Saudi Heritage Shines at Canberra’s National Multicultural Festival 2026

SA News Canberra: The Saudi Arabia Embassy in Australia took part in the annual National Multicultural Festival, held in the Australian national capital, Canberra, from 6 to 8 February 2026.

The Saudi pavilion at the festival attracted many visitors and offered festival-goers an insight into the Kingdom’s historical and cultural identity, featuring curated photographic displays and documentary highlighting archaeological and heritage landmarks from across Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Australia, H.E Sultan Fahad bin Khuzaim, said the exhibition reflected the depth and richness of the Kingdom’s cultural and heritage identity, aiming to introduce audiences to Saudi Arabia’s history and long-standing cultural traditions.

The pavilion included a dedicated section on Saudi calligraphy and showcased scale models and visual displays highlighting the heritage of AlUla and Diriyah, alongside Saudi architectural concepts that blend traditional influences with contemporary design, reflecting the continuity of Saudi heritage through a modern lens.

Visitors to the Saudi pavilion were also welcomed with traditional Saudi hospitality, including the distribution of Saudi dates and Arabic coffee, offering an authentic cultural experience and enhancing engagement with the display.

The National Multicultural Festival, held annually in the heart of the national capital, brings together participants from more than 120 countries and is regarded as one of Australia’s largest celebrations of cultural diversity.

GAIN Summit in Riyadh to Showcase Global Experiences on AI Use in Supporting Business Leaders

The third edition of the Global AI (GAIN) Summit, organized by the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA) will be held in Riyadh on September 10-12.

The summit will showcase the global experiences in the field of artificial intelligence technologies, including those that focus on the importance of business leaders’ understanding of rapidly developing AI technologies, and reflecting on how to increase production driven by strategic decision-making.

The deliberations of over 300 speakers, including experts, specialists, and decision-makers from 100 countries will present business leaders and those interested in the field of data and AI with promising options and opportunities to benefit from the technologies.

The speakers will deliberate on the most effective methods of utilizing AI to make strategic decisions, support responsible leadership, analyze the extent of the impact of AI on the growth of business activities and productivity, and motivate employees within an attractive work environment that meets the aspirations of business leaders.

The summit will underscore the importance of senior leaders and policymakers in making strategic decisions, determining the scope and directions of work, and achieving a competitive advantage for business. These decisions are guided by organizational policies, available resources, future plans, and other decisions based on AI.

According to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers, productivity growth and improvement of manufacturing processes were five times faster when AI was used to adjust processes, identify shortcomings, and reduce waste and errors.

Predictive maintenance can also reduce downtime and speed up the pace of production, allowing the plant to increase production with the same or fewer inputs.

GAIN Summit in Riyadh to Showcase Global Experiences on AI Use in Supporting Business Leaders

The third edition of the Global AI (GAIN) Summit, organized by the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA) will be held in Riyadh on September 10-12.

The summit will showcase the global experiences in the field of artificial intelligence technologies, including those that focus on the importance of business leaders’ understanding of rapidly developing AI technologies, and reflecting on how to increase production driven by strategic decision-making.

The deliberations of over 300 speakers, including experts, specialists, and decision-makers from 100 countries will present business leaders and those interested in the field of data and AI with promising options and opportunities to benefit from the technologies.

The speakers will deliberate on the most effective methods of utilizing AI to make strategic decisions, support responsible leadership, analyze the extent of the impact of AI on the growth of business activities and productivity, and motivate employees within an attractive work environment that meets the aspirations of business leaders.

The summit will underscore the importance of senior leaders and policymakers in making strategic decisions, determining the scope and directions of work, and achieving a competitive advantage for business. These decisions are guided by organizational policies, available resources, future plans, and other decisions based on AI.

According to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers, productivity growth and improvement of manufacturing processes were five times faster when AI was used to adjust processes, identify shortcomings, and reduce waste and errors.

Predictive maintenance can also reduce downtime and speed up the pace of production, allowing the plant to increase production with the same or fewer inputs.

Saudi Embassy in Canberra Celebrates Kingdom’s 93rd National Day

Saudi Arabia Ambassador to Australia His Excellency Mr Sultan Bin Khuzaim speaks at the event.

Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Australia His Excellency Mr Sultan Bin Khuzaim hosted a reception on Monday 25th September 2023 on Saudi Arabia’s 93rd National Day.

The event held at the Hayatt Hotel in Canberra was attended by dignitaries, including Australian government officials, members of parliament, academics, diplomats, Arab and Muslim community members, and Saudi students and businesspeople.

H.E Khuzaim highlighted the Strong relations between Saudi Arabia and Australia. ” The two countries enjoy a cooperative and friendly relationship. The volume of two-way trade reached 3.3 billion AUD in 2021-2022, while investments in agriculture, mining, renewable energy, construction, education and technology, are close to 8.8 billion AUD.”

“The expansion in the Saudi hospitality and tourism sector, along with a great focus on healthy eating, provides opportunities for premium food and agriculture exports from Australia to Saudi Arabia.”

“As Saudi Arabia seeks to develop its people to people links with Australia, visas upon arrival are now available for Australians to visit the Kingdom and enjoy the Riyadh Season, the Red Sea International Film Festival, the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, to name a few.” Ambassador to Australia H.E Sultan Bin Khuzaim said .

Saudi  Embassy in Australia celebrates the International Day of the Arabic Language

The Saudi Embassy in Australia celebrated World Arabic Language Day in the presence of the charge d’affaires of the Saudi Embassy. Mr  Abdullah Al-Sharif , The Saudi military attaché in Canberra and Wellington, Brigadier General Talal bin Hussein Al-Assaf and a number of officials and representatives of diplomatic missions in Canberra.

The charge d’affaires   Mr Al-Sharif, stressed how keen the Kingdom’s leaders are to preserve the Arabic language and spoke about the King Salman International Complex for the Arabic Language and the importance of the Arabic language and its status.

The Chargé d’affaires of the Cultural Attaché, Dr. Abdul Bari Al-Tamni, delivered a speech in which he addressed the status of the Arabic language and the importance of celebrating it on the International Arabic Language Day.

The event included a lot of linguistic information and rich links to digital libraries of Arabic books – the cultural and intellectual heritage of the Arabic language. The Arabic language film was also shown.

The ceremony concluded with a speech by Mr  Ali Al-Khathami, a PhD student, on the contribution of the Arabic language to human civilization and culture.

Saudi Embassy In Canberra Celebrates 91st National Day

The Saudi Embassy in Canberra celebrated the Kingdom’s of Saudi Arabia 91st National Day,  On this special day, Saudi Ambassador to Australia, Mesaad bin Ibrahim Al-Sulaim, outline some of the kingdom’s long-term goals.

Vision 2030

Introduced in 2016, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has stated this initiative’s targets merely form the initial phase of transformation necessary to enable Saudi over the coming decades “to grow and to prosper and to compete at the world level,” he said.

Furthermore, he is already looking towards 2040, when the focus of the transformation shifts from enabling to achieving global competitiveness.

Meanwhile, in October Saudi Arabia will host the inaugural Saudi Green Initiative (SGI) and The Middle East Green Initiative (MGI) in Riyadh. Both are aimed at reversing environmental degradation and climate change. Intended to reshape its economy, they “provide an ambitious roadmap for the kingdom and region to confront the generational challenge and meet worldwide emissions targets,” the ambassador said.

The goals include raising vegetation cover, reducing carbon emissions, combating pollution and land degradation, and preserving marine life.

COVID-19 response

“The Kingdom pledged $500 million to support global efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic and urged other countries and organisations to help bridge an $8 billion financing gap,” ambassador Al-Suleim said.

They also allocated “$150 million to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovation, $150 million to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations, and $200 million to other health organisations and programmes.”

Recently the kingdom also pledged $5.3 million to provide coronavirus vaccines for 22 developing countries to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tourism

As soon as travel back into Australia is normalised the ambassador invites you to visit Saudi Arabia.

“Saudi Arabia offers geographical and historical diversity, highlighting natural resources, archaeological treasures and historical places that meet the aspirations of tourists,” he said.

The authority has prepared programs to attract tourism, and has been activating tourism investment and the role of the private sector.

Saudi-Australia relations

The ambassador said that Australia and Saudi Arabia’s friendly relationship is underpinned by commercial ties and shared membership in the G20. This is complemented by Australia’s engagement with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which are both headquartered in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia is an important trading partner in the Middle East region for Australia, but the ambassador also said there is significant potential for economic ties to grow, given our areas of mutual interest such as in agriculture, mining services, education and construction.

Vision 2030 also provides opportunities for Australian business in priority sectors. “Saudi Arabia’s needs are well suited to Australian capabilities,” he said.

سفارة المملكة بأستراليا تحتفي بالطالب السعودي الذي أنقذ مواطناً أسترالياً من الغرق

سفارة المملكة بأستراليا تحتفي بالطالب السعودي الذي أنقذ مواطناً أسترالياً من الغرق

  اقام القائم بأعمال سفارة خادم الحرمين الشريفين لدى أستراليا الوزير المفوض مشعل الروقي اليوم بمقر السفارة في كانبيرا حفلا تكريمياً للطالب المبتعث أحمد بن عبدالله المحيميد الذي قام بإنقاذ مواطن أسترالي مسن من الغرق في أحد أنهار مدينة ملبورن الأسترالية .
وأشاد القائم بالأعمال في كلمة ألقاها خلال الحفل بشجاعة الطالب السعودي المبتعث ، ومبادرته الإنسانية الشجاعة ، وعدها نموذجًا مشرفا لقيم ومبادئ المجتمع السعودي في مد يد العون للمحتاجين .
من جهته عبر الطالب المحيميد عن شكره للقائم بالأعمال على حفل التكريم ,مؤكدًا أن ما قام به يُعبر عن القيم والمبادئ التي تربى عليه الشباب السعودي في مملكة الإنسانية .
كما ألقيت خلال الحفل كلمتين لوكيل وزارة التعليم الأسترالية وعائلة المواطن الأسترالي الذي تم إنقاذه عبروا فيها عن الشكر للمبادرة البطولية التي قام بها الطالب المحميد وتقديرهم لقيم وأخلاق ومبادئ المجتمع والشباب السعودي.
وفي نهاية الحفل سلم القائم بالأعمال والملحق الثقافي بأستراليا الدكتور هشام خداوردي شهادة تقدير للطالب المبتعث.

SAUDI STUDENT HERO RISKS HIS LIFE TO SAVE A STRANGER’S: This came in line with my Saudi values and principles .

Saudi’s student selflessly jumps into Melbourne’s Yarra River on 9pm Sunday 21st January to save a stranger’s man aged in his 50s has been hailed a hero.
Without a thought for his own safety, Saudi student’s Ahmed Almohaimeed jumped into the water to try and assist the man.
“I didn’t think so much about myself. I jumped over and I tried to push him up,” Mr Almohaimeed said, “this came in line with the Saudi values and principles and I will do it again he said.
Despite his best efforts, the stranger man aged in his 50s was too heavy and emergency services pulled both men to safety.
Mr Almohaimeed was taken to the Alfred Hospital barely conscious while the other man, aged in his 50s, was rushed to the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
The older man remains in a critical condition after suffering a suspected heart attack.
The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia Chargé d’Affaires Mr Meshal Hamdan Alrogi praised the student hero for his action, saying he “bravely stood up and ventured his life, to save the old man he does not know” , “He is a true hero and we all proud of him .”
Mr Almohaimeed has since been praised by friends, along with delegates from the Saudi Arabian embassy who paid a special visit from Canberra.

Saudi Arabia welcomes Palestinian reconciliation move

An official source at the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomes the developments of current reconciliation efforts, expressing hope that Palestinian Consensus Government succeeds in achieving national unity and ending the Palestinian internal division with all its painful impacts.
The source stressed that this step is significant turning point in the history of the Palestinian cause. It will – God willing – enable Palestinians to achieve a unified Palestinian front in a manner that fulfills the aspirations of the Palestinian people. It will enable them to move forward with the political process in order to regain their legitimate rights.

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