Editing Economy of Saudi Arabia (section)

==Non-petroleum resources sector==
Saudi Arabia has natural resources other than oil, including small mineral deposits of gold, silver, iron, copper, zinc, manganese, tungsten, lead, sulfur, phosphate, soapstone, and feldspar.<ref name="HT2009: 44" /> The country has a small [[Agriculture in Saudi Arabia|agricultural sector]], primarily in the southwest where annual rainfall averages {{cvt|400|mm}}. The country is one of the world's largest producers of [[Date (fruit)|dates]]. Prior to 2009, wheat was grown using [[desalinated water]] for irrigation,<ref name="HT2009: 44" /> but was phased out by 2016 due to costly water usage.<ref name=sa-11-12-14>{{cite news|last1=Muhammad|first1=Fatima|title=Saudi Arabia to stop wheat production by 2016|url=http://english.alarabiya.net/en/business/economy/2014/12/11/KSA-to-stop-wheat-production-by-2016.html|access-date=12 February 2015|work=Saudi Gazette|date=11 December 2014|archive-date=6 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181206102340/http://english.alarabiya.net/en/business/economy/2014/12/11/KSA-to-stop-wheat-production-by-2016.html|url-status=live}}</ref> As of 2009, the livestock population amounted to 7.4&nbsp;million sheep, 4.2&nbsp;million goats, half a million camels, and a quarter of a million cattle.<ref name="HT2009: 44" />

Although the jobs created by the roughly two million annual [[Hajj]] pilgrims do not last long, they employ more people than the oil industry—40,000 temporary jobs (butchers, barbers, coach drivers, etc.)—and generates US$2–3&nbsp;billion in revenue.<ref name="HT2009: 150">[[#HT2009|Tripp, ''Culture Shock'', 2009]]: p. 150</ref>

In 2008, the "Initiative for Saudi Agricultural Investment Abroad" was launched, leading to extensive billion-dollar purchases of large tracts of land around the world, including in [[Ethiopia]], [[Indonesia]], [[Mali]], [[Senegal]], and [[Sudan]]. Described as [[land-grabbing]] by critics, in various instances these purchases have also led to uproars in the respective countries. Competing industrializing nations with [[food security]] problems seeking agricultural land include China, [[South Korea]], and India, as well as the Persian Gulf States of [[Kuwait]], [[Qatar]], and the [[UAE]].<ref name="Middle East Eye">{{cite web | title=Saudi agricultural investment abroad – land grab or benign strategy? | website=Middle East Eye | url=http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/saudi-agricultural-investment-abroad-land-grab-or-benign-investment-strategy-218650423 | access-date=23 January 2018 | archive-date=3 April 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180403235007/http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/saudi-agricultural-investment-abroad-land-grab-or-benign-investment-strategy-218650423 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Africa Faith and Justice Network">{{cite web | title=Africa up for grabs, Saudi Arabia takes its share | website=Africa Faith and Justice Network | date=17 November 2014 | url=http://afjn.org/africa-up-for-grabs-saudi-arabia-takes-its-share/ | access-date=23 January 2018 | archive-date=4 April 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180404003131/http://afjn.org/africa-up-for-grabs-saudi-arabia-takes-its-share/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Pearce 2012">{{cite web | last=Pearce | first=Fred | title=Land grabbers: Africa's hidden revolution | website=The Guardian | date=19 May 2012 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/may/20/land-grab-ethiopia-saudi-agribusiness | access-date=23 January 2018 | archive-date=3 April 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180403234533/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/may/20/land-grab-ethiopia-saudi-agribusiness | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="farmlandgrab.org 2010">{{cite web | title=King Abdullah's Initiative for Saudi Agricultural Investment Abroad: A way of enhancing Saudi food security | website=farmlandgrab.org | date=3 May 2010 | url=https://farmlandgrab.org/post/view/19060 | access-date=23 January 2018 | archive-date=5 April 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405024201/https://www.farmlandgrab.org/post/view/19060 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="How We Made It in Africa 2012">{{cite web | title=What you should know about Saudi investment in African farmland | website=How We Made It in Africa | date=4 July 2012 | url=https://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/what-you-should-know-about-saudi-investment-in-african-farmland/17985/ | access-date=23 January 2018 | archive-date=8 July 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150708183738/http://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/what-you-should-know-about-saudi-investment-in-african-farmland/17985/ | url-status=live }}</ref>