RIYADH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah issued a royal decree upgrading Riyadh’s Yamamah College into a private university, said Higher Education Minister Khaled Al-Anqari in statement to the Saudi Press Agency yesterday.
The royal decree also included the launch of three new government colleges. One of the colleges will be established in Khaibar in Madinah province under Taibah University, and two in Khulais and Kamil in Makkah province under King Abdulaziz University.
“The royal order endorsed decisions made by the 50th session of the Council of Higher Education. The decisions include the restructuring of colleges and various university faculties catering to the needs of the Kingdom’s employment market,” Al-Anqari said.
With the restructuring, the number of Saudi colleges rose from 98 to 100, the minister said.
“The royal order realizes the goal of taking higher education to all provinces and administrative divisions in the Kingdom. It will also offer better education to Saudi citizens besides fulfilling the futuristic strategy of the Kingdom’s higher education,” Al-Anqari said.
With this order, new deanships and research centers are to be launched. This includes a development institute and consultancy services at Princess Nourah University, a business pioneering center at King Saud University, a center for environmental studies and research at Jizan University, a deanship for quality and evaluation at Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University, a deanship for quality at Taiba University, and a deanship for social services and further education at Northern Border University.
