Riyadh – BETH | 19 Safar 1447 AH (13 August 2025)

Minister of Media Salman Al-Dosari: Vision 2030 is steering transformation domestically, regionally, and globally — at the 24th Government Press Briefing, which also hosted Minister of Education Yousef Al-Bunyan to present back-to-school updates and education system reforms.

Top highlights (ultra-brief)

Economy & investment

Nonprofit sector: +252% since baseline → 6,400+ organizations.

Commercial registrations: 1.7 million (+13% YoY).

Startup ecosystem: up 60 ranks to #23 worldwide; 5 Saudi “soonicorns” shortlisted.

Regional HQs: 616 global companies in Q1-2025 (surpassing the 2030 target of 500).

Saudi Business Center & e-Business Platform: 10M+ services delivered.

Industry & mining

Factories: from ~7,200 to 12,480.

Industrial investment: SAR 955bn → SAR 1.2tn.

Non-oil exports: SAR 178bn → SAR 607bn; Saudi products now in 180+ countries; “Made in Saudi” enabled 3,000+ export opportunities across 74 countries.

Saudi Industrial Development Fund lending (H1-2025): SAR 4.5bn; MODON: ~2,200 ready-built factories.

Mining: attractiveness rank #104 → #23; estimated mineral wealth SAR 4.9tn → SAR 9.4tn; active licenses 2,400+.

Health & culture

Jeddah: first WHO-recognized “million-plus healthy city” in the Middle East.

King Faisal Specialist Hospital study on robotic liver transplantation ranked among Top-10 most impactful (2024) by the American Society of Transplantation.

7 Saudi hospitals in Brand Finance’s Top 250 global hospitals (2025).

Culture nonprofits: ~1,000 entities; “Ebde’a” platform: 9,200+ licenses/permits by end-2024.

Housing

By directive of HRH the Crown Prince: +90-day extension to implement measures on land supply, white-land fees, and leasing controls; outcomes to be published — “good news soon.”

Media & sports

Confidence in Thmanyah (within SRMG) to broadcast Saudi competitions for 6 years, matching local and global audience expectations.

Education — fast headlines

Two-semester system (1447/1448 AH); 19+ strategic goals achieved.

Governance & operations: education directorates reduced to 16; 100% of O&M assigned to Tatweer Educational Holding.

Infrastructure: 75 new projects (SAR 920m); comprehensive maintenance for 15,000+ school buildings (> SAR 2bn); renovation of 1,400+ buildings (SAR 782m).

Early childhood: enrollment (ages 3–<6) >36%.

Gifted education: +10% YoY to 28k+ identified; 100k+ registered in 2024 (+72% YoY).

New school models: first Tech School for the Gifted (with Tuwaiq Academy), first Sports School (with Mahd), Arts & Culture Academy; expansion of tech-gifted schools in 5 regions.

Inclusion: 94k+ students with disabilities in integration programs.

Curriculum & digital: 27 digital courses; 19 interactive books; 50 courses revised; 6,700+ digital assets updated.

AI curriculum across all K-12 starting 2025–2026 (with SDAIA & MCIT) + Cybersecurity elective for secondary; Guidelines for using generative AI in education.

Teacher development: 520k+ training opportunities; global partnerships (NUS, Finnish Universities Consortium, UCL).

Chinese language: 100 teachers on scholarships; taught in 140+ public middle schools.

Unified admissions platform: 339k+ seats, 4,000+ majors, 28 public institutions; AI unit established; unified support portal launched.

Scholarships: since 2022 to Top-30 universities: 3,388 students; 2025 tally: 938.

Research & rankings: Saudi universities up in Shanghai (12), THE (32), QS 2025 (20); KFUPM #67, KSU #148, KAU #163; KAUST Top-10 globally in two SDG goals.

Private & nonprofit enablement: Madaris platform; 500+ investment opportunities in 63 cities; SAR 50bn expected over 5 years; 120 new PPP schools; 199 foreign education licenses since 2024; support for 1,069 newly established private schools.

Sustainable funding: “Sakhaa” portfolio (SAR 4.7bn); Ihsan Endowment (~SAR 400m); 2,000 scholarships for beneficiaries of the Martyrs & Wounded Fund.

Volunteering: 1.4m volunteers (national target exceeded); National Volunteering Award 2024; Scouts “Messengers of Peace” supported by Saudi Arabia ($50m+) with 2.3bn+ volunteer hours worldwide.