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RIYADH: The Fashion Commission has announced a range of new initiatives to provide increased support for the Kingdom’s designers and greater opportunities to promote their work to a global audience.
At its inaugural Fashion Strategy Roadshow on Wednesday, the organization, which falls under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, unveiled plans to create a product development studio for use by designers, as well as four partnership deals with leading industry players.
CEO Burak Çakmak said: “Over the last two years, the Saudi fashion sector has made great progress. From the launch of our yearlong mentoring program — Saudi 100 Brands — to Fashion Futures, our annual conference and Elevate — our female leadership program — we have been maximizing opportunities for local talent.
“Building a product development studio in Riyadh is a major step forward toward making Saudi a thriving fashion center.”
Located at the Misk City Hub, the 1,000-square-meter facility will provide designers and students with world-class product development support, technology and equipment, including a 3D knitting machine, laser cutting machine, leather stitching and industrial sewing machines and fabric digital printers.
The studio will also have an extensive range of kit for jewelry making, including a Formlab 3D printer and a die cast metal stamping machine.
Princess Reema bint Bandar, who sits on the commission’s board, said: “This next generation of fashion designers and their innovative designs are absolutely enchanting. Their creative energy is evident, their talent is apparent and their vision is a sign of great things to come.
“Over 1,300 people applied to participate in the Saudi 100 Brands program, which is an indication of the vast promise of this industry,” she said.
“As Saudi opens up to the world, fashion will help us tell our story of change and the transformational impact of Vision 2030.”
As part of its ongoing efforts to support the fashion industry, the commission also signed four partnership deals, including ones with Mukatafa, an organization that seeks to increase collaboration between the private and public sectors, and multichannel retailer Kamal Osama Jamjoom Group.
1,000-square-meter facility will provide designers and students with world-class product development support, technology and equipment, including a 3D knitting machine, laser cutting machine, leather stitching and industrial sewing machines and fabric digital printers.
The two others were with Middle East jewelry giant L’azurde in a bid to boost the exposure of local brands, and marketing firm Sela, with the aim of championing the Kingdom’s designers via the Saudi 100 Brands program and providing them with retail space during the high season of Ramadan.
Ammar Bogari, the commission’s general manager for strategy and business development, said: “Fashion isn’t only what we wear. Fashion is much broader than that. Fashion is culture. Fashion is economy. Fashion is environment and soft power.”
He added that thanks to Vision 2030, more than half of the people working in fashion in the Kingdom were women and Saudis held two-thirds of all jobs within the core sector.
Under the Vision initiative, the commission has sought to promote education and creativity in the fashion industry, as well as supporting product development and increasing localization of the manufacturing and supply chain.
It also recently announced a partnership with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology to create greater opportunities for research and development.
Through the Saudi 100 Brands program, the commission has sought to increase the global exposure of Saudi fashion by exhibiting at New York and Milan Fashion Weeks.
Saudi designer Tima Abid, whose creations are included in the program, told Arab News the commission was having a huge and “beautiful” impact on the industry.
“I think the new strategies will give great opportunities to all the designers for their creativity to reach (global markets) in a form that pleases … and most importantly it will be an honorable interface for our country,” she said.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is astonished by accusations that the Kingdom is siding with Russia in its war with Ukraine, Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman said on Sunday.
Retweeting a Twitter post by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanking Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for supporting Ukraine’s territorial integrity and announcing Saudi aid to the country, Prince Khalid said it was telling that “these false accusations did not come from the Ukrainian government.”
The minister said that some were accusing the Kingdom of standing with Russia despite the fact that the decision taken by OPEC+ on Oct.5 to cut production by 2 million barrels per day was unanimous and “due to purely economic reasons.”
“Iran is also a member of OPEC, does this mean that the Kingdom is standing with Iran as well?” the minister asked.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is committed to tackling climate change, and has launched several initiatives to confront this challenge, a Shoura Council member has confirmed. Raedah Abunayyan stressed the importance of the Saudi Green Initiative and the Middle East Green Initiative, and noted the benefit of reusing carbon and converting it into industrial fuels, as well as the use of hydrogen, solar, wind and others as sources of renewable energy. “Climate change is one of the most serious threats facing the world today. Parliamentarians can and should play a crucial role in addressing this challenge alongside their respective governments,” Abunayyan said at the 145th Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly in Rwanda. She added that Saudi Arabia aims to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2060, and that half of its energy will come from renewables by 2030. “The Saudi Green Initiative aims to plant 10 billion trees in the Kingdom and 50 billion trees in the region, rehabilitating 40 million hectares of degraded land in the Kingdom,” she said, adding that the country is “establishing a $10 billion fund to support sustainability.” Abunayyan said: “Technological innovation through renewable energy, especially in hydrogen and carbon capture, is a priority to the Kingdom. “Carbon energy is being produced and consumed more efficiently with new green energy technology.” She added: “Saudi Arabia believes in … greater alignment and more partnership between global entities and organizations to effect lasting change in protecting the environment. “To date, the Saudi Fund for Development has financed several sustainability projects and provided 35 loans to finance renewable energy projects in 23 countries totaling $1.3 billion.”
PARIS: Saudi Arabia is taking part in the 215th session of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
The Kingdom’s delegation for the session, which runs until Oct. 19 in Paris, includes Princess Haifa bint Abdulaziz Al-Mogrin, Saudi’s permanent representative to UNESCO and the chairwoman of the organization’s programs and external relations committee; Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al-Blaihed, secretary-general of the Saudi National Committee for Education, Culture and Science; and experts from the ministries of culture and education and the Human Rights Commission.
The Kingdom’s speech at the opening session focused on its endeavor to achieve sustainable development and the ambitious goals of Saudi Vision 2030.
Saudi Arabia stressed its support for all efforts aimed at developing mechanisms for knowledge exchange, setting national policies and strategic plans, encouraging investment, and supporting culture.
The Kingdom also highlighted how it is addressing the climate crisis through its Middle East Green Initiative, which aims to enhance cooperation in the region and supports Saudi Arabia’s ambition to become a leader in the field of sustainability at a global level.
Saudi Arabia’s participation in the session is part of its efforts to support culture, education and science — led by Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan.
RIYADH: The Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen handed over the Aden General Hospital project in the governorate to the project’s operating company, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Saturday.
In continuation of the hospital’s procedures, the contract for its operation and management was signed in mid-August, in the presence of the director of the SDRPY’s office in Aden, Ahmed Madkhali, Director of the General Administration of Medical Projects for Al-Saad Group for Investment and Development Khaled Al-Dabash, and the Director of the Facilities Portfolio in the program, Mushabab Al-Qahtani.
Madkhali said the operating company for Aden General Hospital is Al-Saad Group for Investment and Development, and it is also the operator of Al-Salam Saudi Hospital in Saada, and the Saudi Hospital in Hajjah.
Madkhali added that from the first moment after signing a contract to operate and manage Aden General Hospital, the company operating the project set out to start preparing, in cooperation and coordination with the competent authorities, in addition to contracting with the local teams to operate the hospital.
The two hospitals are among the largest projects established and operated by the Kingdom with medical teams that provide the best treatment and medical services, which helped facilitate the procedures for operating and managing Aden General Hospital, he said, adding that in the coming period, Yemeni citizens in various governorates will benefit from it.
Al-Dabash said that Aden General Hospital was equipped with the latest medical devices, including CT scans, magnetic and ultrasound scans, and cardiac catheterization, and hoped that the hospital would become a medical icon to be added to the chain of Saudi development support in Yemen, through SDRPY.
Al-Qahtani said the project contains 14 specific clinics, in addition to a heart center, eye, pediatric, dermatology, dental, ear and nose, larynx, orthopedic, internal medicine, reproductive health, and endoscopy and physiotherapy clinics.
Dr. Khaled Mousa, a consultant cardiologist, said: "Aden General Hospital was established as a gift from the Kingdom to the Yemeni people, and was funded by the Saudi Fund for Development, and it works to follow up its work, operate and manage the Saudi Program for Development and Reconstruction of Yemen, and it will provide a high-level service to Yemenis, especially since the hospital operating group is a pioneer in the field of medical work.”
Nawaf Tawfeq Al-Duaij is the executive director of administrative affairs at the Royal Commission for AlUla, a position he took up in May 2019.
The Royal Commission for AlUla was established in July 2017 to preserve and develop the 2,000-year-old historical archaeological site of AlUla in north-western Saudi Arabia.
Al-Duaij is responsible for synchronizing administrative and programming departments, making cross-departmental processes more effective, and building personnel relations.
He has established companies in both the Royal Commission for AlUla and the Public Investment Fund, with an estimated capital of SR2 billion ($532 million).
Al-Duaij has also held two positions in AlUla Development Co. — adviser to the CEO and interim chief of shared services.
Before joining the Royal Commission for AlUla, Al-Duaij worked briefly as an administration affairs associate director with the Red Sea Development Co. where he helped develop the KPIs of the administrative affairs department.
He previously worked as an administrative affairs manager at the delivery and rapid intervention center, affiliated with the Council of Economic and Development Affairs, helping to achieve the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 by managing a number of Saudi “seasons” from planning through to implementation.
In 2016, Al-Duaij worked as director of administrative affairs at the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee. He has also worked at Accenture, an Irish-American professional services company based in Dublin, specializing in information technology services and consulting, and as an administrative manager at the private office of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
He graduated from King Abdulaziz University with a bachelor’s degree in public administration and later obtained a master’s degree in public administration from the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government in Dubai.