Faiz Ahmad Kidwai, Consul General of India was the chief guest at the event, along with other dignitaries including Dr. Adil Bushnak, Chairman of Bushnak Group. Distinguished guests, students, proud parents, faculty members and other members of the Indian community were present at the ceremony. The proceedings were carried out by Sajida Fakhri, a gold medallist in the MA in English program from IGNOU. The ceremony began with the recitation of the Holy Qur'an, followed by an inaugural speech by Riaz Mulla, the General Manager of Education Consulting and Guidance Services. Mulla highlighted the journey of IGNOU in Saudi Arabia since 2004. “IGNOU-Saudi Arabia started in 2004 with 64 students and, by the grace of Allah, has now surpassed more than 2,500 students, of which 70 percent are female,” he remarked. He added that, to date, nearly 600 students have graduated from the institution in Saudi Arabia. IGNOU Saudi Arabia has, within the past few years, produced nine gold medallists, out of which five have won consecutive gold medals for the MA in English. The remaining students include two BA gold medallists and one for a postgraduate diploma in Financial Management. Dr. Bushnak expressed appreciation to IGNOU staff members and students and added that even Saudi students should seek admission to IGNOU. This year, 117 students received their certificates at the ceremony, including 23 BA, 15 B.Com, one BCA, 15 B.Ed, seven MA English, one M.Com, five MBA and 47 Diploma in Management students. All graduates were awarded degree certificates by Consul General Kidwai. Alia Hamid Ali received the gold medal for the MA in English. It is her second gold medal from IGNOU as she received the accolade for her BA in 2008. Amina Nooriya received the gold medal for the BA in English. The Consul General congratulated all the students and wished them good luck. He said that IGNOU is the world's premier university in providing distance education.
