On 14 February 2024 Saudi Arabia's Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Abdulrahman Al-Fadly, and Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Abdullah Al-Sawaha, launched a new project, "Sonbola", aimed at fostering the agricultural entrepreneurial community and supporting innovative start-ups to establish their business in the agricultural sector.

"Sonbola, which translates to "ear of wheat" or "spike", refers to the cluster of seeds at the top of the stem of a cereal plant where the grain develops. The Sonbola programme aims to support start-ups by providing financial support, attracting venture capital, providing business incubators, and rural development and food technology projects. The programme aims to promote economic growth and inspire young people to pursue development in the field of entrepreneurship. In addition, the Sonbola programme has signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with institutions such as the Saudi Fund for Agricultural Development (SFAD), the National Centre for Sustainable Agricultural Research and Development (NCSARD), and the Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC), in order to promote entrepreneurial collaboration within the agricultural sector.

The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Mushetti, noted that the ministry had developed an implementation strategy plan to establish an integrated entrepreneurship system and that the government had recently established a research and innovation agency and unveiled its implementation strategy, which included plans to promote entrepreneurship.  

Currently, businesses in the environment, water and agriculture sectors account for only 1 per cent of the total number of start-ups in Saudi Arabia, which is below the global average of around 10 per cent.  

But the ministry aims to exceed this global average and expects these sectors to contribute around SAR4bn ($1.07bn) to non-oil GDP by 2030.

The programme is part of the Saudi Arabian government's drive for agricultural innovation and development to achieve economic diversification, sustained growth and leadership in the agricultural sector. Through the Sonbola programme and other similar programmes, Saudi Arabia hopes to create an attractive investment climate in agriculture and promote the design and development of innovative projects.