📍 Najran — Jumada I 5, 1447 AH (October 27, 2025)

Prince Turki bin Hathloul bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Emir of Najran region, praised the support and care given to gifted students by the Kingdom's leadership, affirming its ongoing commitment to empowering creative talent and strengthening their scientific and innovative capabilities to contribute to building a promising future for the Kingdom.

His remarks came during his inauguration of the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity exhibition, "Ibda' Najran 2026," organized by the General Department of Education in Najran region in cooperation with the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba), held at the Student House in Al-Fahd district.

The prince toured the exhibition's pavilions, which featured 200 outstanding scientific projects presented by male and female students from the region across various research and scientific tracks, and listened to explanations from the gifted students about their ideas and the stages of implementing their projects, which reflected the region's youth's level of scientific and creative awareness.

Fahd bin Ayed Al-Anazi, director general of business and corporate development at Mawhiba, said this year's edition of the "Ibda' 2026" exhibition recorded participation from more than 375,000 students across the Kingdom's regions, an indicator of the growing culture of creativity and innovation and the role of national initiatives in supporting gifted students. He added that Najran region achieved a qualitative leap in participation, registering more than 15,000 students — a 380 percent increase over the target — thanks to the significant efforts of the education department, teachers and supervisors in spreading a culture of scientific research and encouraging active participation.

The ceremony included a video presentation reviewing the stages of the competition and the participation journey in "Ibda' 2026," and the Deputy Emir honored participants and supporting entities in recognition of their contribution to the success of the event and support for the region's giftedness and creativity movement.

The "Ibda' Najran 2026" exhibition is a leading scientific platform reflecting the integration between education and innovation, helping to empower student talent to turn their ideas into influential research and innovation projects, in line with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 to build an innovative generation that leads the future through science and knowledge.