RIYADH — A three-day international conference and exhibition on training and development will kick off at Princess Noura Bint Abdulrahman University (PNU) here on Monday. Education Minister Azzam Al-Dakhil will open the event, which is part of the university's programs to serve executives and managers involved in training, talent hunt and human resources development. Thirty-two internationally-renowned speakers will participate in the conference, which will hold 21 scientific sessions to discuss seven themes. It will also hold 12 workshops. The conference and the exhibition are aimed at imparting knowledge and exchanging expertise on all issues pertaining to training, human resources development and talent hunt. The participants will also discuss ways and means of removing hurdles in the path of the talented young men and women in the Arab world. PNU Rector Huda Al-Ameel said the university is deploying all its resources to support Saudi women in all walks of life. "We are seriously endeavoring to make a footprint in women's higher education and for this very purpose we are applying the best and most recent strategies," she said. The rector said the university is constantly upgrading its academic programs and is having educational participation with the renowned women educational institutions in the world. She said the university is presenting, for the first time in the Kingdom, three training programs which are accredited by international training centers. "International training instructors are teaching these programs," she added. Fatin Al-Zamil, undersecretary of the university for development and quality, described the conference as "an international mob with a local flavor" and said the conference and the exhibition are targeting every individual in Saudi society whether in the public or private sector. "The development of the national talent is the focus of the Kingdom's development plans which put special emphasis on the training and development of Saudi cadres," she said. "Through this conference, we will review the best international experiments of discovering, maintaining and training talented Saudis," she said. Abeer Bint Ali Al-Harbe, dean of the university's department of promotion and development of skills, said specialists from both public and private sectors will participate in the conference. She said a large number of thinkers, decision makers and leading personalities from regional and international organizations will also attend. "The conference is an area dedicated for brain storming, exchange of knowledge and review of the best methods to manage talents," she said. Al-Harbe said the conference is also an international meeting point the people who are seriously endeavoring to realize development and progress. "The university will host a distinguished group of businessmen and women who are aspiring for institutional development and excellence," she said. Al-Harbe said the directors of the departments of human resources development will exchange expertise with a view to arriving at the best methods of talent management. "The participants will discuss the challenges facing talent management and development in the Arab world and means of confronting them," she said. Al-Harbe said the conference will also focus on the most recent tools and applications being used in training and development of skills for employees, leaders and students. She said the conference will discuss ways and means of developing methods of training and retaining skillful employees.
