Blooming marvelous: Countdown on to Taif Rose Festival 2023

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The Taif rose is processed by cooking and distilling it, a complex process that takes about 12 hours to turn the flower into a fragrance. (AN Photo/Huda Bashatah)
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Updated 10 April 2023
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Blooming marvelous: Countdown on to Taif Rose Festival 2023

  • Host of events planned for annual celebration of region’s beloved blooms
  • Taif produces rose oil for some of world’s most famous perfumes

RIYADH: A host of floral and fragrant events and attractions are set to welcome visitors to this year’s Taif Rose Festival.

Organized by the Ministry of Culture, the event runs from April 21 to May 5.

Taif is regarded as the leading producer of rose fragrances in the Middle East, with about 900 farms producing more than 300 million blooms from March to April every year.

These are distilled and processed into fine rose oils, which are used in some of the world’s very best perfumes, including creations by Jimmy Choo and Givenchy.

This year’s festival will feature a parade of roses through the streets of Taif to Al-Raddaf Park, where there will be many activities and events to enjoy, including a light show, market and a children’s zone.

There will also lots of culinary treats, with local chefs conjuring up fabulous dishes that incorporate the Taif rose.

Last year’s festival attracted almost 1 million visitors and featured more than 50 events. It even achieved a world record for the largest flower basket. The impressive display was more than 12 meters long, almost 8 meters wide and stood 1.3 meters tall.

Comprising 84,450 roses, it took 190 people more than 168 hours to create.


KSrelief completes a volunteer medical project for pediatric open-heart surgery in Yemen

Updated 8 sec ago
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KSrelief completes a volunteer medical project for pediatric open-heart surgery in Yemen

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s aid agency KSrelief has completed a medical service offering open-heart surgery and cardiac catheterization for children in Aden, Yemen, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday.

The initiative ran from April 19-26. Ten volunteers from various medical backgrounds were on-site.

The team performed 24 open-heart operations and 98 cardiac catheterization procedures.


Japan’s foreign minister, GCC’s secretary-general discuss partnership

Updated 11 min 47 sec ago
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Japan’s foreign minister, GCC’s secretary-general discuss partnership

  • Officials meet in Riyadh to discuss energy security

RIYADH: Japan’s Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi has told Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi that Japan “attaches importance to its partnership with the GCC.”

The two officials met in Riyadh on Thursday to discuss the Gulf region’s partnership with Japan in energy security.

Iwaya added that the GCC region was playing an “increasingly important role in achieving peace and stability amid the current turbulent regional and international situation.”

The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that Albudaiwi had said that the relationship between Japan and the GCC member states was of “strategic importance,” and that the GCC also hoped to further strengthen its relationship with Japan.

The two officials welcomed the first round of negotiations on the Japan-GCC Economic Partnership Agreement, which resumed in December 2024.

They also agreed to cooperate in a wide range of areas, including politics and security, trade and investment, based on the Japan-GCC Action Plan adopted during the first Japan-GCC Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in September 2023.

Iwaya and Albudaiwi exchanged views on Gaza, the Syrian Arab Republic, Iran, the Red Sea, and East Asia.

They both stressed their intention to further strengthen Japan-GCC relations and to maintain close cooperation through the implementation of the action plan.

This article also appears on Arab News Japan


LCGPA honors 26 winners at third Local Content Awards in Riyadh

Updated 01 May 2025
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LCGPA honors 26 winners at third Local Content Awards in Riyadh

  • The theme of the event was “Applauding Your Impact”

RIYADH: The Local Content and Government Procurement Authority recognized 26 public, private, nonprofit and individual contributors at its third Local Content Award ceremony on Wednesday in Riyadh.

The theme of the event was “Applauding Your Impact.”

Organized under the patronage of Bandar Al-Khorayef, Saudi Arabia’s minister of industry and mineral resources, the event celebrated efforts to advance local content development — a pillar of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030.

This aims to strengthen the economy by boosting domestic industries, reducing reliance on imports and empowering national talent.

The awards highlight achievements in meeting Local Content Requirements, or LCRs, which have raised government procurement spending on domestic goods and services from 28 percent in 2018 to 47 percent.

During his keynote speech, Al-Khorayef said that 396 Local Content Development Teams operated across government entities, while 270 state-owned firms had embedded LCRs into policies, driving their local spending to 50.7 percent in 2023.

In the government entities category, awards were distributed across two main paths and three subcategories.

In the path for Excellence in Local Content for Medium and Low-Spending Entities, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed first place, the Roads General Authority ranked second, and the Digital Government Authority, or DGA, came in third.

Abdulaziz Al-Bader, general manager of procurement at the DGA, told Arab News: “We have focused on localizing industries through technology-related agreements, such as those for digital circuits, where we have achieved impressive results.”

He said that advances in cloud computing and the unification of technical specifications for government technology purchases had further streamlined procurement.

Al-Bader said that “our investment colleagues have made significant efforts, and the entity managing these investments has begun to see tangible outcomes.”

These measures, he explained, directly contributed to “a reduction in government spending on such procurements and accelerated the purchasing process” — an outcome he attributed to rigorous standardization and localized industry partnerships.

STC Group secured the top award for Local Content Preference, while the National Water Company was among other notable honorees.

In the private sector, telecom company TAWAL and manufacturing firm FIPCO stood out among large enterprises. Small and medium enterprises such as Suwar Technology and Intra Defense Technologies were recognized for driving innovation in niche markets.

Reef National Foundation became the first nonprofit to be awarded for advancing local content goals. Individuals Lama Al-Hussein (first) and Abdulmajeed Marzouq (second) earned top honors for raising awareness of local content’s economic impact.


KSrelief completes Syria health initiative, continues in Sudan

Updated 01 May 2025
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KSrelief completes Syria health initiative, continues in Sudan

  • Eight volunteer surgeons on the medical team in Port Sudan have already performed eight specialized operations

RIYADH: The Saudi Arabian aid agency KSrelief has completed its neurology and urology program in Syria, while continuing a similar initiative in Sudan, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday.

Eight volunteer surgeons on the medical team in Port Sudan have already performed eight specialized operations.

In Damascus, Syria, the Amal volunteer program has concluded.

Twenty-six volunteers in Damascus examined 285 patients and performed 153 neurology and 162 urology operations.

 


First flights carrying Hajj pilgrims from Turkiye land in Saudi Arabia

Updated 30 April 2025
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First flights carrying Hajj pilgrims from Turkiye land in Saudi Arabia

  • Qualified staff fluent in several languages and equipped with the latest technology will help simplify entry procedures for pilgrims

Madinah: The first flights carrying Hajj pilgrims from Turkiye arrived at Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah on Wednesday. The annual Islamic pilgrimage is set to take place this year between June 4 and 9.

Authorities are providing qualified staff who are fluent in several languages and equipped with the latest technology to help simplify entry procedures for pilgrims, the Saudi Press Agency reported, and are ready to assist people arriving by land and sea as well as air.

An estimated 1.8 million pilgrims participated in Hajj last year.