Crown Prince Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, on Monday urged government departments to mobilize resources to serve pilgrims in line with directives issued by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.

He made this comment while presiding over the weekly Cabinet meeting at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah. The meeting reviewed plans made by different ministries and agencies for Haj, which is scheduled to begin Sunday.

Abdul Aziz Khoja, minister of Culture and Information, said the Cabinet welcomed the visit of interim Egyptian President Adly Mansour to Saudi Arabia. He highlighted the deep-rooted relations between the two countries and their keenness to strengthen ties in various sectors.

The Council of Ministers hailed the inauguration of the headquarters of the Gulf Monetary Council in Riyadh, stressing that King Abdullah’s support for the event comes as confirmation of the Kingdom’s keenness and commitment to bolstering cooperation and integration among the GCC states.

The Cabinet expressed its hope that 80 years of diplomatic relations would take Saudi-Italian ties to new heights.

“The Cabinet also endorsed the Kingdom's subscription to the shares allocated to it under the decision made by the Board of Governors of the International Finance Corporation (IFC),” said Khoja.

The Cabinet appointed Nasser bin Hadi Al-Qahtani, deputy governor of the Regulatory Authority of Electricity and Cogeneration for Regulatory Affairs, a member of the governing council of the National Water Company and Zamil bin Abbas Abu Zinadah and Saad bin Abdul Rahman Al-Bazai to the Board of Directors of the General Authority for Audio and Visual Media for a period of three years.

It also appointed Abdullah bin Delim Al-Qahtani undersecretary of Najran Region; Fahd bin Abdul Rahman Al-Jalajl undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for consumer affairs; Fahd bin Ahmed Abu Humaid undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for technical affairs; Abdullah bin Suleiman Brickett deputy governor for technical affairs and projects at the Saline Water Conversion Corporation; and Mishaal bin Abdullah Al-Shethri director general of the Agriculture Minister’s office.