Day: June 10, 2023

Saudi Arabia has said it expects an “exceptional” and “safe” Hajj pilgrimage this year.

“All preparations bode well. We are optimistic about this Hajj season,” Sheikh Abdul Rahman al Sudais, head of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, told the state-run Al Ekhbariya television channel on Saturday.

He added this year’s Hajj pilgrimage will be “exceptional, distinguished and safe.”

The oil-rich kingdom expects to receive over two million Muslim pilgrims this year.

Saudi Arabia held downsized Hajj in the last three years due to restrictions imposed to stem the outbreak of Covid-19, but announced 5 months ago that it will no longer impose limits on the number of pilgrims.

In 2022, over 899,999 Muslim pilgrims visited Saudi Arabia to perform the Hajj pilgrimage, according to official figures.

In 2021, the kingdom welcomed up to 60,000 pilgrims from inside Saudi Arabia amid Covid-19 restrictions, while only 10,000 performed the ritual in 2020.

The Hajj, the pilgrimage to Islam's holiest site Kaaba in Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam. Muslims are required to perform it at least once in their life if they have the means to do so.

Source: TRTworld.com

The 10th Arab-China Business Conference, which will be held under the patronage of HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, on June 11-12, is organized by the Ministry of Investment in partnership with the Union of Arab Chambers, the League of Arab States, and China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT). Held under the slogan "Collaborating for Prosperity”, it represents the most significant event in the Arab-Chinese economic cooperation.

The conference aims to strengthen and document trade and economic cooperation between the Arab and Chinese business communities, and explore investment opportunities in various sectors, including technology, renewable energy, agriculture, real estate, minerals and supply chains. Several dialogue sessions and bilateral meetings will be held during the event, representing an unprecedented shift in Arab-Chinese economic relations, a way to boost them to meet the aspirations of both Arab countries and China.

The conference agenda consists of eight main dialogue sessions, 18 workshops, and private meetings between several important personalities participating in the event, all of which aim to introduce initiatives and opportunities that play an essential role in intensifying institutional cooperation between China and the Arab side and in strengthening economic relations.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Vice Chairman of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Hu Chunhua, and Minister of Investment Eng. Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih will take part in the opening session; several Saudi and other Arab ministers will participate in other dialogue sessions.

The first session will discuss "investment and financing along the Belt and Road Initiative” and will be attended by President of Oman Investment Authority Abdulsalam Al-Murshidi, Advisor at the Royal Court and Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Development Fund Mohammed Al-Tuwaijri, Minister of International Cooperation of Egypt Rania Al-Mashat, Chairman of the Chinese Hang Lung Group Ronnie Chan, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi ACWA Power Company Mohammad Abunayyan.

Al-Arabiya TV presenter Lara Habib will moderate the session.

Following the first session, a symposium will be held on the role of the giga projects in reimagining future cities. CEO of the Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA) Gerard Inzerillo and NEOM CEO Eng. Nadhmi Al-Nasr will take part in the symposium, which will be moderated by Xinchen Xu from CGTN.

The second session will focus on innovative ways to produce clean and renewable energy and reduce carbon emissions; Saudi ACWA Power CEO Marco Arcelli and Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Saleh Al-Kharabsheh will take part in it. Chinese CITIC Capital's Senior Managing Director Fanglu Wang, Senior Vice President of Saudi Aramco Yasser Mufti, Co-Founder and Vice Chairman of Alfanar group Sabah Almutlaq, and Vice Chairman of Chinese CGL Zhu Yufang will also participate in the session.

CEO of SandP Global (China) Ratings Gina Huang will moderate the session.

In the third session, participants will discuss the role of tourism and entertainment in diversifying the economy. The session will have two sections: political and economic.

Saudi Minister of Tourism Ahmed bin Aqeel Al-Khateeb, Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Zurab Pololikashvili, and Minister of Trade and Tourism of Djibouti Mohamed Warsama Dirieh will participate in the political section.

Saudi Vice Minister of Tourism Princess Haifa Al Saud, CEO of Asia Pacific at Haichang Ocean Park Holdings Andrew Kam, CEO of the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) Amr AlMadani, and Chairman of Chinese Jin Jiang International Qi Zhao will participate in the economic section of the session.

A CGTN professional will moderate the sessions.

The fourth session of the first day will discuss food security and agriculture as key to development.

Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Eng. Abdulrahman bin Abdulmohsen Al-Fadhli, President of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Dr. Mohammed Al Jasser, and Managing Director and Board Member of the National Aquaculture Group (NAQUA) Ahmad Al-Ballaa will take part in the session.

Also participating are American Gro Intelligence Founder and CEO Sara Menker, Almarai CEO Abdullah Al-Badr, and Managing Director of US Calysseo Pierre Casamatta.

Business Editor at South China Morning Post Eugene Tang will moderate the session.

The fifth session, titled “Industry, mining, and minerals – major sectors for a prosperous future”, will be organized on the second day.

Bahraini Minister of Industry and Commerce Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Saleh Kharabsheh, Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Osama bin Abdulaziz Al-Zami, Vice-chairperson of Fangda Holding Co Ltd. Dr. Leo Yinam, CEO of Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) Ali Al-Baqali, CEO of TAQA Khaled Nouh, Chairman of Metallurgical Corporation of China Limited Zhang Mengxing, and Finance Controller at China Hongqiao Group Co. Ltd Ryan Gu will take part in the session, which will be moderated by Senior Director and Cross-practice Country Coordinator for the GCC Region, SandP Global Ratings Timucin Engin.

The sixth session will discuss “building resilience in logistics, supply chain and infrastructure”. Taking part in it will be Minister of Transport and Logistic Services Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, CEO of Egypt’s GAFI Hossam Heiba, Chairperson of Agility Public Warehousing Company K.S.C.P Henadi Al-Saleh, Vice Chairman/Co-President at Xpeng Inc Brian Hongdi, CEO of China State Construction International Holdings Limited Wang Shaofeng, CEO of International Maritime Industries Abdullah Alahmari, and member of the Board Directors of China HNA Aviation Group Dr. Yinan Liu.

Vice President and Senior Fellow at the Center for China and Globalization Mike Liu will moderate the session.

The seventh session will discuss the ''healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.'' Taking part in it will be Minister of Health Fahad bin Abdulrahman Al-Jalajel, Egypt’s Ministry of Health official Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, CEO at SPIMACO Khaled Alkhattaf, CEO of Hevolution Foundation Dr. Mehmood Khan, Chairwoman and CEO of ClinGroup, Lebanon, Dr. Nadia Cheaib, CEO of BGI China Dr. Yin Ye, and Founder, Chairman and CEO of HitGen Inc. Healthcare, China, Dr. Jin Li FRSC. The session will be moderated by MD of Healthcare Services and Devices at the Ministry of Investment Dr. Samar Nassar.

The eighth session will discuss the digital economy and artificial intelligence (AI) and their contributions to enhancing productivity and growth.

Minister of Communications and Information Technology Eng. Abdullah Alswaha, CEO of International Business SenseTime, China, George Huang, CEO of Legend Holdings, China, Li Peng, and Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO of Baidu, China, Yanhong (Robin) Li will be participating in the session, which will be moderated by Vice President and Regional Leader Energy Environment/Industrial Practice at Frost and Sullivan MEASA Abhay Bhargava.

The conference will conclude with a session on the financial sector and its role in enhancing Arab-China businesses. CEO of Mumtalakat, Bahrain, Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifah, CEO, Bank of China International Holdings, China, Tong Li, Executive Vice President and Deputy Chief Investment Officer at CIC, China, Dr. Qi Bin, CEO of Riyadh Bank Tariq Al-Sadhan, and MD and Head of Investment Banking at CICC, China, Barry Chan will take part in the session, which will be moderated by Business Editor of the South China Morning Post Eugene Tang.

Several specialized workshops will be organized during the conference, on supply chains, research and innovation, mining, food industries, and other topics.

Taking part in them will be Deputy Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Mansour Al-Mushaiti, Secretary General of Qatar Research, Development and Innovation Council Omar Ali Al-Ansari, and Director General of Renewable Energy and Hydrogen at Oman’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals Abdulaziz Al Shidhani.

Keynote speeches and interviews with senior officials and VIPs, including Minister of Energy HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, who will speak on the first day of the gathering about the Saudi-Chinese cooperation and the global transformations in the energy sector, are planned.

Minister of Economy and Planning, Faisal bin Fadhil Alibrahim, will give a special interview to the South China Morning Post, and will discuss Saudi Arabia’s transformation endeavour.

Also interviewed will be President of the Federation of Arab Businessmen Hamdi Tabbaa.

More than 3,000 decision-makers, high-ranking government officials, investors, business owners and experts in Arab-Chinese relations will be participating in the Arab-China Business Conference to discuss the strategic relationships between the Arab world and China and ways to enhance cooperation and economic ventures.

-- SPA

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Today, the first group of pilgrims from the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, benefiting from the Makkah Route Initiative, arrived at the Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah.

The Makkah Route Initiative, a part of the Pilgrim Experience Program under the Saudi Vision 2030, aims to streamline the procedures for pilgrims starting from their home countries. This includes the issuance of electronic visas, collection of biometrics, and completion of travel procedures at the departure airports, ensuring compliance with health requirements.

The initiative also includes the labelling and sorting of luggage based on transportation and accommodation arrangements within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Upon arrival, the pilgrims are promptly transported to their residences in Makkah and Madinah using buses, while logistics agencies take care of delivering their luggage to their designated accommodations.

-- SPA

Source: Saudi Press Agency

International and Saudi craftsmen, along with experts, have convened at the "Saudi International Handicrafts Week (Banan)", organized by the Heritage Commission at the Riyadh Front. This event serves as a platform and a cultural movement dedicated to the heritage, bringing artists together to exhibit and sell their handicrafts and artworks to the public.

The "Handicrafts Week" encompasses 100 pavilions allocated to international craftsmen from 11 countries, including Mexico, Italy, Pakistan, Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, and Oman. Additionally, there are 200 pavilions dedicated to local craftsmen. This event not only strengthens the Kingdom's global standing but also fosters cultural exchange by introducing Saudi heritage while facilitating an understanding of diverse cultures.

The exhibition showcases a captivating assortment of exquisite cultural and creative handicrafts created by international craftsmen. These crafts reflect the civilizations, cultures, and heritage of their respective countries, bearing their unique cultural identities. Concurrently, the event highlights local handicrafts that represent the identity of the Kingdom's regions and its rich history, ensuring a harmonious blend of artistic expressions.

-- SPA

Source: Saudi Press Agency

The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center has extended its support to the flood victims in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan. As part of the ongoing efforts by KSrelief to aid the Afghan people and alleviate the hardships caused by the devastating floods in various cities and states across the country, a distribution of 350 sacks of flour has taken place, benefiting approximately 2,100 individuals.

-- SPA

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Speaker of the Arab Parliament Adel bin Abdulrahman Al-Assoumi has welcomed the outcomes of the Arab Summit, held in Jeddah, and praised the Saudi efforts which ensured the success of the summit and helped boost Arab cooperation.

Speaking in the fifth plenary session of the Arab Parliament for the third session of the third legislative term, currently being held at the headquarters of the Arab League in Cairo, Al-Assoumi said "the Arab summit in Jeddah represents an important turning point in joint Arab action". He also expressed confidence that Bahrain's hosting of the next Arab summit will make it an exceptional event where joint Arab action will be on display.

The speaker of the Arab Parliament stressed the need for the international community to assume its responsibility and stop Israeli violations of the rights of the Palestinian people, provide them with international protection, and work to restore their rights in preparation for the establishment of the Palestinian state on the lands occupied in 1967, with Jerusalem (Quds) as its capital.

He praised the humanitarian and political efforts of the Arab countries in Sudan, calling on Arab countries to play a greater role in resolving the Sudanese crisis.

He also expressed appreciation for the efforts made to have the armistice in Yemen continue, which would pave the way for a permanent ceasefire and reaching a final solution, praising the UN' announcement that the Safer oil reservoir will start being unloaded.

Al-Assoumi reiterated the Arab Parliament's support for the rights of Egypt and Sudan to the Nile River, and called on Ethiopia to immediately stop any measures that violate the water rights of Egypt and Sudan to the Nile.

He also welcomed the return of Syria's representation to the Arab League, congratulating the four members of the Syrian People's Assembly who took the constitutional oath as members of the Arab Parliament.

Source: Saudi Press Agency