The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia celebrates Wednesday the 5th anniversary of King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz's accession to the throne in 2005, a date which has been followed by a period of remarkable changes sparked by major economic, social, education, health, and infrastructure projects across the Kingdom. The period has seen the launching of four mega economic cities, the establishment of a SR10-billion unified water desalination and electricity generation project with a capacity of 550,000 cubic meters of water and 1,700 mw of electricity, while last year alone King Abdullah launched development works worth 54 and 45 billion riyals in the industrial cities of Jubail and Yanbu respectively. Vast projects continue to expand the sites of the Two Holy Mosques and huge investment has been given for major welfare projects. The state budget of SR540 billion for current fiscal year (1431-32H) is the nation's largest ever, and the Kingdom was the recipient of the Prize of Merit from the World Bank in recognition of recent efforts toward economic reform. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' accomplishments in the advancement of education are most notable in the September 2009 launch of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology – KAUST – in Thuwal, a ceremony which was held in the presence of senior representatives from Arab and Islamic nations and other countries across the globe. The facility, which is supported by a multi-billion dollar endowment, is described as the culmination of a decades-long vision of the King, and is an international, graduate-level research university, open to men and women from around the world, and governed by an independent, self-perpetuating Board of Trustees. The year 2007 saw the opening of Princess Noura Bint Abdulrahman University for women with its 32 colleges across the Riyadh region, while the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Program for Foreign Scholarships has as many as 80,000 male and female students studying in over 25 countries around the world. King Abdullah has also led the historic reorganization of the country's judicial system and enacted laws to formalize the royal succession. On the world stage, King Abdullah's diplomatic efforts have reflected the leading role of the Kingdom in defending Arab and Islamic causes and in working toward world peace, stability and security. Peace in the Middle East and the plight of the Palestinian people have been of particular concern to the King, and the Arab Peace Initiative, presented at the 2002 Arab Summit Conference in Beirut when the King was still Crown Prince, was unanimously adopted by the Arab League. His forward-looking strategy for a unified Arab stance on international issues has achieved a similar response and he has played a key role in brokering agreements for a Palestinian national unity government and a reconciliation agreement between Sudan and Chad on Darfur. A strong advocate of constructive global cooperation, King Abdullah held in 2008 the Jeddah energy summit to discuss means of stabilizing global oil markets, the third OPEC summit in 2007 in Riyadh, the 19th Arab League Summit in 2007, also in Riyadh, and, in 2006, the 27th summit of the GCC Supreme Council, also in the capital. King Abdullah has been unwavering in his condemnation of the killing of innocent people and denunciation of deviant groups that falsely claim to be Islamic, while his pioneering role in promoting interfaith dialogue resulted in his patronage of the 2008 Muslim World League-organized World Conference on Dialogue in Madrid, Spain, and a United Nations conference on dialogue the same year. The initiative is a global reflection of the King's resolve in pushing forward at home the work of the King Abdul Aziz Center for National Dialogue, which was set up in 2003 to create a new environment for dialogue between the various facets of Saudi society and consolidate national unity based on the Islamic faith. The launch of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz International Award for Translation represented an extension of those same efforts to promote dialogue between cultures and civilizations, with the award's stated ambitions to achieve “global expansion of beneficial knowledge, bridging the language barriers in the quest of assisting lifelong learning”. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques is known for his love of the desert and horsemanship, and is the founder of the Riyadh Equestrian Club and himself a breeder of pure Arabian horses. He is also known for his passion for reading, and as the Supreme Head of the King Abdul Aziz Public Library Board has overseen the opening of two libraries, the King Abdul Aziz Library in Riyadh, and another in Casablanca, Morocco. King Abdullah's continuous work in humanitarian fields has seen the Kingdom elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council for two consecutive terms, and the United Nations World Food Program named the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques in 2008 – when Saudi Arabia donated more than $500 million to the program – “Champion in the Battle Against Hunger”. Speaking at the award ceremony in Switzerland, Josette Sheeran, Executive Director of WFP, said: “King Abdullah's generosity has not only moved the world but has saved many lives in this year of challenge. For this reason he is recognized, not only by us, but by many others.” __
