Riyadh – Mubasher: The Saudi Grains Organization (SAGO) has successfully completed the first phase of the milling sector privatisation and is currently working to complete the second phase, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said on Monday.

The second and final phase of the milling sector privatisation is expected to complete at the beginning of 2021.

The announcement was made on the sidelines of SAGO’s meeting, which took place on Monday and was chaired by the Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Abdulrahman Bin Abdulmohsen Al Fadhli, who also serves as SAGO’s Board Chairman.

The historic milestone will enhance competitiveness, improve operational efficiency and diversity of products while upgrading the quality of services provided to citizens and residents.

This falls within the goals of the National Vision 2030 aimed at increasing the contribution of the private sector in the gross domestic product (GDP), benefitting from state-owned assets, while attracting local and global investments.

The Gulf nation is selling its entire flour milling business, in a long-awaited privatisation that marks one of the first sales of the country’s state-owned assets. The sales are part of broader plans to overhaul the economy, according to Reuters.

The first part of the milling sector privatisation was completed in July with the sale of two milling firms to Saudi and Gulf investors.