THUWAL: Malaysian Prime Minister Muhammad Najib Abdul Razak was the guest of honor at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Thuwal, north of Jeddah on Thursday.
He watched a visual presentation on the different phases of constructing the campus, which covers an area of 700,000 square meters and includes buildings for the departments of engineering and sciences and centers for applied research.
The premier and his entourage visited the university library, which contains more than 15,000 printed and digital books on sciences, technology and engineering.
At the department of applied mathematics and computer sciences, the premier was given a briefing on the academic programs and teaching methods there.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah opened the university on Sept. 23, 2009 in the presence of several heads of state, global business leaders, Nobel laureates and celebrated academics.
In his opening address, King Abdullah said the 21st-century SR10 billion university promises to usher in another age of Arab scientific inquiry.
The king went on to declare that the institution will not just be a new “House of Wisdom” but a “beacon of tolerance” in a world under threat from extremists.
