RIYADH — The King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba), in partnership with the Education Ministry, announced reaching an unprecedented historical record in the number of student enrolling for the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity "Ibdaa 2024". The number of students enrolled in the Ibdaa 2024 reached 210,448 male and female students, from 48 education departments within various regions of Saudi Arabia. This number of students enrolled to participate in the largest and most important student competition in the field of research has recorded an increase by 44% compared to the previous year. The competition will continue for a full year and will end with winning local creativity awards. This will be followed by the winning students moving to international participation and representing Saudi Arabia in the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF 2024) and other relevant international competitions. In the 15th edition of the Ibdaa, the number of students was unprecedented in the competition's history, where 210,448 students enrolled from different regions of the Kingdom. The 15th edition saw 113,000 female students and 97,000 males, representing 48 education departments, taking part. This is in addition to the students in the education department of schools outside Saudi Arabia. The number of students enrolling this year is the largest in the history of the Creativity Olympiad since its inauguration. The number is rising in a strategic partnership with the Education Ministry. The number of middle school students in all three stages who enrolled for the 2024 Olympics reached 94,000 male and female students, while the number of secondary school students in all three grades reached 116,000 students. As for the Saudi regions, Riyadh came on top with the largest number of students who enrolled in Ibdaa 2024 with 44,530 students, followed by the regions of Makkah, Asir, Jazan, Al-Sharqiyah, Al-Qassim, Madinah, Najran, Tabuk, Al-Jouf, Al-Baha, the Northern Borders, and Hail. Mawhiba Secretary General Dr. Amal Al-Hazzaa praised the partnership with the Education Ministry and its role in preparing the suitable atmosphere for the students in the general education stages. This in a way contributed in discovering and supporting the talented and creative Saudi students, in addition to developing their capabilities and developing their scientific projects in order to achieve the goals of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, as well as enhancing confidence in Saudi capabilities and energies to compete globally. The Ibdaa Olympiad seeks to develop the mind of the scientific researcher and thinker, as well as enhance the spirit of creativity of the participant. The competition comprises 21 scientific fields of competition among participants, including fields of national priority. The idea of Ibdaa is based on competition, as students present their scientific project in one of the Olympiad's fields, which is then evaluated and judged by specialized academics to determine the best participation according to specific criteria to qualify for advanced stages.
