JEDDAH, 7 April 2008 — The research development program of King Saud University (KSU) in Riyadh has received tremendous support from businessmen and philanthropists, paving the way for launching academic chairs for various important topics.
The Chair on Advanced Industrial Technology at the College of Engineering was the latest of these projects. Named after Princess Fatima bint Hachim Al-Najriss, the new chair was jointly opened yesterday by Dr. Abdullah Al-Othman, KSU’s president, and Prince Abdullah ibn Musaed.
Al-Othman thanked Princess Fatima for financing the chair. “This initiative comes in strong support of the Research Chairs program launched recently by KSU under the label, Societal Participation To Build An Information Society,” he said.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah donated SR12 million to support research in nanotechnology at the university while Crown Prince Sultan funded a chair for contemporary Islamic studies. Al-Othman said the research program would make King Saud University No. 1 in the Islamic world in five years and among the best 100 universities in the world in 10 years.
Prince Abdullah said the research chair program at KSU would help the Kingdom achieve international standing in the fields of excellence, creativity, research, and development in support of a national economy based on knowledge. It also involves the university in participating in durable development.
In April last year, KSU announced plans to launch a major research and development program with the support of businessmen. Individuals have been requested to contribute SR2 million in the first year and SR1 million annually for three or more years while companies and banks have been asked to contribute SR4 million in the first year and SR2 million annually for three or more years.
The Prince Sultan Chair at Islamic Studies Department of the university’s Faculty of Education will encourage creative thinking and support applied Islamic studies. It will cooperate and coordinate with scientific societies and Shariah organizations and scholars within the Kingdom and abroad in the field of studies and research. Among the chair’s main objectives is the preparation of an encyclopedia (both in print and electronic form) in order to highlight the moderateness of Islam.
A new chair for social development research will be opened today at the university. It will be named after the King Abdullah Foundation for Housing Development. Businessman Dr. Nasser Al-Rasheed has donated SR21 million to establish two chairs for research on heart diseases and eye diseases.
The university’s research development program comes after the government announced its plan to spend over SR32 billion ($8.6 billion) on research and development as part of a 20-year National Science and Technology Plan.
