RIYADH — The Council of Ministers on Tuesday approved the establishment of 10 private colleges in Saudi Arabia. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman chaired the weekly session of the Cabinet in Riyadh. At the outset of the session, King Salman thanked leaders of friendly nations for their greetings and wishes on the occasion of Saudi Arabia's 94th National Day that falls on September 23. The King extended his wishes for their good health and happiness, and the continued progress and prosperity of their respective peoples. The Cabinet members hailed the annual address of the King, delivered on his behalf by the Crown Prince, inaugurating activities of the first year of the ninth session of the Shoura Council. The speech outlined Saudi Arabia's priorities, goals, and achievements, and reaffirmed the Kingdom's unwavering commitment to promoting peace and prosperity in the world. The Cabinet members expressed gratitude to the King for his royal order approving the bylaws of the King Salman Non-profit Foundation. They commended the foundation, which is a reflection of King Salman's commitment to building sustainable societies and investing in human development, and an extension of his longstanding tradition of charitable and humanitarian deeds. In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency following the session, Minister of Media Salman Al-Dossary said that the Cabinet reviewed the latest global developments, and reaffirmed the Kingdom's commitment to promoting regional and international security and peace, supporting efforts to achieve political solutions to crises, and contributing to strengthening multilateral cooperation to address global challenges. The Cabinet welcomed the United Nations General Assembly's adoption of the resolution calling for an end to the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories, and stressed the need to take concrete and credible steps to achieve a just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue, in line with the Arab Peace Initiative and relevant international resolutions. The Cabinet expressed the Kingdom's hope that the Pact for the Future, adopted by the UN Summit of the Future, will mark a significant turning point in multilateral action. "The Kingdom believes that this pact can contribute to establishing a modern and equitable international system that fosters rapid progress toward sustainable development goals, addresses the needs of all nations, bridges the digital gap, and supports emerging economies to strengthen the global financial system," the session pointed out. The Cabinet deemed the Kingdom's successful bid for the presidency of the International Coral Reef Initiative a testament to its international recognition and standing in the field of marine environment protection, biodiversity, and ecosystem conservation. Al-Dossary said that the Cabinet expressed pride in the Kingdom's impressive results in the UN indicators concerning e-government development and tourism. They further strengthen the Kingdom's leading position and highlight the significant progress it has made in various fields, conforming with the goals of Vision 2030. The Cabinet adopted a number of decisions, including the approval of the amended protocol for the establishment of a Saudi-Turkish coordination council and a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Saudi Export Development Authority and the Ghana Export Promotion Authority. The Council authorized the minister of culture or his deputy to discuss and sign with Venezuela's Ministry of People's Power for Culture a draft MoU for cooperation, and authorized the minister of environment, water, and agriculture or his deputy to discuss and sign with Albania's Ministry of Tourism and Environment a draft MoU in the field of environmental protection. The Cabinet authorized the minister of investment or his deputy to discuss and sign with the Panamanian Authority for the Attraction of Investments and the Promotion of Exports a draft MoU for cooperation in promoting direct investment, in addition to authorizing the minister of finance and chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Center for Privatization (NCP) or his deputy to discuss and sign with the French Infrastructure Financing Agency a draft MoU for cooperation in the field of public-private partnership.
