New york: The General Authority for Awqaf is representing Saudi Arabia in the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development 2026 (HLPF), hosted by the United Nations in New York from July 7 to 15. This participation highlights the Kingdom's commitment to global sustainable development initiatives and its efforts to demonstrate national contributions toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in alignment with Saudi Vision 2030.
According to Saudi Press Agency, the authority's involvement underscores Saudi Arabia's initiatives to foster international collaborations and share developmental insights by presenting the Kingdom's endowment model as a pivotal player in sustainable development. The focus is on fortifying the role of the endowment sector within the national strategy for SDGs, emphasizing its growing impact on economic, social, and developmental arenas, thereby marking it as a crucial enabler of sustainable development.
For the first time, the contributions of endowments will be featured in Saudi Arabia's Voluntary National Review (VNR) for 2026. Additionally, a roundtable will be organized at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) headquarters to display the Kingdom's endowment model, stressing its role in development financing and SDG attainment.
The roundtable will introduce the Endowment Excellence Index, a Saudi initiative for evaluating endowment institutions' performance, and discuss its potential global application. Furthermore, the authority plans to engage in bilateral discussions with UN programs and relevant organizations to explore collaboration opportunities, share expertise, and strengthen partnerships to advance the endowment sector.
These initiatives aim to bolster Saudi Arabia's presence in sustainable development forums and present the Kingdom's endowment model as a paradigm with both local and international significance. The authority is dedicated to enhancing, organizing, and preserving the endowment sector, promoting its growth, and elevating public awareness through innovative products and services.
In its mission to lead sustainable development on both national and international fronts, the authority aims to meet donors' expectations, implement best practices, and develop necessary regulations to empower the endowment sector, thereby maximizing its contribution to economic and social development and fostering social solidarity.