JEDDAH: Saudi students are to undergo a two-year course at the newly established Saudi Electronics & Home Appliances Institute (SEHAI) in Riyadh. An overview of the curriculum, instruction, scholarship procedure and facilities at the institute was given at a two-day meeting of the Saudi and Japanese working groups of SEHAI, which ended at the Jeddah InterContinental Hotel on Sunday.
Each year, a maximum of 160 fresh Saudi high school graduates will be enrolled at the institute, which is to open on Sept. 26. The SEHAI-Saudi Working Group (SWG) is responsible for the management of the institute, while its Japanese counterpart will provide academic materials, syllabi and curriculum, and organize visits of Japanese specialists as well as other necessary support for the first three years. Three Japanese specialists are already on their way to the Kingdom. SWG consists of local distributors of electronics and home appliance products while the Japanese Working Group has the participation of manufacturers of major Japanese products through the Japanese government.
“The institute has been set up in cooperation with the Technical & Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC). The governments and private sectors of both countries are supporting the institute project,” Salim H. Al-Asmarei, director of Saudi Japanese Automobile High Institute in Jeddah and head of the SEHAI-SWG, told Arab News. Al-Asmarei, who will be supervising the institute’s operations, added: “The project is aimed at contributing to the development of skills of our young Saudis in industry and their advancement, and also promote employment.” Twelve Japanese experts took part in the meeting, organized by Japan Water Desk, Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Branch of Japan Cooperation Center for the Middle East (JCCME). The Nippon Engineering College of Hachioji offers the academic and teaching know-how for the institute. Students graduating from the institute will be given a diploma, Kenichi Sawaguchi, project leader of JCCME’s SEHAI project team, said.
The institute will run three courses — in electronics, air conditioner and home appliances, and computer and office equipment. There will be an intensive English language course, as lectures will all be in English. An added feature is that an advanced system of imparting education through the Internet with a direct communication link between the Kingdom and Japan is being introduced.
— With input from Sultan Al-Tamimi
