RIYADH — The Minister of Culture Prince Badr Bin Abdullah Bin Farhan has appointed Dr. Suzan Al-Yahya as director general of the Royal Institute Of Traditional Arts (RITA).

Dr. Al-Yahya will manage the institute’s affairs and develop the system of traditional arts according to the council's vision.

Dr. Al-Yahya is an academic with competency in art and is a faculty member at Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University. She has also worked as a consultant inside and outside the university.

Dr. Al-Yahya has a master degree in art and PhD in teaching technology. She also has a second PhD in educational policy and leadership from University of Northern Colorado in America.

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts is part of the Quality of Life program to achieve Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.

The institute aims to enhance the local culture sector by developing knowledge and to provide educational programs for the national talents in an academic form to ensure sustainability in Saudi traditional arts.

RITA will also work on the origins of heritage in the field of traditional arts in order to learn and understand ways to maintain it.

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts will launch its first phase of its training courses in September of this year.