Kingdom prioritizes shift to knowledge-based economy

A report recently released by the Oxford Business group has indicated that the education budget accounted for the second largest expenditure for the Saudi government, accounting for more than a quarter of overall spending in 2012.
The report, entitled “Saudi Arabia 2013”, maintained that the Kingdom has the largest education market in the region, taking into consideration its population size and per capita expenditure on human resources in the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC).
Annual expenditures increased substantially from SR150 billion in 2011 to SR169 billion the following year, with a further rise to SR204 billion for 2013, the report highlighted.
Complementing these monetary commitments are a host of monitoring, evaluation, reform and other improvement programs implemented over the years to boost the capabilities and expectations of the nation’s graduates.
The report underlined that key to delivering on the agenda are the abilities of its population and the knowledge of its future leaders to successfully navigate from a resource based, export oriented economy to a more diversified one with the value addition.
It further asserted that as the demand for quality education is growing, the government has, so far, dedicated substantial resources to the sector.
The study further indicated that the trend is consistent with the country’s long-term economic development plans, which place an emphasis on high-tech industries.
The report highlighted that the Kingdom is financially motivated in striving to diversify its economy beyond the extraction of oil and gas to become a knowledge based society.
The government also established Princess Nora bint Abdulrahman University, the largest women-only university in May 2011 to boost higher education for females. The university is composed of 32 campuses across Riyadh and a new library capable of holding 4.5 million volumes.