Flower carpet dazzles visitors at Baha festival

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s academic institutions flourished at the 50th Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions (April 9-13, 2025), where Princess Nourah University and Najran University earned five medals.

Their wins, achieved in a field of 900 inventors from 40 countries, underscore the Kingdom’s growing global scientific influence.

PNU claimed four medals, including a silver medal for Dr. Sarah Al-Nufaiei’s “fixed dental reference marker” — a pioneering tool that standardizes dental implant placements by creating fixed intraoral reference points, improving precision in restorative procedures.

The university was also awarded three bronze medals for transformative projects. Dr. Haya Al-Shahrani’s “smart wheelchair controlled via brain signals and eye blinks wirelessly” uses non-invasive EEG sensors and eye-tracking cameras to empower mobility-impaired users.

Dr. Fahda Al-Qahtani’s “gum-based tool for isolating structurally damaged teeth” provides a biocompatible alternative to traditional rubber dam clamps, while Dr. Taghreed Al-Omar’s “anti-diabetic drug formulation with Friedelin (a chemical compound)” isolates the triterpenoid compound from Ziziphus spina-christi leaves to improve glycemic control.

These innovations align with PNU’s 2025 strategic plan to advance Saudi Arabia’s sustainable development goals and position the university as a center for women-led STEM breakthroughs.

Najran University won a gold medal for its “nano-photocatalyst using date palm seed bio-carbon with gold nanoparticles and zinc oxide for industrial wastewater treatment.”

The project addresses environmental challenges by converting locally sourced date palm seeds into bio-carbon — a sustainable base material — then augmenting it with gold nanoparticles and zinc oxide to create a photocatalyst that degrades organic pollutants under UV light.

This low-cost, solar-powered solution underscores Saudi Arabia’s commitment to eco-innovation under Vision 2030.

The event featured 161 Saudi participants from schools, universities and technical institutes, showing advances in AI-driven infrastructure, healthcare robotics, and biometric security systems.

With both universities now eyeing international patents and commercial partnerships, Saudi academia’s footprint on the world stage continues to grow.

RIYADH: A Saudi-led humanitarian initiative in Yemen has cleared 486,651 land mines and unexploded ordnance since the project began in mid-2018, according to a recent report.

These include 325,378 items of unexploded ordnance, 146,285 anti-tank mines, 8,212 improvised explosive devices, and 6,776 anti-personnel mines, according to Ousama Al-Gosaibi, the project’s managing director.

Project Masam, overseen by the Saudi aid agency KSrelief, continues to remove deadly devices laid in Yemen by the Houthis. These explosives pose a threat to civilians, including children, women, and the elderly.

Last week, the project’s special teams destroyed 511 items of unexploded ordnance, 23 anti-tank mines, six anti-personnel mines, and three improvised explosive devices.

The project is carried out by Saudi personnel and international experts, with a team of 550 staff and 32 trained clearance teams working to remove various types of mines and ordnance, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Demining operations have taken place in Marib, Aden, Jouf, Shabwa, Taiz, Hodeidah, Lahij, Sanaa, Al-Bayda, Al-Dhale, and Saada.

The initiative also trains local demining engineers and equips them with modern tools. Additionally, it provides support to Yemenis injured by these devices.

“Every mine removed is a life potentially saved, a home reclaimed, a future restored. Demining is not just about removing explosives; it is about restoring hope, stability, and economic recovery,” Al-Gosaibi said.

Since the conflict began, about 5 million people have been displaced in Yemen, many due to land mines. Masam teams work to clear villages, roads and schools, enabling the safe movement of civilians and the delivery of humanitarian aid.