One of the reasons why Saudi Arabia has found itself in fiscal and budgetary dire straits in recent years, is that as a result of the plunge in oil prices in recent years, the government has been unable to keep paying the thousands of local and foreign workers who are (or were) employed on any number of local infrastructure and development projects. However, with the Aramco IPO also suddenly on the rocks even as the country's reserves continue to shrink and deficits grow, the Gulf kingdom appears to have come up with a radical solution to its structural problems, when on Wednesday Saudi Arabia became the first nation in the world to grant a robot citizenship. 

The outspoken humanoid robot called Sophia, flown in from Hong Kong, was granted Saudi citizenship at the Future Investment Initiative, a major investment conference hosted by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) that aims to highlight the Kingdom's ambitious Vision 2030 plan for the future. 

"We have a little announcement. We just learnt, Sophia; I hope you are listening to me, you have been awarded the first Saudi citizenship for a robot," said panel moderator Andrew Ross Sorkin of CNBC's "Squawk Box" and the NYT.