RIYADH: King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, will patronize Wednesday the opening ceremony of the 26th annual National Guards' Heritage and Culture Festival, “Janadriya 26”. Organizers say that preparations are in place in accordance with instructions from Prince Mite'b Bin Abdullah, Commander of the National Guard, and that this year's festival will see an extra presence from the fine arts. “The Arts Pavilion this year has really advanced in terms of the number of works on display and artists represented,” said Nasser Al-Hiniya, head of the Arts Committee. “It has a special section for the Autistic Children Society and children with special needs and a section on Arabic Calligraphy.” Al-Hiniya said a workshop will be open for female and male artists to display their work live. “Artists from the wider Gulf region will also have on show more than 200 paintings focusing on their love for King Abdullah, the King of Hearts,” he said. Festival programs will be made available to visitors to the annual festival, now in its 26th year. The 17-day long Janadriya Festival is estimated to attract more than two million visitors. Prince Mit'eb Bin Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, Minister of State and Member of the Council of Ministers and Commander of the National Guard, said the annual patronage of the leadership is an honor for the national guard and all participants. He also valued the participation of states from the Gulf Cooperation Council. He also welcomed Japan as an honorary guest, describing it as a way for people to become acquainted with the culture and heritage of friendly countries. Latest technology on display Japan will introduce some of the world's latest technology at the Janadriya Festival, according to an official from that country. “We will introduce technology that has not yet arrived in Saudi Arabia, including a 152-inch display monitor and giant 3-D displays that will arrive on the Kingdom's markets in a few months.” According to Fumio Iwai, Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission at Japanese Embassy in Riyadh, Japan has done extensive preparations to present the country's culture and heritage, the lifestyle – the traditional and the modern to the visitors at Janadriya. Folk activities are the main component of the festival's heritage village. The Heritage and Folk Arts committee is supervising the pavilions, emirates' buildings and the folk market. The activities include 300 different crafts and folk arts, in which regional emirates are participating with groups of about 20 to 25 members. Asir region's pavilion has completed all preparations prior to receiving visitors. Supervisor of the pavilion, Abdullah Shaher Asiri, said that the main features are all ready, including old houses, the theatre and exhibition. The Asir folk groups have also arrived. Asir's group is the largest at the festival with 186 members, he said. Asir will have 375 people participating, with 18 crafts pavilions.
