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RIYADH: The Kingdom’s General Directorate of Narcotics Control arrested four citizens found in possession of 63,443 amphetamine pills in the Eastern Region, Saudi Press Agency reported on Monday.
The pills had an estimated street value ranging from $630,000 to $1.8 million, according to figures published in the International Addiction Review journal.
The four have been referred to the Public Prosecution.
RIYADH: The Saudi Fashion Commission will launch a Ramadan pop-up on April 5 featuring brands from over 160 local designers, Saudi Press Agency reported.
The four-day event will feature curated pop-up shops that reflect Saudi Arabia’s cultural diversity.
CEO Burak Cakmak said the initiative is part of the commission's efforts to support young Saudi designers by promoting their work to local and international consumers.
RIYADH: Red Sea Global has organized a series of local and regional meetings highlighting projects being developed along the Kingdom’s Red Sea coast, as well as partnership opportunities with the company, Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday.
The first regional meeting, held in Doha, reviewed details of the Saudi sustainable tourism development company’s projects and shed light on investment opportunities available to regional partners. It attracted over 100 businesses.
Red Sea Global announced that contracts worth SR27 billion ($7.2 billion) and SR13 billion were awarded for its projects The Red Sea and Amaala this year. Other contracts worth about SR25 billion are also being sought by the company.
In 2023, 70 percent of existing contracts were awarded to Saudi companies.
Mohammed Al-Fardan, executive director of procurement at Red Sea Global, said that expanding partnerships at the local and international levels is a critical step in developing new relationships with Saudi Arabia’s private sector.
Ben Edwards, group head of cost, commercial and procurement, highlighted opportunities in construction work for Red Sea Global destinations, including building infrastructure, marine and civil engineering, plumbing and furnishing.
Edwards said that the company is also looking for partners with global experience in tourism, such as food and beverages and other hospitality services.
The Red Sea project is set to open its first three resorts this year, and its Red Sea International Airport is nearing the first phase of completion.
JEDDAH: The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has taken first place in the excellent corporate performance category at the Madinah Award Foundation’s ceremony.
The event, which was held at Taibah University’s Conference Hall on Wednesday, was attended by Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman, who is also chairman of the foundation’s board of trustees, and Hajj and Umrah Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah.
The ministry said in a press statement that the award was the result of its efforts in supporting innovation in institutional performance and preparing guides for Hajj and Umrah operations, which included follow-up procedures to achieve performance indicators.
It also stressed its digital transformation, the spreading awareness of responsibility, integrity, justice and transparency, and its encouragement of employees to participate in community activities and volunteer work.
Some 26 entities had applied for the award for the best government-performing organization.
Al-Rabiah expressed his appreciation to Prince Faisal for organizing the award, which he said aimed to encourage departments to achieve excellence.
He added that the ministry would not have achieved the distinction had it not been for the directives of its leadership which sought to help worshippers on their journeys to the holy places.
RIYADH: For the entire month of Ramadan, local shops are bringing heritage crafts to Al-Nada Garden and Al-Hezam Park in Riyadh for the Ramadan District event.
Vibrant decorations welcome visitors to Al-Nada Garden to live out a unique cultural experience and get a taste of authentic Saudi traditions.
Two shops specialize in weaving — a Sadu shop featuring colorful, hand-embroidered goods, and a wicker shop, offering a variety of accessories.
In 2020, wicker weaver Razan Jaber and Sadu weaver Aisha Fakhaihi took training courses with the Herfa Organization as part of an initiative aimed at preserving heritage crafts through workshops and events.
“I have been practicing Sadu for three years now, and I hope to create new things in the future. Herfa has helped me a lot with personal development and my hobby,” Fakhaihi said.
“The event has been nice. Kids are getting exposure to new things, and they are curious about where these things come from. It has been beautiful,” Jaber said.
Saudi psychologist Ahmed Al-Shehri was taking his daily stroll when the rosary shop caught his eye.
“I was taking my daily walk when I came across a rosary shop that grabbed my attention. It was great seeing a young Saudi man creating rosaries, which is not usually typical,” he said.
“I also noticed that there are other shops with traditional ways of handmaking crafts such as the Sadu and wicker weaving. Where I’m from, weaving is very well known, and seeing that the new generation and kids are getting to know what it is makes this a beautiful initiative,” Al-Shehri said.
Visitors are spoiled for choice with all the food and refreshment options from Saudi-owned home kitchen Tuwaiq Kitchen and the Black Stamp coffee shop, which offers a special hibiscus tea for Ramadan.
Operated by Saudi women, Tuwaiq Kitchen has an exclusive menu for the month of Ramadan filled with traditional dishes such as the Saudi national dish jareesh and basboosa for dessert.
Ramadan District is one of the events under Ramadan Season, a series of cultural experiences organized by the Saudi Ministry of Culture across Riyadh, Jeddah and Makkah.
The event will take place for 30 days during the holy month, from 9:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. in Al-Nada Garden and Al-Hezam Park.
ROME: The first direct flight between Saudi Arabia and Venice, Italy’s most popular tourist destination, took place on Wednesday.
Flights with low-cost Hungarian airline Wizz Air between the historical lagoon city and Saudi Arabia’s second-largest city Jeddah will be twice a week, operating all year round.
The new direct flights follow a memorandum of understanding that Wizz Air signed with the Saudi Investment Ministry aimed at enhancing the development of the Kingdom’s tourism sector in line with the Vision 2030 reform program.
Wizz Air launched other direct flights between Italian and Saudi cities in recent months — including from Rome to Dammam and Riyadh, and from Milan to Jeddah — as part of 23 new routes from Europe to the Kingdom.
The departure of the first Venice-Jeddah flight was saluted with a ceremony at Marco Polo Airport in Venice attended by a representative of the mayor.
Tamara Nikiforova, corporate communication manager at Wizz Air Malta, said: “We are happy to continue our expansion into Saudi Arabia from Italy, which began only a few months ago and has already proved to be a success.”
She added: “This new and unique connection to Jeddah will allow all passengers departing from Venice Marco Polo Airport to benefit from the immense historical, artistic and cultural heritage this city offers.”
