“The World Bank’s selection of the KAU to head the research team reasserts the university’s pioneering role in the field of climate change in the Kingdom and across the Arab world in general,” said Abdul Rahman Obaid Alyoubi, KAU’s acting president, here on Saturday.

While referring to the visit of a World Bank’s delegation to the KAU recently, Alyoubi said the task given by the World Bank to the university was an honor for all of us.

The World Bank’s delegation included Dorte Verner, the bank’s senior economist and climate change coordinator for sustainable development for the Middle East and North Africa, and Ian Noble, a leading climate change specialist.

The delegation also met with Adnan Hamza Zahed, KAU’s vice president; Abdul Rahman Khalaf Al-Khalaf, dean of the College of Meteorology; and Mansour Al-Mazroui, CECCR’s director. The World Bank’s delegation also attended a presentation on KAU’s research capabilities.

“The World Bank’s praise was clear indication of the progress made by the university under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah,” said Zahed.

“The selection of this center by the World Bank is a kind of international recognition because the CECCR is a young institution established only a year ago,” said Al-Mazroui. “The CECCR and its staff will exert all possible efforts to satisfy the expectations of the World Bank, while the center has a vision to work closely with the World Bank and other international organizations in future.”

The CECCR, he said, specializes in studies of different aspects of climate and climate change in Arabian Peninsula.

“We are also striving to develop a detailed climate data base for Saudi Arabia that can be used to perform applications-oriented studies,” said the CECCR chief.