| RIYADH, 11 September 2007 — Thousands of Saudi and foreign inventors will have the opportunity to display their inventions in the first-ever innovation exhibition to be held in the Kingdom, organized by the King Abdulaziz & His Companions Foundation for the Gifted (KAHCFG) and Saudi Aramco. Under the auspices of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, “Ibtikar 2008 — the 1st Saudi Innovation Exhibition,” will take place at the Four Seasons Hotel in Riyadh from March 1-5.
According to the organizers of the exhibition, patents will be registered for the best inventions displayed to protect the rights of inventors.
In addition, inventors from all walks of life will be given the opportunity to meet investors, bank executives, as well as representatives of financial institutions who seek to sponsor and commercialize inventions.
Several international organizations, including the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), are expected to participate in the local exhibition.
“The exhibition will target students, as well as other social sectors of the community,” said Khaled Al-Sabti, secretary-general of KAHCFG.
He said that both genders, male and female, from all over the Kingdom would be allowed to participate in the event. The exhibition will be open to both singles and families alike.
Due to the limitation of space, inventors will have to adhere to certain criteria to secure permission to participate. “As of this date, some 800 inventors in the Kingdom have registered their names to participate in the event, and the number continues to grow,” said Ahmed Al-Saadi, deputy head of the organizing committee that is representing Saudi Aramco in the exhibition.
The exhibition will also include workshops, lectures and showrooms for financial institutions participating in the event, according to Muhammad Al-Fawzan, the supervisor of the exhibition.
The exhibition is considered to be the first milestone in a long-term national strategy in science and technology where local talent is sought and invested, said Al-Sabti.
Answering a question about cooperation between organizers of the exhibition and the Ministry of Education, Al-Sabti said that according to an agreement with the ministry, schools would organize field trips to the exhibition to enable students to gain experience.
He also said there was an initiative to prepare a book in which all inventions displayed in the exhibition, as well as the names of inventors, will be listed for public viewing.
Saudi Aramco said that employees of the company have been awarded 60 international patents for inventions in the past five years. The company received an additional 150 patents, which were awarded to the company from an original number of 2,000 ideas submitted by employees for inventions, stated Muhammad Al-Ansari, an official at the Research and Development Center in Saudi Aramco.
Saudi and non-Saudi inventors in future can participate in the event by registering at the exhibition’s official website www.ibtikar.com.sa
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