RIYADH — Saudi Arabia's Education Minister Yousef Al-Benyan on Wednesday outlined major progress in education reforms, including the integration of artificial intelligence into curricula, expansion of gifted programs, and the restructuring of administrative systems to boost school efficiency. Speaking at a government press conference in Riyadh, Al-Benyan said the National Curriculum Center had developed 27 digital courses, converted 19 into interactive books, and reviewed 50 more, while updating over 6,700 digital learning resources. The reforms, he said, are designed to create a globally competitive generation, with efforts targeting 19 strategic objectives that include modernizing curricula, training teachers, embedding AI, and expanding technical training. The ministry has consolidated educational administrations from 46 to 16, and fully outsourced operations, maintenance, and environmental quality management to Tatweer Educational Transportation Services Co., enabling educators to focus on teaching. New initiatives also aim to strengthen school-family partnerships and instill values such as national identity, commitment, and tolerance among students. On infrastructure, the minister said 75 new school projects were launched, more than 15,000 buildings underwent maintenance, and 1,400 facilities were renovated. Early childhood enrollment among Saudi children has reached over 36%, while the number of identified gifted students has risen to more than 28,000. Specialized schools for gifted students, developed with the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority and Tuwaiq Academy, are set to expand to five more regions next year. The ministry has also introduced AI curricula across all grades and a cybersecurity curriculum for high school students. Teachers and educational leaders received more than 5,200 training opportunities, including international programs such as professional master's degrees. Efforts to boost language skills include sending 100 teachers to study Chinese in China and expanding Chinese language teaching to more than 140 public middle schools. Al-Benyan said Saudi universities continue to climb global rankings, with 20 institutions now listed in the QS World University Rankings 2025 and three universities in the world's top 200. Since 2022, 3,388 Saudis have been sent to the world's top 30 universities under the King Salman Scholarship Program. In support of private sector engagement, the ministry launched the "Madaris" platform, offering over 500 investment opportunities worth more than SR50 billion over the next five years.
