Ambassador Dr Petru Dumitriu
Diplo Foundation/University of Malta
Switzerland
SUSTAINABILITY (6): Recent developments in research and teaching towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
Transforming Saudi Universities: Accelerating KSA's Journey to Achieving Vision 2030
Online International Conference
Wednesday 26th February 2025 (09:30 - 13:00 UK Time)
SDGs KSA Universities Initiative (SDGsKSAUNi) is officially approval by H. E. Mr. Youssef bin Abdullah Al-Bunyan, KSA Minister of Education and followed up by the recent Official Circular sent by H.E. Professor Dr Bassam bin Abdullah Al-Bassam, Secretary General of the Council of Universities Affairs on Thursday 26 December 2024 to all Universities’ Presidents, recommending SDGsKSAUNi to all universities and research centres in KSA.
The initiative aims to bring together all universities and research institutions in KSA and comet them together and with universities from across the world in a global forum (SDGs Universities) to collaborate and reconnect with the discourse of Sustainable Development (SD).
SDGsKSAUNi will therefore help KSA universities and research institutions to play a critical role, enabling KSA reap the benefits form the global growth in the knowledge economy particularly for the country’s Digital Natives (Youth) and achieve Saudi Vision 2030 and the UN Agenda 2030 and its 17 SDGs.
SDGsKSAUNi aims to critically examine a number of issues relating to the role and relevance of universities and research institutions in KSA to the contemporary discourse and Vision 2030 towards KSA sustainable inclusive knowledge-based development such as the role of KSA universities in supporting and enhancing the process of economic and social development in KSA; identify all major obstacles that Saudi universities face and most importantly how can these obstacles best be overcome; and what is the new role(s) of Saudi universities in the post Covid-19 era.
SDGsKSAUNi also aims to improve the research within KSA universities to address the significant demand for evidence-based research across the world. It is therefore aims to provide practical recommendations and actions to help transform the way KSA universities conduct and use research to achieve the UN SDGs, and the way KSA universities access and benefit from the global data freely available for use by leading international organizations such as the UN, World Bank, etc.
The Initiative will work closely with various KSA universities to address the following key issues in their contribution to Vision 2030 and KSA’s efforts to achieve the UN Agenda 2030 and its SDGs: how Saudi universities see the role of STI in service of the Agenda 2030?; how do KSA universities reflect the SDGs in their own research activities?; and do KSA universities believe that the HE system in KSA is properly using scientific research in finding solutions to KSA’s problems?