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Under the patronage and presence of His Royal Highness Prince Turki bin Talal bin Abdulaziz, Governor of the Asir Region and Chairman of its Development Authority, King Khalid University inaugurated the "Institutional Excellence in University Education Forum" this morning. The forum is organized by the University's Agency for Administrative Affairs and was held in the presence of presidents and vice-presidents of Saudi universities, a number of educational, civil, and military leaders, and representatives of the private and non-profit sectors at the Exhibitions and Conventions Center in the University City in Al-Fara’a.
His Highness began the ceremony program with a tour inside the exhibition accompanying the forum, during which he was briefed on the wings of the participating universities and entities. The teams presented their experiences in institutional governance, digital transformation tools, expenditure efficiency, and initiatives to improve the university environment and quality of life, in addition to platforms for partnerships and institutional innovation, in an interactive presentation that reflects the reality of institutional practices within the university education system.
The ceremony included a speech by His Excellency the University President, Prof. Faleh bin Rajaallah Al-Sulami, who welcomed the forum's guests and stressed that universities today are considered one of the most important drivers of institutional development in the Kingdom. He stated that excellence represents a strategic necessity to raise the efficiency of decision-making, improve outcomes, and create value, in line with national directions in governance, technological transformation, human development, and achieving a sustainable impact on society and the knowledge economy.
The Vice-President for Administrative Affairs and Chairman of the Scientific Committee, Prof. Mohammad bin Hamed Al-Buhairi, also delivered a speech in which he explained that the Scientific Committee's work was built on three main pillars: alignment with national program goals, methodological rigor in selecting themes and participation, and building a sustainable impact that reflects on the student, employee, academic, and the institutional system as a whole. He pointed out that the forum's themes cover leadership and governance, expenditure efficiency, digital transformation and data, quality of university life, human resources, and institutional reputation and communication.
The speeches were followed by a visual presentation titled: "Institutional Excellence... From Ambition to Measurable Impact," which reviewed the most prominent paths of transition from theoretical initiatives to measurable impact within the university, the link between excellence and national transformation goals, models of governance and expenditure efficiency, and the roles of data and digital transformation in raising decision reliability. The attendees then watched another visual presentation featuring the words of His Royal Highness Prince Turki bin Talal under the title: "This is how the people and land of Asir see it."
His Highness then officially inaugurated the forum by launching its scientific programs and specialized workshops, signaling the start of sessions that bring together a selection of local and international practitioners and experts to present qualitative experiences in university education and discuss ways to enhance institutional capacity and transform practices into measurable results.
The honoring segment also took place, where His Royal Highness Prince Turki bin Talal honored the sponsors and partners of the forum with commemorative shields, in appreciation of their contribution to enabling this event and supporting institutional excellence systems within university education.
The ceremony concluded with a group photo of the Prince with the leaders and vice-presidents of Saudi universities and the participating entities, signaling the launch of the forum's activities, which runs on October 27-28, 2025, through scientific sessions, platforms for institutional experiences, training workshops, and exhibition areas for qualitative experiences and initiatives for partnership and institutional capacity building.
It is worth noting that the forum is held in its first edition with the participation of more than 60 entities from within the education sector, government agencies, and the private and non-profit sectors, as part of the university's endeavor to highlight institutional excellence practices within the Saudi university system and build a comprehensive national platform for showcasing experiences, exchanging knowledge, and forming partnerships, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of university education and supporting national development priorities.
