JEDDAH: Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal has called for increased investment in education in order to develop the skills of Saudis and transform the Kingdom into a first world country.
The governor was speaking at a ceremony marking Effat College’s conversion into a university on Sunday night. The ceremony was attended by Prince Turki Al-Faisal, Princess Lulwa Al-Faisal, and a number of royal family members and businessmen.
Prince Khaled highlighted the need to look at the current condition of the Kingdom and called for dealing positively with the changes that are currently taking place in the country.
A fund-raising campaign for Effat University was announced on the occasion.
Hussein Shobokshi, a Saudi businessman and columnist, said donors would be put into three categories according to how much they donate. The golden list will include people who donate SR10 million, the silver list will include those who give SR5 million, and the bronze list would include donors who give SR2 million. Individuals who give SR1 million would be included in the university’s honorable council; people who donate less than SR1 million would be listed as Friends of Effat.
Total donations received by the end of the evening reached SR41.5 million. Prince Khaled honored all who have supported Effat from its start as a college.
The event also marked signing of a memorandum of understanding between Effat University and King Faisal University to strengthen ties of collaboration, including the exchange or loan of faculty, a student exchange program and cooperation in research.
