Saudi Arabia under Ibn Saud: Economic and Financial Foundations of the State

At its founding in 1932, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was characterized by tribal warfare, political instability, chronic financial shortages and economic crises. As a desert chieftain, Abd al-Aziz Ibn Saud, the ruler and king until 1953, had the skills, the cunning and the power to control the tribes and bring peace to this realm. But financial and economic matters were not his forte and these he left mostly to a single individual, Abdullah al-Sulayman al-Hamdan. He was entrusted with nearly all of the country’s early financial dealings and administrative development. The Ministry of Finance, which he headed from its inception, served as nearly the sole government agency dealing with a wide variety of matters, many of which had only a peripheral connection to finance or the economy. This book examines the role of the Ministry of Finance and its minister, Abdullah al-Sulayman, in holding the country together financially and administratively until the promise of substantial oil income was realized a few years after the end of World War II. It will be essential reading for anyone interested in Gulf History and the Economic History of the Middle East.

Reviews of Saudi Arabia under Ibn Saud: Economic and Financial Foundations of the State

`This book fills a significant gap in the available literature on Saudi Arabia. There are a number of texts that focus on Ibn Saud's reign, but most of these focus on the personal agency of his leadership and his foreign relations, while only tangentially analysing the political economy of the time. This book goes a long way to remedying this situation. A key strength of the book is that it draws heavily on primary sources, most of which are archived US government reports. This really adds depth to the book and makes it stand out.' – Christopher Davidson, Associate Professor (Reader) in Middle East Politics, University of Durham, 'This book fills a very important gap in the literature on Saudi Arabia and will add immediate scholarly and analytical value to the academic and policy debates over Saudi Arabia's attempts to transform its economy once again and move decisively into a post-oil era. The depth of primary and secondary research that has gone into the book is extremely impressive and adds up to a considerable advance in the sum of academic knowledge about the creation of economic institutions and decision-making in Saudi Arabia between the 1920s and the 1950s.' – Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Fellow for the Middle East, Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University