Government Scraps Wheat Subsidies

After years of investing heavily into growing wheat in this arid country, the Saudi Arabian government has decided to pull the plug on its wheat production scheme. Started in the late 1970s and funded by petrodollars accrued from the first oil boom, the wheat programme has cost the government an estimated SAR60-70bn (US$16-18.7bn) over the years. However, it is, not the financial cost, but the use of scarce water resources that has prompted the government to abandon this project. In fact, with world wheat prices at record highs, the government will be paying dearly to import wheat in order to

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