CUSTODIAN of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah has recorded his name in Islamic history by embarking upon the largest expansion ever of the Grand Mosque in Makkah. Last month, he officially launched the historic SR40 billion extension project, which covers an area of 400,000 sq. meters. After completion, the Haram courtyards complex will accommodate about two million worshippers at a time. Services for pilgrims have received a boost in King Abdullah's rule. Last November, during Haj, a metro service linking the holy sites was inaugurated. A proposed SR37.5 billion high-speed train linking Jeddah to Madina via Makkah is also in the cards, with European and Asian companies locked in fierce competition for the project. Promoting peace In contemporary history, King Abdullah will be known as one of the most prominent leaders in the world through his call for dialogue between the followers of religions and contemporary cultures and civilizations, which was embodied in the first World Conference on Dialogue held in Madrid, Spain, in July 2008. The King has also embarked on a journey to promote dialogue between Muslims to maintain their unity and solidarity and to introduce Islam's message of tolerance and justice to non-Muslims. Over the past years, the King called on several occasions and platforms to bring about peace in place of disputes and conflicts, and to take dialogue as an approach to bridge the distances between the followers of religions, cultures and civilizations. Education The education sector, in King Abdullah's rule, has been witnessing gigantic achievements to keep pace with scientific and technical developments around the world. About a quarter of the country's budget is allocated for education each year. In May, earlier this year, King Abdullah opened Princess Nora Bint Abdul Rahman University, the largest women-only university in the world, covering 800 hectares on the outskirts of Riyadh. The new campus includes a 700-bed university hospital, 15 colleges, a central library, a conference hall, laboratories and three research centers for nanotechnology, information technology and biosciences. The university also has its own high tech transport system with automatic, computer controlled vehicles that link major areas of the campus. The university is designed to cater for more than 50,000 students, with 28,000 already enrolled – and 3,000 staff on board. King Abdullah also established in 2009 a world-class university for scientific research that is named after him. King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) focuses on research that applies science and technology to problems of human need, social advancement, and economic development.. In the past six years, the number of public and private universities jumped from 8 to 32. As many as 12 new university cities are being established in various regions. There are about one million male and female students and 42,000 teaching staff in Kingdom's universities, according to last year's statistics. In addition, 33,000 schools are currently accommodating more than 5 million students who are taught by 482,000 male and female teachers.
