The Cabinet, chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman on Tuesday afternoon at Irqah Palace here, on the occasion of the Founding Day, expressed pride in this country, which, over three centuries has achieved stability, justice, cohesion among its citizens, resilience in the face of challenges, and is looking to a bright future of prosperity and progress, and great entrepreneurship in all fields of life. The Founding Day falls this year on Wednesday, Feb. 22. The Cabinet also touched on the Kingdom's participation in the Munich Security Conference 2023, held in Germany, highlighting the paramount importance Saudi Arabia attaches to consolidating security and stability, and to supporting dialogue and peaceful solutions, which aim to stop fighting and protect civilians, and provide opportunities for peace and development in the region and the world at large. In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, Minister of State, Cabinet Member for Shoura Council Affairs, Acting Minister of Media Dr. Essam Bin Saad Bin Saeed said that the Cabinet discussed the meetings and consultations Saudi Arabia had with several countries over the past few days with the aim of enhancing cooperation and expanding the scope of relations in a way that serves joint interests, as well as efforts to enhance international peace and security, while facing global challenges. The Cabinet also mentioned the Kingdom's ranking first on the Government Electronic and Mobile Services Maturity Index, issued by United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), as a testimony to Saudi Arabia's progress in this field, which has contributed to improving the quality of life, competitiveness and the ease of doing business, and enhanced the efficiency of government work. The Cabinet tackled several other issues on its agenda, some co-studied by the Shoura Council, and reviewed recent achievements by the Council of Economic and Development Affairs, the Council of Political and Security Affairs, the Cabinet's General Committee and the Cabinet's Bureau of Experts. The Cabinet approved a memorandum of understanding between the Saudi government and the South African government for technical cooperation in the fields of agriculture, fisheries, and aquaculture. It authorized the minister of finance to discuss with the Moroccan side a draft memorandum of understanding in the financial field between the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy and Finance in Morocco. It approved a memorandum of understanding between the Saudi government and the International Monetary Fund regarding the establishment of a regional office for the Fund in the Kingdom and support for the Fund in the field of capacity development. The Cabinet approved a memorandum of cooperation between the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the Ministry of Communications and Information in Singapore in the areas of the digital economy, emerging technologies, and digital government. It approved the agreement to establish the joint committee between Saudi Arabia and Bulgaria, and authorized the minister of economy and planning to discuss with the Bulgarian side regarding the aforementioned agreement. The Cabinet approved technical arrangements in the field of civil aviation between the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) in Saudi Arabia and The Minister delegate of Transport to the Minister for Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion in France, the Directorate General for Civil Aviation. It approved a cooperation agreement between the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) and the International Telecommunication Union. It also approved a memorandum of understanding for scientific and technological cooperation between King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Innovative Development of Uzbekistan. The Cabinet authorized the Supervisor General of the National Center for Archives and Records to hold talks with the Indonesian side regarding a draft memorandum of understanding in the field of documents and archiving between the National Center for Archives and Records in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the National Archive in Indonesia. It approved amending Item (Five) of the Bylaw of the National Committee for Narcotics Control, approved by Cabinet Decision No. 119 on Rabi Al-Thani 17, 1430 Hijri, pertaining to the formation of the committee. It approved a bylaw for the office of international legal affairs. The Cabinet approved a framework for granting incentives for localizing priority commodities and services in the National Strategy for Localization and the set of procedures to accredit these incentives, It approved accrediting two final statements for the Sharqia Development Authority and General Authority for Awqaf for previous years. — SPA
