Jeddah, 25 Jumada al-Thani 1447 AH (16 December 2025)

King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah today opened the Jeddah central exhibition of the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity "Ibda' 2026," organized by the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) in partnership with the Ministry of Education. The exhibition, part of the Olympiad's fourth stage, brings together 132 general-education students.

The participating scientific projects span 22 scientific fields grouped under four main tracks that reflect national research and development priorities: human health, leadership in energy and industry, the economics of the future, and sustainable environment and essential-supply resilience, a framework that ties student innovation to the Kingdom's development and economic challenges.

The exhibition includes intensive training workshops that help participants develop their research and presentation skills, alongside the judging of projects by specialized scientific panels of leading academics and experts, using precise criteria that weigh scientific originality, applicability and community impact.

The Ibda' 2026 central exhibitions mark a pivotal stage in the Olympiad, where projects are evaluated and the most outstanding are nominated to advance to the Ibda' Science and Engineering Fair, which in turn qualifies students to represent the Kingdom at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) and a number of other international scientific competitions.

The National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity "Ibda'" is one of the largest national programs dedicated to discovering and nurturing gifted students in science and engineering, targeting middle- and high-school students as part of an integrated national system that helps build a scientifically competitive generation and supports Saudi Vision 2030's goals of developing human capital and strengthening the knowledge economy.