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February 16, 2007 |
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THE OVERALL EXPENSES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT AMOUNTS TO NINE THOUSAND MILLION SAUDI RIYALS AND THE PROJECT WILL BE IMPLEMENTED OVER SIX YEARS. THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION: THE PROJECT MEETS THE HOPES AND ASPIRATIONS OF SAUDI CITIZENS. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz chaired the Cabinet's session at Al Yamamah palace in Riyadh. At the outset of the session, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques briefed the Cabinet on meetings and contacts which he held over the previous days on regional and international issues. The Monarch welcomed the visit paid to the kingdom by Russia's President Vladimir Putin, commending the strategic importance of Saudi Russian relations and joint cooperation and action between the two friendly countries in the interest of bilateral relations, regional issues and world economy. In a statement to Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, the Minister of Culture and Information Iyad Bin Amin Madani said that the Cabinet appreciated the successful results of the meeting of Palestinian leaders in the sanctuary of the grand mosque in Makkah in response to the King's blessed call. The Cabinet expressed its confidence that Makkah agreement reached by Palestinian leaders on their own free and independent will; overwhelming Palestinian popular desire for commitment to the agreement; and Palestinian, Arab, Islamic and international positive, understanding and welcoming reactions will provide strong incentives to lifting the suffering of the Palestinian people, to advancing peace process and to compelling Israel to accept the international legitimacy. The Minister of Culture and Information said the Cabinet then continued the discussion of the domestic agenda and issued the following decisions: First: The Council reviewed the minutes of the ministerial committee formed under the gracious directives of the King and headed by Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General and the membership of a number of ministers to study the project presented to the council by the Minister of Education under the title of "King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz Project for the Development of Public Education." The Council reviewed and adopted the recommendations with which the ministerial committee concluded. Most important of these recommendations are: 1. Objectives, programs, execution procedures, and administration are appropriate and in accord with King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz project for the Development of Public Education. 2. The overall expenses for the implementation of the project amounts to nine thousand million Saudi Riyals. 3. The period of implementation is set for six years, starting at the date of the approval of the project. 4. The importance of creating standards measuring the efficiency of the educational process. 5. There has to be coordination between the ministry of education and the ministry of finance for the inclusion of the project's budget into that of the ministry of education. 6. An annual report is to be submitted to the king regarding the implementation of the project. It is worth noting that the project for the development of public education consists of four main programs: 1. Development of the educational curricula. 2. Re-training and qualifying teachers. 3. Improvement of the educational environment 4. Non-curricula activities. The Cabinet approved the draft bill of the general commission for food and drug. The main purpose of the commission is to organize the control on and test of food and drug according to obligatory standards for food and drug. The commission is assigned to illuminate food and drug consumers. Accordingly all functions once run by other government bodies in the field of food and drug tests and safety for human and animal should be transferred to the commission. This system nullifies whatever regulations contradicting it. It will be valid after 90 days of its publication in the official gazette. The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Foreign Affairs or his Deputy to discuss with the Kenyan side a draft general agreement for cooperation between the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the government of the Republic of Kenya, sign it and forward the final version for further authentication. The Cabinet approved the final accounts of the Saudi Development Fund for the fiscal year 1424 - 1425 H. The Cabinet authorized the minister of health or his deputy to discuss with the Spanish side a draft memorandum of understanding for cooperation between the ministry of health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Spain, sign it and forward the final version for further authentication. The Cabinet endorsed the memorandum of understanding for cooperation between the ministry of social affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the ministry of social affairs and labor of the Republic of Yemen, which was signed in the Yemeni city of Al-Mukalla on June 2, 2006. The Cabinet reviewed the progress of the work to implement elementary health care projects financed by the ministry of health from the surplus of the two fiscal years 1424 - 1425 H and 1425 - 1426 H., totaling 860 health projects covering the following parts of the kingdom: Makkah, Madinah, Riyadh, Qassim, Eastern Region, Assir, Tabuk, Hail, Northern Borders, Jazan, Najran, Al Baha and Al Jouf. The Cabinet also reviewed the progress of the work to implement projects relating to combating the threats of dengue fever in Jeddah province in which a number of government bodies took part, including the ministry of health, ministry of agriculture, and Jeddah province municipality. Among the prominent decisions taken in this regard were the formation of a central committee to combat the epidemic, training a number of doctors in this field, formation of a crisis management department to deal with emergencies of this disease, dedication of door-to-door awareness campaign, and completion of sewage discharge projects and other measures. To this concern, the Monarch instructed prompt work to follow-up and complete those projects. The Cabinet approved appointment of Ahmed Bin Mohammed Bin Ali Al-Thaqafi as director general of technical affairs, 15th rank, at the ministry of interior; Dr. Khaled Ibn Abdul Aziz Bin Mousa Al-Tayyash as architectural consultant engineer, 14th rank, at the presidency of the national guard; Ali Bin Fahd Bin Mohammed Al-Jasser as director general of education in Riyadh region, girls education, 14th rank, at the ministry of education; and Saadoun Bin Saad Bin Saadoun Al Safi Al-Dousari as director general of administrative and financial affairs, 14th rank, at the ministry of culture and information. The Minister of Education Dr Abdullah bin Salih Al-Obaid expressed his best thanks to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz for the Cabinet's approval of "King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz Project for the Development of Public Education." The Minister also thanked Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General for the achievement of the project at the ministerial committee formed by the Cabinet for studying the project. In a statement to Saudi Press Agency (SPA), Dr Al-Obaid said that the project came in response to the requests of Education Document submitted by the King to leaders of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and in response to the 8th development plan. He pointed out that the six-year project will cost SR 9 billion. The Minister of Education Abdullah Al-Obaid said the King Abdullah Education Project was aimed at keeping pace with scientific and technological development and meeting the requirements of the Education Document presented by the king to the GCC leaders as well as the Kingdom's 8th Five-Year Development Plan. "It will also meet the hopes and aspirations of Saudi citizens," Al-Obaid said. "We'll continue our efforts for the development of education, making use of the successful experiments of countries like Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, China, New Zealand, Finland, France, Ireland, Britain, Canada and the US," he added. He said the project aims at deepening Islamic values, morals and allegiance to family, society and nation, and appreciating and preserving national achievements. "There are more than 15 mechanisms to implement the project," he said. Teachers will be provided with modern information technology to apply them. "They will also be given intensive training to help them get along with modern developments and changes," he added. Al-Obaid said the ministry would carry out seven training programs for more than 400,000 teachers. These programs will focus on subjects of specialization, school management, educational supervision, computer science, self-development and improvement of skills. "The atmosphere in classrooms will be improved by providing modern technological facilities such as interactive boards, displaying devices, communication network and Internet services," he said. He said the project also aims at expanding out-of-the-class activities in order to develop better students by improving their cultural and health standards, creating a spirit of competition in making innovations and encouraging them to participate in various social activities. "We have identified more than ten programs in this category, including scientific, cultural, social and sports activities and memorization of the Qur'an and Sunnah," he said. The higher committee chaired by Crown Prince Sultan will manage the project, Al-Obaid said. An executive panel has been set up under the chairmanship of Deputy Education Minister Prince Khaled Ibn Abdullah Al-Muqrin. Prince Dr. Khalid bin Abdullah bin Miqren Al Mishari Al Saud, Deputy Minister of Education for Girls Affairs expressed his best thanks to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz for the Cabinet's approval of "King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz Project for the Development of Public Education." The Prince also thanked Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General for the achievement of the project at the ministerial committee formed by the Cabinet for studying the six-year project that will cost SR 9 billion. In a press conference, he pointed out that the Project for the Development of Public Education consists of four main programs including development of the educational curricula; re-training and qualifying teachers; improvement of the educational environment and non-curricula activities. |
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