A roadmap for humanity in challenging times: the Future Investment Initiative Institute hosts “Priority” Summit in Miami

Author: Mercedes Vazquez, GM ESK Holding. Industry Advisor Board Member. Podcast Host “Tapping into the Untapped”

The Future Investment Initiative Institute holds a Priority Summit in partnership with the City of Miami’s Mayor Francis X. Suarez with the mission to have a positive impact on humanity.

As a delegate for the past couple of years to the enlightening Future Investment Initiative Summit, a non-profit foundation with the Public Investment Fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as a founding partner, whose purpose is to impact humanity, I have to say that the latest edition has been an edition like no other, based on my personal experience as a business and tech executive from Spain who builds bridges between continents based in Kuwait for over 7 years. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is undergoing a vast transformation, Vision 2030, as the Crown Prince HRH Mohammed bin Salman pushes through a variety of social reforms and seeks to diversify the Saudi economy. Miami certainly offers a unique value proposition aligned with Saudi Arabia as a key bridge builder that connects with key strategic gateways for innovation, both of which share inclusive vibrant values of a “dream reimagined” through a bold vision, excellent leadership with alignment in execution where everyone identifies their role and North Star, positive DNA and innovative economic reform to enable economic diversification.

 The FII Institute’s Priority Summit, whose flagship conference has been referred to as a “Davos of the Desert” brought together a vibrant ecosystem where Miami & the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shone bright during the “Priority: A Roadmap for Humanity in Challenging Times” Summit which featured over 85 highly curated speakers — including former heads of state and ministers, global CEOs and international investors, Nobel Laureates, innovators, venture capitalists, next-generation leaders, and engaged citizens. Together, we set forth a new agenda to encourage businesses, governments, and institutions to come together around a new set of priorities — and thereby create new pathways that will lead to better outcomes and opportunities for everyone to enable a level-playing field.

Miami’s Mayor Francis X. Suarez was a keynote speaker on Day 1 alongside H.E. Yasir Al-Rumayyan, one of the most prominent business leaders in the GCC as Governor of Saudi Arabia’s $650bn Public Investment Fund and Chairman of Saudi Aramco, which surpassed Apple as the world’s most valuable company last year. When asked what the “secret sauce” is for Miami’s success, Mayor Suarez answered: “low taxes, safety, and leaning into innovation. Our challenges? Making sure our education and climate initiatives are keeping up with the massive growth.”

 And there are several parallels between Miami and Saudi Arabia, highlighted by the flourishing of both locations over the past few years and evidenced by Saudi Arabia's economic growth of 8.7 per cent in 2022, the highest amongst G20 countries.

H.E. Yasir Al-Rumayyan said the PIF assets would swell to $1 trillion by 2025 and at least double by 2030, it exceeded the forecast, cut down unemployment rates from 13% to 9% per cent, and created half a million job opportunities, with targets set to double the number to 1.5 million by 2025. He also said that the Kingdom has all the capabilities to realize the Saudi Vision 2030, be they the financial and human resources, adding that PIF was managing assets valuing $150 billion in 2015 and it now has around $650 billion, and it targets increasing the value of its assets to $1 trillion in 2025 and between $2-3 trillion by 2030.

The Governor also indicated that the fund is the world’s largest investor in renewable energy and green hydrogen.  within the national objectives and the Saudi climate action, which seeks to reach net zero emissions by 2050, but that the transition away from fossil fuels would take time and “oil, gas and fossil fuels are not such a bad thing. We should have long-term views and not [follow] a certain ideal or ideology without thinking about the consequences of that”

I personally believe that education is the foundation that serves as a pillar for economic growth and prosperity. I have been fortunate to be empowered by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Qiyadat during the 2022 edition of  Georgetown University McDonough School of Business Global Women in Leadership program with 159 women leaders from 17 G20 nations, I was particularly impressed by the female leaders of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia who are the gem of the Vision for the nation to thrive even more, and so the following remarkable data points provided by H.E. Yasir Al-Rumayyan during the summit were not surprising to me given the multiple initiatives that KSA is leading: “When the implementation of the Vision 2030 began, some targets were reached a decade ahead of schedule, such as the percentage of women working in Saudi Arabia, which increased from around 16 per cent to 37 per cent by 2020, surpassing the 30 per cent target set for 2030 a decade in advance.”

Her Royal Highness Princess Reema Bint Bandar Al Saud, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to the United States of America, highlighted the importance of equal opportunities for both genders, considering that 70 per cent of the Saudi population is younger than 35 years old, with a near equal male-female split. Vision 2030 has facilitated educational pathways and job opportunities in fields such as hospitality, tourism, and sports, with over $100 million spent on creating more than three million jobs. These opportunities help uplift individuals and their families, fostering a better society.

HRH Princess Reema had also shared a conversation on-stage with Senator Mateo Renzi, former Prime Minister of Italy on instilling “hope” in the midst of what the UN calls the “largest cost of living crisis of the 21st century.”

 Notable speakers included Richard Attias, CEO of FII Institute; investors Nelson Peltz of Trian Fund Management;  Steve Wynn of Wynn Resorts; Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz representing one of Silicon Valley’s most influential VC firms; Jared Kushner; Sven Otto, Sweden’s Former Minister of Employment; H.E. Helle Thoring-Schmidt,  Denmark’s Former Prime Minister; H.R.H. Prince Faisal Bin Bandar Bin Sultan Al Saud, Chairman at Saudi Esports Federation; Tyler Dickson Global Co-Head Banking, Capital Markets & Advisory at Citibank; Steven T. Mnuchin 77th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States; Rayan Fayez, Deputy CEO at NEOM; Jack Selby, Managing Director at Thiel Capital; and Dina Powell McCormick, Global Head, Sovereign Institutional Business & Sustainability & Inclusive Growth at Goldman Sachs.

International business strategist and author Tony Robbins created a very vibrant momentum at Faena’s Forum in Miami to close out the Summit as he had addressed the interconnection of emotions such as certainty to foster action for good, patterns affecting effective decision-making, the impact on heart rates when brain and heart are aligned or experience  frustration with its corresponding implications and the overall life force to transform our quality of life for a lasting positive impact, better humanity and, therefore, world