Saudi Arabia to host G20 summit in 2020

Saudi Arabia to host G20 summit in 2020
Saudi Arabia will be the 2020 host of the G20 summit.
2 min read
18 April, 2019
Prince Mohammed visited Argentina for the G20 summit last year [Getty]
Saudi Arabia will host the G20 summit in 2020, despite international outcry over alleged government links to a journalist's murder and its role in the bloody war in Yemen.

Saudi state media announced on Wednesday that it will hold the meeting of heads of the world's biggest economies in November 2020.

"The kingdom of Saudi Arabia will host the 15th annual G20 Leaders' Summit on November 21 and 22, 2020 in the capital city, Riyadh," Saudi New Agency reported.

"Saudi Arabia is fully committed to the G20's objectives and to the stability and prosperity of the international economic system."
Hosting the event is seen as a chance to strike trade agreements and encourage investment, something Saudi Arabia has been keen to achieve in its push for a post-oil future.

It also brings in thousands of journalists, business leaders and politicians with estimated of the economic value of hosting the event being roughly over $100 million, according to researchers.

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman made his first major public international appearance since the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last October when he visited the 2018 G20 summit in Argentina.

Khashoggi had been critical of the Saudi regime and Prince Mohammed linked to the murder, according to foreign intelligence agencies, leading to a quiet protest from some western countries.

Prince Mohammed has sought to transform the country's economy, which is overly reliant on oil and gas receipts, through his ambitious Vision 2030 plan.

Saudi Arabia has also jailed dozens of liberal and democratic activists.