Muhammad Sulaiman Al Jasser (

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

: محمد سليمان الجاسر‎; born 1955) is a Saudi economist who is currently advisor at the General Secretariat of the

Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia The Saudi Council of Ministers ( ar, مجلس الوزراء السعودي ''Majlis al-Wuzarā' as-Su‘ūdī'') is the cabinet of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is led by the King. The council consists of the king, the Crown Prince, and cabin ...

and Chairman of the General Authority for Competition. He served as Minister of Economy and Planning between 2011 and 2015. He also previously served as Governor and Board Chairman of the Saudi Arabian Central Bank (SAMA) between 2009 and 2011. Prior to that, he served as Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) between 1990 and 1995.

Early life and education

Al Jasser was born in Buraidah in 1955. He studied economics at San Diego State University (BA in 1979), and the

University of California, Riverside The University of California, Riverside (UCR or UC Riverside) is a public land-grant research university in Riverside, California. It is one of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The main campus sits on in a suburban distr ...

(MA in 1981 and PhD in 1986).

Career

Al Jasser began his career at the Saudi finance ministry in 1981. He was named the executive director for Saudi Arabia at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1988. His tenure lasted until 1995. He joined the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) in 1995 as vice governor of SAMA and vice chairman of the SAMA board. He served in this post until 2009. He was also named as acting deputy minister of finance and national economy for budget and organization in 1995. He served as the director of the Saudi Arabian Mining Company until 2009. Al Jasser became governor of SAMA in February 2009, replacing Hamad Al Sayari. He was also appointed the first chairman of the Gulf Monetary Council on 30 March 2010. The task of this organisation is to establish a united central bank and common currency for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). He also chaired state-controlled Saudi Telecom, and is a member on the boards of various national and regional finance institutions including the Islamic Development Bank and Arab Monetary Fund. Al Jasser was appointed minister of economy and planning on 13 December 2011, replacing Khalid bin Mohammed Al Gosaibi, who had been in the post since 2003. Al Jasser's term as minister of economy and planning ended on 29 April 2015 when he was replaced by

Adel Fakeih Adel Fakeih (born 1 July 1959; Arabic:عادل فقيه) is a Saudi Arabian engineer and the former mayor of Jeddah. He was the minister of labor from August 2010 to April 2015, minister of health between April 2014 and December 2014, and minist ...

in the post.

Recognition and honors

Al Jasser is described as a well-regarded technocrat by James Reeve, senior economist at

Samba Financial Group Samba Financial Group SJSC, formerly known as The Saudi American Bank, was a Saudi multinational banking firm based in Saudi Arabia. The combined institution had 66 branches in the Kingdom. Samba merged with NCB to form Saudi National Bank on 1 ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Al Jasser is the recipient of the King Abdulaziz Medal of the First Order. In 2009, he was named by ''the Middle East'' as one of the 50 most influential Arabs in the world.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jasser, Muhammed Al 21st-century Saudi Arabian politicians 1955 births Government ministers of Saudi Arabia Governors of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency Living people People from Buraidah Leaders of organizations San Diego State University alumni Saudi Arabian economists University of California, Riverside alumni