RIYADH — Hijri year 1447 marked another remarkable chapter in the development journey of Saudi Arabia, reflecting achievements and progress in all fields and at all levels.
These achievements have become a visible and tangible reality, embodied in growth, stability, prosperity and progress, as a result of the wise decisions and sound direction of King Salman, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and the Crown Prince and Prime Minister.
Guided by an ambitious vision, the Kingdom has witnessed important transformations in its development path, bringing comprehensive and visible changes to various aspects of the economy, public services, infrastructure and logistics, and social life, and positioning the Kingdom as a focus of global attention.
As the Hijri calendar comes to an end, Saudi Arabia is looking ahead to a new phase: the start of the third and final phase of Saudi Vision 2030. Over the next five years, Saudi Arabia will build on previous achievements, empower its people to compete on the world stage, create new opportunities and continue on its path to innovation, excellence and international leadership.
On the international front, the Crown Prince’s historic visit to the United States and meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House reaffirmed the deep friendship and strategic partnership between the two countries. During the visit, the Crown Prince and the US President held a Saudi-US Summit, underscoring the two countries’ historic ties of friendship and strong commitment to their strategic partnership, and exploring ways to further strengthen cooperation in all areas.
The visit also resulted in several landmark agreements, including the Strategic Defense Agreement and the Strategic AI Partnership. During the Saudi-US Investment Forum, the two sides announced and signed agreements and memoranda of understanding worth approximately $270 billion.
Saudi Arabia also continued to play a leading role on the international stage through its principled stance on global issues, particularly through its long-standing support for the Palestinian cause and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. Reflecting this commitment, Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan co-chaired the opening session of the High-Level International Conference on the Peaceful Settlement of the Palestinian Question and Implementation of the Two-State Solution in New York with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrault.
At the end of the conference, the Minister of Foreign Affairs approved the final document of the conference and called on all countries to support the conference. Saudi Arabia also welcomed the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly of the New York Declaration issued by the High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Palestinian Question and the Implementation of a Two-State Solution.
1447 AH continued its trajectory of achievements and recorded significant national achievements, particularly in increasing the global competitiveness of Saudi talent. The Crown Prince welcomed Professor Omar Yagi at Al Yamaa Palace in Riyadh after receiving the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, where he received the award along with two fellow scientists.
Saudi Arabia has also strengthened its position in science and innovation, ranking as the second-largest participant after the United States at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) for three consecutive years. Saudi students won 24 international awards and 12 special awards at ISEF 2026, including world first place in computational biology and bioinformatics. In higher education, Harvard University celebrated the graduation of 70 Saudi students from its academic programs.
In another milestone, the King Abdulaziz and Friends Foundation for Talent and Creativity (Mawiba) announced that it has discovered 34,000 new talented students, earning a Guinness World Record. Meanwhile, the Saudi artificial intelligence team won four medals in the first international competition, underscoring the kingdom’s growing prominence in emerging technologies and innovation.
On the economic front, the Capital Market Authority announced the opening of the Saudi stock market to all categories of foreign investors. Saudi Arabia’s non-oil exports also reached a record 624 billion riyals, up from 543 billion riyals in 2024, reflecting annual growth of 15 percent. According to the Public Investment Fund’s annual report, its assets under management reached 3.42 trillion riyals (about $913 billion) by the end of 2024, an increase of 19% from the previous year. The fund maintained its position as the world’s most valuable sovereign wealth fund brand for the second consecutive year.
In further evidence of Saudi economic momentum, the Saudi Export-Import Bank’s credit line has exceeded SR100 billion. On the first day of TOURISE 2025, R2.9 billion worth of projects and private sector partnerships were announced through the Tourism Development Fund to support the development of integrated tourism destinations, increase the diversity of tourism offerings in the Kingdom and contribute to sustainable economic growth.
The year 1447 AH saw several landmark developments, including the laying of the foundation stone for the world’s largest government data center with over 30 million square feet of power capacity in Riyadh. The event also saw the official opening of Six Flags Qiddiya City, which was opened under the patronage of Riyadh Governor Prince Faisal bin Bandar, and the launch of Riyadh Airways’ first flight to London.
The World Bank Group has partnered with the Center for National Competitiveness to open a knowledge hub at its headquarters in Riyadh. Minister of Investment Fahad Al Saif inaugurated Lenovo’s Middle East, Turkiye and Africa regional headquarters in Riyadh, and Minister of Transport and Logistics Saleh Al Jasser inaugurated FedEx’s main center for logistics and express transportation services in Saudi Arabia.
A number of agreements were also signed, including a project agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Regional Center for Quality and Excellence in Education, and an agreement to establish an ACSAD branch headquarters in Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia achieved new international achievements, including gaining membership on the Executive Committee of the International Federation of Journalists, which will lead the Federation’s activities for the next four years, as well as the Presidency of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) during 1447 AH, membership on the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Directors, Chairman of the Secretariat of the Arab Council of Ministers of Housing and Urban Development, and membership in the International Council. Unanimous election to membership of the Maritime Organization (IMO), United Nations Committee on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), member of the Management and Investment Council of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), co-chair of the United Nations Data Governance Working Group, member of SDAIA of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI), and member of Marden of the International Mining and Metals Council.
With the participation of UNIDO’s 173 Member States, Riyadh hosted the 21st United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) General Assembly, which concluded with the Riyadh Declaration on Strengthening International Industrial Cooperation. In the environmental field, Saudi Arabia achieved a qualitative milestone by restoring the first million hectares of degraded land under the Saudi Green Initiative.
