that girls not being allowed to drive on the time was lengthy overdue for change. However at any time when the American media pushed exaggerated narratives or painted Saudis with broad, dangerous stereotypes, she dismissed them instantly.“That’s nonsense,” she informed me greater than as soon as. “I do know Saudis. Extremism isn’t a nationality. It’s a illness, and sick minds can come from wherever.” Feedback like that stick with you. They remind you that humanity is greater than headlines, and that folks usually perceive one another higher than the media suggests they do. Years later, I returned to Saudi Arabia with stunning recollections and friendships from my time in America. After which, in 2016, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman introduced Imaginative and prescient 2030. That evening, one thing in me stated it was time to jot down a brand new letter to Holly and to the American reader. A letter not of politics, however of connection. Not of defensiveness, however of honesty. A letter that reveals the Saudi Arabia we all know — not the one diminished to sensational headlines or selective reviews. Holly, and my mates throughout America: When you may see the modifications which have occurred right here in simply ten years, you’d repeat your well-known line: “This isn’t insanity… that is change.” Saudi Arabia is now not simply an oil nation. For the primary time in our historical past, greater than half of our actual GDP — 56 p.c — comes from non-oil sectors. Our financial system has grown to over 4 trillion riyals, inserting us among the many world’s prime fifteen economies. Overseas funding has surged, reaching 119 billion riyals in 2024. These aren’t speaking factors. They’re new cities rising from the desert, mega-projects taking form, and job alternatives that after felt unimaginable. Tourism tells one other exceptional story. Holly, you as soon as stated the one pictures you’d ever seen of Saudi Arabia have been from the Hajj. In the present day, the Kingdom welcomed 109 million guests in 2023, then 116 million in 2024, and is now concentrating on 150 million. Saudi Arabia has turn out to be one of many world’s fastest-growing journey locations, not by our reviews, however by yours. As for “extremism,” a label too simply utilized in Western media, it’s now a forgotten web page in our nationwide dialog. When the Crown Prince stated, “We’ll destroy them instantly,” it wasn’t rhetoric, it was a turning level. Via schooling, consciousness, legislation enforcement, and social reform, the nation dramatically diminished extremist incidents—one thing documented by worldwide indexes and studied in American universities. Extremism was by no means a Saudi identification; it was a world problem rooted in mindset, not birthplace. Saudi girls have moved from a query mark to a power. They started driving in 2018. Their workforce participation rose from 17 p.c in 2017 to 36 p.c in 2025, surpassing Imaginative and prescient 2030 targets. A contemporary Private Standing Legislation now protects their rights in marriage, divorce, custody, and monetary assist, providing readability and equity in areas that after relied closely on private interpretation. And here’s a level Individuals are sometimes shocked to study: Saudi legislation doesn’t differentiate between women and men in pay. Not in authorities, not within the personal sector, not wherever. Salaries depend upon qualification, expertise, specialization, and job degree, nothing else. In observe, many Saudi girls earn greater than males in the identical fields: executives, physicians, engineers, tech specialists, entrepreneurs. A easy search—“Saudi Arabia equal pay legislation”—confirms it. Kids’s rights are protected not solely by religion, however by a strict Baby Safety Legislation that criminalizes abuse of each form, supported by devoted safety items in hospitals, faculties, and safety companies. After which there may be security, a subject anybody who has lived in America understands on a private degree. Saudi Arabia is without doubt one of the most secure international locations on this planet, rating fifth globally within the 2025 Gallup Security Report and main the G20 within the sense of security. Folks stroll at evening right here with ease, one thing that shapes on a regular basis life in methods guests immediately discover. Our youth and sports activities scene is present process its personal transformation. Saudi Arabia is internet hosting the 2034 World Cup, System 1 races, and the world’s largest Esports World Cup with $70 million in prizes. International stars now name the Kingdom dwelling. Cristiano Ronaldo, captain of Al-Nassr and of Portugal’s nationwide workforce, stated: “I contemplate myself Saudi. I really like residing right here. I got here as a result of I consider within the Kingdom’s potential—and everybody now is aware of I used to be proper.” And in spite of everything of this, Holly — and each honest American reader — I don’t ask you to like our leaders just because we do, nor to undertake our narrative as a result of your media can typically be harsh on us. I ask just for equity — the form of equity that good individuals and good nations uphold. Have a look at Saudi Arabia because it actually is, not because it seems in a selective headline designed for shock worth. Each quantity on this letter is definitely verified: “Saudi Arabia 116 million vacationers 2024,” “Saudi Arabia Imaginative and prescient 2030 non-oil GDP,” “Saudi Arabia feminine labor power 36 p.c,” “Saudi Arabia Baby Safety Legislation.” You’ll discover the identical knowledge in authorities sources, the World Financial institution, Bloomberg, The Washington Publish, and Enterprise Insider. We Saudis are pleased with our management as a result of we see its impression daily—in our cities, our security, our youngsters’s schooling, our careers, and our future. And so, from Riyadh to the USA, on the event of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s go to to the USA on the invitation of President Trump, I prolong my hand—to not debate the previous, however to share the longer term. A future formed by individuals, sustained by reality, and guided by conscience. We look ahead to seeing you quickly as welcomed company in Saudi Arabia — simply as greater than 100 million guests from world wide have already accomplished. * Tv Presenter

Supply hyperlink