- RIYADH: Higher Education Minister Khaled Al-Anqari said Tuesday that government spending on research has increased substantially in recent years.
- "Allocation for research increased from 0.25 percent of the gross domestic product to 1.1 percent," the minister told a scientific research forum.
Al-Anqari commended the private sector's support to research projects at the Kingdom's universities. "There is a strong relation between the Saudi universities and private organizations, especially those companies that benefit from research work," he said.
He called for greater efforts to strengthen scientific research. "Our research standard should reach global levels," he said. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has ordered the opening of new research centers at the Kingdom's universities.
The forum was organized by Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University in Riyadh.
