The very first Saudi conference in support of scientific research, organized by the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), will kick off on Sunday.
According to a KACST official, the three-day event, held under the slogan “funding, challenges and solutions,” seeks to gather professionals, decision-makers, business developers, service providers and beneficiaries from funding agencies, the government and research and development agencies, as well as the academic world and the industrial and private sectors, to discuss research and development support issues.
He said the aim of the conference is to discuss the prospects and challenges in garnering research funding, as well as promoting and increasing funding for research and identifying mechanisms to garner the most takers.
In addition, the conference will also identify different methods to measure the results of research and achievements.
Several themes will be discussed during four scientific sessions to select research priorities and identify the resources needed to fund research, as well as tips on how to manage research grants and benefit from research output.
Speakers will include Abdulaziz Al-Swailem, vice-president for scientific research support, Graham Harrison of the National Science Foundation, William Ollier from the University of Manchester, Mohammed Zamakhshary, assistant deputy minister for planning and training at Ministry of Health, and Fahad Al-Hussein, chief executive officer of TAQNIA.
