The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is to lift its total ban on sales of alcohol in the country – that has been in place for decades – but only in a very limited way.
Saudi Arabia has been a teetotal country since 1952, in line with Muslim beliefs. But now there are plans for its first shop to sell alcohol to open soon.
But this does not mean a widespread relaxation of the rules. The shop, which will be situated in the Diplomatic Quarter of the capital, Riyadh, will only be open to non-Muslim diplomats. This means that nothing will change for almost all the 32 million people who live in Saudi Arabia.
Even when the shop does open, there will be strict rules that customers will have to adhere to. For instance, there will be quotas on how much can be bought. In addition, only those people who have been registered through an application process will be allowed into the shop and when inside they will have to store their mobile phones in a special pouch as they browse the shelves.
As the rulers of Saudi Arabia seek to play a bigger part on the world stage, and with its Vision 2030 plan to turn the Gulf state into a hub for business, sports and tourism so it can prosper without having to rely on sales of oil in the future, the country is trying to appeal to more foreigners. Allowing limited sales of alcohol may be one part of that.
The Saudi government’s Center for International Communication also said that the new policy also aims “to counter the illicit trade of alcohol goods and products received by diplomatic missions” – which can see bottles of whisky change hands for hundreds of dollars.
So while there is change in Saudi Arabian alcohol policy, it is very small – for now. The country’s thriving non-alcoholic drinks sector doesn’t have anything to worry about just yet.
