RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI) is inviting local and international companies to benefit from a number of military projects as well as launching a digital platform for investors to access local military industry.

GAMI has identified 74 investment opportunities, across six domains of the military industries sector, the authority said in a statement on Sunday.

The authority has launched a digital platform called the Military Industry Marketplace (MIM) that links local industry projects with investors that are authorized and licensed by the authority.

The authority has announced targeted opportunities in supply chains in the military industries sector aiming to enhance the Kingdom’s efforts to localize more than 50 percent of military spending by 2030.

“We have covered a lot of ground in a very short time in terms of localization. With the supply chains in the military industries sector and targeted opportunities our localization efforts will gather even more momentum and strengthen the military industries ecosystem to prove once again the Kingdom’s role in the defense market,” GAMI’s Gov. Ahmad Al-Ohali said.

Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in its defense industries to reduce reliance on imported military hardware as well as add higher value jobs in the Kingdom.

The number of licensed companies in Saudi Arabia’s military sector rose sharply in the first half of the year, according to GAMI data.

It reported a 41 percent increase in licensed companies to reach a total of 99 — 85 percent of them local companies. More than half (55 percent) were granted to operating companies while military services providers accounted for 24 percent and product suppliers accounting for the rest.