Article 27 of the Saudi Chambers of Commerce Law

This article sets out the Secretary General's position in the chamber and the limits of his or her contract.

Paragraph 1: appointment and role

• The Secretary General is appointed by the chamber's board of directors.
• He or she is chosen from persons with experience, competence and academic qualifications, and the Implementing Regulations set the criteria for this.
• He or she works full-time and is responsible for the running of the chamber's administrative and financial affairs.
• He or she has the right to attend board meetings other than closed meetings, without the right to vote.

Paragraph 2: closed meetings

• The board may hold closed meetings to discuss the Secretary General's performance, which the Secretary General does not attend, under the exception in paragraph 1.

Paragraph 3: length of the contract

• When first appointed, the Secretary General's contract may not exceed the term of the board that appointed him or her by more than one year.
• The following board may renew the contract, for a period not exceeding one year of the new board's term.
• All of this is without prejudice to the provisions of the Labor Law, meaning these limits do not override what the Labor Law provides.

The purpose of the term limit is that a new board is not bound by a long contract concluded by a previous board, while allowing a transition period of no more than one year.

The article is linked to Article 28, which lists the Secretary General's duties, including supervising executive work, implementing the board's decisions, preparing the draft budget, annual report and final accounts, and hiring the chamber's staff. For any question about the Secretary General's contract, consult a lawyer specializing in commercial and corporate matters.