RIYADH: Riyadh Gov. Prince Faisal bin Bandar patronized a graduation ceremony at the Arab East College recently. In his speech, he noted the important role of academic institutions in students’ life, and also opened the new college buildings which have been built in anticipation of the increasing number of students expected in the coming years.

Abdullah bin Mohammed Al-Faisal, Arab East Colleges’ faculty general supervisor, thanked the governor for finding time to be present on the occasion, which he said was a "milestone in the students’ life.”

He also lauded the unlimited support extended by the Saudi government headed by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman. "The government has not spared any effort to extend a helping hand to us whenever we needed something,” he said.

He noted that the Saudi leadership has viewed education as key to the Kingdom’s national development, as shown by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Scholarship Program which was initiated in 2005.

“Under the program, qualified Saudi students are sent abroad to study and are accompanied by their guardians at the expense of the government,” he said.

After their graduation, they come back to the Kingdom and put into practice what they have learned as they join the labor force by working in the public sector.

During the graduation ceremony, a documentary film about the faculty as well as the college buildings was also shown.