Visitors to 13th Middle Eastern Education and Training Exhibition & Symposium (Meetes '08) that opened here Monday came away awed at the study chances on offer. “I never imagined I would find such a very good offer of one full month's English course in New Zealand for just SR 6100 and another one in Canada for the same duration for SR7,000 – including accommodations, ” said Saeed Al-Harbi, a visitor. Saudi and expatriate parents, students, academics and trainers filled the Jeddah International Exhibitions Center on the opening of the four-day event offering the latest information on post education, vocational training, teaching aids, educational equipment and training courses. Ali Bin Nasser Al-Ghafis, Governor of General Organization for Technical Education & Vocational Training (Gotevot), in his speech on inaugurating Meetes '08, outlined the enormous changes under way in the Saudi education sector. Saudi Arabian education depends on “Institution” “Investment” and “Incentive,” Al-Ghafis said. “ The Kingdom has demonstrated its commitment to these objectives by building new institutions and expanding the capacity of existing ones,” he said. “Institutions like Gotevot and the Human Resources Development Fund have drastically increased funding and efforts towards producing a world-class workforce capable of driving the Saudi economy forward.” The Governor lauded Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) for taking the lead in fostering and promoting the feasibility of education initiatives. “This was attained by a combination of private sector financial contributions and proper incentive packages,” Al-Ghafis said. “Thus SAGIA, along the government is clearly playing an important role towards better education.” __
