Supporting Innovation in Saudi Arabia August 2008 King Abdulaziz and his companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) Mawhiba Young Leaders Program

1 Saudi Arabia The largest country of the Arabian Peninsula Capital: Riyadh Population: 28 million Land: 2.15 million square km World's leading petroleum exporter GDP (2007): $565 billion Estimated (2008) GDP growth rate: 7.2%

2 King Abdulaziz and his companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba ) King Abdulaziz and his companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) is a non-for-profit organization based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Mawhiba was established in 1999 The King is the president of Mawhiba Under the President, there is a Board of trusties (comprised of princes, ministers, business people, and specialists), and a secretary general as shown below The King (The President) Board of Trusties Secretary General

3 King Abdulaziz and his companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba ) Goals: To foster giftedness, creativity and support Innovation. This includes supporting talented and creative people To strengthen national capacities to generate innovative ideas To find pioneers of young people who are creative and talented in science and technology To support and provide enriched educational activity for the gifted and talented Saudi students. To make awareness and educate the public (parents, teachers, and employers) about methods of nurturing gifted and talented people. To assist educational and professional institutions across Saudi Arabia in the creation of a comprehensive program for the gifted and talented people.

4 Mawhiba Strategic Plan to foster giftedness and creativity and supporting innovation in Saudi Arabia

5 Mawhiba hopes to foster a critical mass of gifted and talented young leaders who can support the sustained growth and prosperity of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is facing a unique set of challenges owing to certain domestic and international developments To address these challenges, several initiatives with a multi-billion SR investment are underway to transform the Kingdom into a knowledge-based society, thus contributing hundreds of billions of SR to GDP and creating millions of jobs This transformation requires a critical mass of gifted and talented young leaders, which is not adequately supplied at the moment Mawhiba will reinforce existing initiatives by fostering a critical mass of gifted and talented young leaders, who can support the sustained growth and prosperity of the Kingdom

6 Mawhiba Vision 2022 To be a creative society with a critical mass of gifted and talented young leaders who are innovative, highly educated and well-trained to support the sustained growth and prosperity of the Kingdom

77 Mawhiba will focus on fostering giftedness and creativity, thereby supporting the national innovation system Interfaces to innovation Vision and objectives A Primary school Secon- dary school Univer- sity/ tertiary Pre- school Adult- hood Policy Policy organizations and governance Parents Society Teachers Gifted/ talented individual System structure B Environment C Vision and objectives Supported elements of the innovation system Idea generation Human capital Mawhiba framework for giftedness and creativity

8 Overview of five key Mawhiba initiatives for the next 5 years Agreed priority initiatives Linkage between initiatives Pre-school Primary school Secondary school University/ tertiary Adulthood 1 Mawhiba School Partnerships 3 Mawhiba Young Leaders Program Mawhiba Enrichment Programs Summer programs After-school programs Competitions and awards (School to university age) 2 Mawhiba Creative Work Environment Initiative 4 Overarching initiatives 5 Mawhiba Awareness and Communication Initiative Research and policy unit

9 Courses on variety of topics; e.g., – Language courses – Entrepreneurship courses – Research seminars with experts in relevant fields Skill-building programs Internship opportunities at top Saudi and international companies during summer vacation Online job portal Career information sessions Internships Mentorships Scholarships Mawhiba Young Leaders Program Applications are open to all students entering final year of high school Selection based on academic performance, personal essays, and interviews Professors in a relevant course of study at the student’s university or industry professional acts as a mentor Regular interactions in one-on- one and group meetings Scholarships to study at top international universities Assistance with university applications Mawhiba Young Leaders Program – Snapshot of overall system

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