Saudi Entertainment sector helps boost economy, social cohesion: Report

May 8, 2017

Riyadh, May 8: The entertainment sector supported by the General Authority for Entertainment (GAE) generates SR2.02 for every riyal spent on the organization of an event, according to a report by the GAE.

SEntertainment

Some 106 events organized in 21 Saudi cities in a period of less than one year were responsible for millions of riyals spent in the Kingdom, instead of being spent abroad, said the report.

Since its inception, on May 7, 2016, the GAE has adopted a clear-cut approach that focuses on empowering private sector institutions to organize and provide valuable programs using the latest developments in this industry and in line with long-standing values of the Kingdom, based on the teachings of Islam, the report said.

The entertainment sector, the report also said, is among the top job-generating and skill-supporting sector. It has also played a role in instilling the concept of volunteering, and in linking job seekers to businessmen, thus contributing to helping realize the Saudi Vision 2030, the report said.

GAE will go continue its programs and further boost the entertainment industry, and will seek to partner with the private sector, thus becoming a key job provider for Saudi youths, the report said.

GAE has so far provided some 20,000 jobs in this sector since its inception and supported some 106 events with visitors exceeding 2.3 million, the report said.

GAE plans to lend its support to more than 3,000 events that fall under seven categories, in cooperation with other government agencies, the report said.

The report said that GAE will play an important part in the realization of the Vision 2030 as it will support the efforts of private and non-profit sectors from different regions and provinces to organized entertaining events and functions, as well as help use government funds to establish and develop entertainment centers where citizens and residents can put to good use their capacities and talents.

GAE will also encourage local and foreign investors, partner with global entertainment companies to establish cultural and entertainment projects, such as libraries and museums, as well as support talented citizens, be they writers or producers, and encourage cultural and entertainment activities that cater to the taste of all categories of people, the report said.

GAE will strive to generate more jobs and support the economy through the sale of tickets and food, through transportation or indirectly through spending on goods and services linked directly to certain events, such as production and marketing services, the report added.

Detailing the social objectives, the report said GAE will provide different entertainment options in order to meet the requirements of different categories of population, will contribute to cementing social cohesion and tolerance, and improve the Kingdom’s image in the world.

According to the report, the number of visitors to GAE-sponsored events in 21 cities Kingdom-wide increased steadily from 34,000 in October 2016 to more than 2.3 million by the end of April 2017.

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News Network
May 1,2020

Dubai, May 1: Saudi Arabia has reported 1,344 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 24,097, the Ministry of Health announced on Friday.

The ministry also announced 7 more deaths and 392 new recoveries, raising the total number of fatalities and recoveries to 169 and 3,55 respectively.

Out of the 1,344 new cases reported today, 282 were confirmed in Riyadh, 237 in Madinah, 207 in Makkah, 171 in Jubail and 124 in Jeddah in addition to 114 infections in Dammam.

Authorities continue to urge people to stay at home unless necessary despite having relaxed some restrictions and curfews at the start of Ramadan.

Citizens and residents are allowed to go out for necessary needs between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. but must adhere to precautionary measures such as wearing a face mask and maintaining social distancing practices.

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Agencies
July 20,2020

Riyadh, Jul 20: Saudi Arabia's King Salman has been admitted to a hospital in the capital, Riyadh, for medical tests due to inflammation of the gallbladder, the kingdom's Royal Court said Monday in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency.

The statement said the 84-year-old monarch is being tested at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital. The brief statement did not provide further details.

King Salman has been in power since January 2015. He is considered the last Saudi monarch of his generation of brothers who have held power since the death of their father and founder of Saudi Arabia, King Abdulaziz.

King Salman has empowered his 34-year-old son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as his successor. The crown prince's assertive and bold style of leadership, as well as his consolidation of power and sidelining of potential rivals, has been controversial.

With the support of his father, Prince Mohammed has transformed the kingdom in recent years, opening it up to tourists and eroding decades of ultraconservative restrictions on entertainment and women's rights as he tries to diversify the Saudi economy away from reliance on oil exports.

The prince has also detained dozens of activists and critics, overseen a devastating war in Yemen, and rounded up top members of the royal family in his quest for power.

The Saudi king has not been seen in public in recent months due to social distancing guidelines and concerns over the spread of the coronavirus inside the kingdom, which has one of the largest outbreaks in the Middle East.

He has been shown, however, in state-run media images attending virtual meetings with his Cabinet and held calls with world leaders.

King Salman, who oversees Islam's holiest sites in Makkah and Medinah, was a crown prince under King Abdullah and served as defense minister. For more than 50 years prior to that, he was governor of Riyadh, overseeing its evolution from a barren city to a teeming capital.

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KT
April 14,2020

Dubai, Apr 14: Saudi Arabia reported 435 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 5369, the Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday.

According to the ministry of health the number of recoveries today are 84 cases, making total of recoveries in the kingdom 889.

The ministry also confirmed 8 deaths bringing the total number of deaths in the kingdom to 73.

Saudi Arabia imposed a 24-hour curfew and lockdown on the cities of Riyadh, Tabuk, Dammam, Dhahran and Hofuf and throughout the governorates of Jeddah, Taif, Qatif and Khobar. This week the curfew was extended until further notice.

Containment efforts
Saudi authorities are racing to contain an outbreak of coronavirus in the Islamic holy city of Mecca.

The total number of coronavirus cases reported in Mecca, home to 2 million people, reached 1,050 on Monday compared to 1,422 in the capital of Riyadh, a city more than three times the size. Mecca’s large number of undocumented immigrants and cramped housing for migrant workers have made it more difficult to slow the infection rate.

Saudi Arabia has reported one of the lowest rates of infection in the region, with around 5,000 cases in a population of over 30 million.

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