THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY SYSTEM OF THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA Sari Hanafi Associate Professor at the American University of Beirut (Lebanon) 1. History of science: S&T institutions King Abdulaziz City for Science & Technology (KACST) is an independent scientific organization of the Saudi Arabian Government, established in 1977 under the name of Saudi Arabian National Center for Science & Technology (SANCST) and later in 1985 renamed as 'King Abdulaziz City for Science & Technology (KACST)'. 1 2. Governance of science: S&T system 2.1 Policies (especially S&T and R&D) No information available. 1 KACST is governed by a Supreme Committee, which is chaired by the Prime Minister (the King) and is composed of the ministers of the major ministries to which science and technology are of greatest relevance as follows: Prime Minister (Chairman) Deputy Prime Minister (Vice Chairman) Minister of Defense & Aviation & Inspector General (Member) Minister of Interior (Member) Minister of Higher Education (Member) Minister of Agriculture & Water (Member) Minister of Industry & Electricity (Member) Minister of Petroleum & Mineral Resources (Member) Minister of Planning (Member) Minister of Finance & National Economy (Member) Head of General Intelligence (Member) President of KACST (Member)
3. R&D performers (Establishments/ Institutions) Establishments/ Institutions Website references Scientific fields Legal status King Abdulaziz City for Science & Technology (KACST) www.kacst.edu.sa/eng/ Coordinating and cooperating with various universities, agencies and institutions concerned with research and technology, and encouraging Saudi experts to undertake research that will help promote the development and evolution of the society. (1977) Institute for Petroleum and Petrochemicals Research inst/papri/ To adapt and utilize the petroleum and petrochemical technologies in support of the economic, industrial and agricultural development plans of the Kingdom Institute of Energy Research inst/eri/ transfer and develop energy-related technologies appropriate to the needs and requirements of Saudi Arabia, its resources, and long-term plans; and to provide practical solutions in the drive towards energy conservation, load management, and increased energy efficiency. the Institute of Natural Resources and Environmental Research inst/nreri/ Studying local and global environmental problems and protection issues Computer & Electronics Research Insitute inst/ceri/ CERI was founded in 1992. It is aimed to be one of the leading institutes in the Kingdom in the various areas of Electronics, Computation and Communications public Space Research Institute 2 inst/sri/ transfer and adaptation of advance Technologies in the space and Aeronautics fields. It conducts scientific and applied Research and coordinates with universities and scientific centers and building manpower to serve the Kingdom's development plans. public 2 The Institute consists of the following centers: Satellite technology Center; Aeronautics Technology Center; Advanced Materials Technology Center; Photonics Technology Center; Saudi Center for Remote Sensing; Geographic Information System Center; Numerical Studies Center; Space Physics Center.
Table 3 Continued Establishments/ Institutions Website references Scientific fields Legal status The Institute of Astronomy and the Institute of Atomic Energy Research 3 inst/agri/ conducting and participating in active research in the fields of Astronomy and Geophysics with special emphasis on projects that have direct benefits to the well being of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Imam Mohammad Islamic University Islamic University of Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah King Abdul Aziz University King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals King Faisal University King Faisal University King Khalid Universit Naif Arab University for Security Sciences Prince Sultan University Umm Al-Qura University 3.1 S&T Human Resources 4. Sources of research Funding Table 4: S&T Input Output Indicators (1990 2002) Country expenditure on education as % of GDP expenditure on education as % of government expenditure R & D as % of GDP Patents 1990 1999 2001 1990 1999 2001 1996 2002 1991 99 Saudi Arabia 6.5 9.5 17.8 NA 0.14 103 Source: (Nour 2005: 257) 3 The institute includes the following departments and centers: The National Center for Non-Destructive Testing; The Astronomy center ; Saudi National Seismic Network (SNSN); Center of Exploration Geophysics; Center for Tectonic Studies; The Center for Sound Wave Imaging
5. Research Output 5.1 Institute for Petroleum and Petrochemicals Research Planned Research and Development Activities: 1. Oxidative dehydrogenation of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) : To develop new catalysts for oxidative dehydrogenation of LPG for conversion to Olefins, which are used as main feedstock in petrochemical industries, under optimum conditions with the aim of utilizing the gas produced in the Kingdom. 2. Oxidative dehydrogenation of Ethane: To develop new catalysts for production of ethylene from ethane by oxidative dehydrogenation process, which is a primary feedstock for a wide range of petrochemical products; and to investigate the optimum conditions for this process. 3. Development of catalysts for hydrocarbons cracking: To develop new catalysts for hydrocarbons cracking in the presence of hydrogen at low temperatures. 4. Production of Olefin-aromatics copolymers: To develop new industrial process for production of copolymer from aromatics, olefins and olefinic acids; 5. Development of metallocene catalysts in polymer synthesis : To develop metallocene catalysts for polymerization of alfa-olefins, which will lead to new type of polymers with new improved characterization; 6. Desulphurization of petroleum fractions using bacteria: To develop new techniques for removing sulfur compounds form petroleum fractions by using special kinds of bacteria; 7. Improvement of oil production methods: Studying of rock and sand mechanics for sand control in production wells in order to improve their performance and economics. 8. Construction of national data base for toxic and hazardous chemical used in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia : To construct a national data base for toxic and hazardous chemical in Arabic Language as a source of reference to chemists and non-chemists working in all the sectors, dealing with these materials; and for the government organizations in the Kingdom to implement the regulations to avoid its hazards. 5.2 Informal S&T structures (Academies, Associations, Professional societies, Research Networks, Journals) 6. Scientific co-operation and agreements KACST, through cooperative agreements with international science and technology institutions/organizations. The cooperative research programs have successfully completed several solar energy research projects, the establishment of a Saudi Center for Remote Sensing, the establishment of national observatory and an aquaculture research station and other projects. KACST has established several national research institutes. Among the institutes are the Institute for Petroleum and Petrochemicals Research, the Institute of Energy Research, the Institute of Natural Resources and Environmental Research, the Institute of Arid Lands Research, the Institute of Astronomy and the Institute of Atomic Energy Research.
7. Concluding section Despite the high standard of economic development as measured by GDP per capita income and Human Development Indicators in Saudi Arabia, this country show weak performance in terms of most of S&T input and output indicators. Most R&D and S&T activities are allocated within the public and university sectors, with very small contribution from the private sector. Saudi Arabia does not possess sufficient human resources necessary to promote S&T for development. Hence, they lag behind the rapidly advancing Asian countries in terms of S&T input and output indicators. Saudi Arabia show relative important number of patents (Saudi Arabia) during the last 8 years compared to other Oil monarchies, as it stimulate research investing 0.2% of GNP in R&D.
Annotated Bibliography Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) (1999a), Science and Technology Policies and Strategies for the Twenty-first Century. New York: United Nations. Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) (1999b), ESCWA Proceedings of the Expert Group Meeting on Science and Technology Policies and Strategies for the Twentyfirst Century, Beirut, 10 12 March 1999. E/ESCWA/ TECH/1999/8/Rev. 1, UN, New York. Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia UNESCO (1998a), Research and Development System in the Arab States: Development of Science and Technology Indicators 1998 (Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia/Technology/ 1998/Review No. 1). New York and Beirut: UN-ESCWA. Commission for Western Asia. Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia UNESCO (1998b), Research and Development System in the Arab States: Development of Science and Technology Indicators (Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia/Technology/1998/ 3). New York and Beirut: UN-ESCWA. Fergany, N. (1999), Science and Research for Development in the Arab Region. Cairo: Almishkat Centre for Research. Available at http://www.almishkat.org/publst.htm. Nour, Samia Satti (2005) «Science and Technology Development Indicators in the Arab Region: A Comparative Study of Arab Gulf and Mediterranean Countries. Science Technology Society. 10:2 (2005), Sage ations, pp. 249-275. Zahlan, A. (1999a), Science Policy for the Twenty-first Century: Mobilization and Development, in Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, Proceedings of Expert Group Meeting on Science and Technology Policies and Strategies for the Twenty-first Century. Beirut: Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, Beirut, pp. 14 16. Zahlan, A. (1999b), The Arabs and the Challenges of Science and Technology: Progress without Change. Beirut: Centre for the Study of Arab Unity.