Day: May 12, 2022

Riyadh, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud received a written message from President Evariste Ndayishimiye of the Republic of Burundi, concerning bilateral relations and ways to support and enhance them in various fields and at all levels.

The message was received by Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs, when he has received here the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Burundi, Albert Shingiro.

At the beginning of the reception, Prince Faisal appreciated the support shown by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Burundi for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the Expo 2030 in Riyadh.

They also discussed the relations between the two friendly countries and ways to enhance them in various fields as well as a number of regional and international issues of common interest.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Riyadh, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia condemned in the strongest terms the treacherous terrorist attack on a security point in North Sinai in the sisterly Arab Republic of Egypt, resulted in the death and injury of a number of security forces soldiers.

The Ministry renewed the Kingdom’s full support for the Republic of Egypt in its intensive efforts to eradicate terrorism and extremism in all its forms and manifestations as well as to dry up its sources of financing, stressing that the Kingdom stands with the government and people of Egypt against all terrorist organizations that are trying to undermine the gains and capabilities of sisterly Egypt.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its sincere condolences and sympathy to the families of the victims, and to the government and people of the fraternal Arab Republic of Egypt, wishing all the injured a speedy recovery and the people of Egypt ongoing security and stability.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Marrakesh, Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, met today with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus, Ioannis Kasoulides.

They met on the sidelines of the ministerial meeting of the international coalition against the terrorist organization (ISIS) in Marrakesh, Kingdom of Morocco.

During the meeting, they discussed bilateral relations between the two friendly countries and ways of supporting and enhancing them to serve common interests, in addition to exchanging views on regional and international issues of common interest.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Marrakesh, Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs chaired the delegation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at the ministerial meeting of the international coalition against the terrorist organization of Daesh, which was held in Marrakesh in the Kingdom of Morocco.

During his speech, the Minister of Foreign Affairs stressed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s appreciation for the significant and tangible role played by anti-Daesh international coalition, which played a decisive role in eliminating its expansion and spread in Iraq and Syria.

He further said, “We should never forget that the threat of this organization still exists, that would require everyone to continue efforts and continuous coordination to eliminate it completely.”

Prince Faisal bin Farhan also affirmed that the Kingdom continues to maintain its firm stance towards supporting the efforts of the international coalition against Daesh, stressing the Kingdom’s keenness on the stability of Iraq and the extension of its influence and sovereignty over its entire territory, and praised the efforts made by Iraq and its continuous coordination with the International Coalition for the elimination of this organization.

He also indicated the Kingdom’s keenness to support reconstruction projects in Iraq, support efforts to stabilize the liberated areas in Syria, and stabilize the security and the economic situation there, pointing out that the Kingdom has established a number of centers, the most important of which is the Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology (Etidal), which works at the regional and international levels to combat extremist messages.

At the conclusion of his speech, Prince Faisal bin Farhan reiterated the Kingdom’s welcome and support for the establishment of the focus group on Africa since its inception to confront the growing threat of the spread of Daesh in the African continent.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Dhahran, The Saudi Arabian Oil Company “Aramco” is exploring further collaboration with Thailand’s national oil company PTT, as it expands its downstream presence in Asia. The two companies signed a memorandum of understanding at a ceremony in Bangkok on May 11.

The companies aim to strengthen cooperation across crude oil sourcing and the marketing of refining and petrochemical products and liquefied natural gas (LNG). Other potential areas of activity include blue and green hydrogen and various clean energy initiatives.

Aramco’s Vice President Sales, Trading and Supply Planning Ibrahim Al-Buainain said: “Today represents an important step forward as we deepen and broaden this relationship to achieve greater cooperation across a wide range of activities, from sourcing crude oil and marketing refining and petrochemical products and LNG, to exploring blue and green hydrogen and progressing other clean energy initiatives.”

PTT President & Chief Executive Officer Auttapol Rerkpiboon said: “Today marks a significant milestone for PTT and Aramco as we look to the future and extend our collaboration beyond conventional energy. It also reflects our ongoing commitment to security of supply as we embrace the energy transition.”

Disathat Panyarachun, PTT Senior Executive Vice President, International Trading Business Unit, said: “PTT and Aramco have built strong ties around the supply and trading of crude oil and other products. Extending our collaboration across the value chain to include emerging decarbonization initiatives is a great opportunity to strengthen our relationship and foster further business growth. This also aligns with our ‘green and clean’ strategy which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Beijing, About 40 people were injured when a passenger plane caught fire at the Jiangbei International Airport in Chongqing, China (southwest China), TASS quoted the airport’s statement.

“All 113 passengers and nine crew members on board the aircraft have been safely evacuated. About 40 people were slightly injured, they were taken to medical facilities where they were treated,” the airport said in a statement on WeiBo.

The incident happened around 08:09 local time – during takeoff, the aircraft skidded off the runway and caught fire.

The aircraft was reportedly damaged as a result.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Riyadh, Under the patronage of Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Al-Khorayef, Vice Minister for Mining Affairs Eng. Khalid Al-Mudaifer inaugurated a discussion panel at Investing in Africa Mining Conference (Mining INDABA 2022) to review investment opportunities and the potential of the infrastructure and legislation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which make it the first global destination for investment in the mining sector.

The panel saw the participation of several representatives of government institutions that participated within the Invest Saudi pavilion, where Jamil Al-Ghamdi from National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NIDLP) provided a general outlook on the targets and achievements of the program, while Haya Al-Qahtani from the Ministry of Investment referred to the role of the Invest Saudi program, reviewing the great potential and solid infrastructure that make the Kingdom one of the best investment environments in the world.

Jawaher Al-Dighither of the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources spoke about the top elements attracting exploration and mining efforts in the Kingdom, while Mustafa Makki of the Saudi Geological Survey highlighted the importance of the data resulting from geological surveys and delivered a presentation on the national geological information base and the top minerals available in the Kingdom. Abdulrahman Al-Bloushi of the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources reviewed promising investment opportunities in the Kingdom, which includes several mining locations in various regions.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through its participation, seeks to highlight its efforts in developing the mining sector that achieved revenues exceeding SAR 727 million (USD 194 million) in 2021 and succeeded in attracting investments worth over SAR 30 billion (USD 8 billion).

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Riyadh, The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) issued the 15th annual report on the insurance market in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The report highlights the performance of the insurance sector, financial results and its contribution to the Kingdom’s gross domestic product for the year 2021.

According to the report, the insurance sector grew by 8.4% in 2021, with total Written Premium SAR 42 billion, whereas Protection and Saving and Property insurance classes achieved notable increase in written premiums.

Furthermore, the report indicated that the contribution of the insurance sector to non-oil GDP decreased slightly by -0.01% to reach 1.91%, and the overall loss ratio increased to reach 83.4% in 2021 compared to 76.7% in 2020.

The Net Loss (after zakat & tax) for the insurance sector reached SAR 47 million in 2021 compared to a Net Profit of SAR 1.38 billion in the previous year. The increase in investment income helped offset the impact of operational losses.

Additionally, the report discussed regulatory developments in the insurance sector, including the amendments of certain articles of the Cooperative Insurance Company Control Law, the issuance of a number of regulations and the development of several insurance products. The report noted a 2% increase in Saudization in 2021 to reach 77%.

The Insurance Market Report 2021 is available at SAMA’s website (https://www.sama.gov.sa/en-us/insurance/pages/publications.aspx).

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Riyadh, The Saudi delegation, headed by Vice Minister of Commerce and CEO of the National Competitiveness Center Dr. Iman Al-Mutairi, currently on a visit to the Netherlands, continues holding meetings and joint work session with the Dutch side to enhance economic partnership and cooperation between the two countries under the Saudi Vision 2030.

The visit agenda included meetings with Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Liesje Schreinemacher, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Commissioner of the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency Dr. Hilde van der Meer, and Mayor of Rotterdam Ahmed Aboutaleb.

The delegates moved to Rotterdam to continue join work sessions hosted by the Foreign Investment Agency with the participation of major Dutch companies, during which both sides focused on promising opportunities and cooperation and partnership aspects in the fields of waste management, e-health, production of hydrogen, water and agriculture.

The delegates concluded the visit today with a field tour along with Director of the International Affairs at Rotterdam Port René van der Plas to review that Dutch experiment in the fields of port planning and development and their role in facilitating the commercial activities, increasing the efficincy of logistic services, in addition to checking on the vocational training academy affiliated with the port.

The Saudi delegation includes leaders from the ministries of energy, investment, and environment, water and agriculture, Saudi Ports Authority, General Authority for Foreign Trade, Technical and Vocational Training Corporation, the National Competitiveness Center, Jeddah Islamic Port, and Federation of Saudi Chambers, in addition to representatives of top national companies, such as: Saudi Aramco, SABIC, Saudi Investment Recycling Company (SIRC).

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Aden, King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) provided today the offices of the Yemeni Ministry of Health in a number of directorates in Aden Governorate, Yemen, with medicines and various medical supplies, in cooperation with the National Drug Supply Program.

This comes within the framework of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s efforts, represented by the KSrelief, to provide medical support to hospitals and health centers in the Republic of Yemen.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Rabat, The Smart Cities Week 2022 (SWC’22), organized by the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) with the participation of the International University of Rabat, and in cooperation with many international partners, experts and researchers, was kicked off here today.

SWC’22 aims at highlighting the importance of modern technology services and applications, to contribute to the building sustainable, inclusive and prosperous smart cities and urban communities.

It will be based on a hybrid mode (virtual and in-person events).

ICESCO is participating in this event to highlight the importance of shifting toward smart, sustainable, and resilient cities, to preserve the environment and ensure the right of future generations to a better future, and to introduce its future programs and action plans to enhance the involvement of its member states in this new vision.

SWC’22 agenda includes organizing conferences, symposia, and training workshops while allowing engineering and Ph.D. students and startups to showcase their smart cities related projects and innovations.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Riyadh, The General Directorate of Prisons will launch a remote visit service for inmates with first-degree relatives. The remote visits will be conducted via video communication technology by both sides inside prison headquarters in the regions of Riyadh, Makkah, Jazan, and the Eastern Region as well from 09:00 am until 11:30 am during the official working days in its first stage.

The service can be obtained through the Absher platform for individuals after logging in and booking an appointment.

Source: Saudi Press Agency