Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The seventh edition of the Misk Global Forum (MGF) was launched on Wednesday, under the slogan ‘The Big Now’ in the historic neighborhood of Diriyah, where leaders, thinkers, and innovators from all over the world gathered for the three-day event.

The forum, an annual flagship event hosted by Prince Mohammed bin Salman Foundation (Misk), served to empower and connect young leaders through discussions and networking to drive positive global change. MGF serves as a dynamic platform for fostering vibrant discussions, exchanging ideas, and creating networking opportunities to nurture youth potential, encourage collaboration, and catalyze positive global change.

In his opening speech at the forum, Dr. Badr Al-Badr, CEO of Misk Foundation, said that this edition is the largest in terms of the number of attendees exceeding 40,000. Al-Badr said that the forum’s slogan for this year, ‘The Big Now’ is derived from Saudi Vision 2030. ‘The Big Now’ aims to inspire young people to think big and take quick action to solve problems proactively. ‘Big’ symbolizes having ambitious thoughts and ideas while ‘Now’ emphasizes timely action, he explained.

The Misk head noted that the sub-theme of the forum “Think Big, Act Now” encourages young leaders to set daring goals, and take immediate and purposeful steps to realize their visions. Al-Badr highlighted that the Vision 2030 is the most eloquent example of this slogan. “This vision was preceded by another vision that was also powerful and that came from the country’s founder, King Abdulaziz, who said at that time his famous quote: “I will make of you a great people, and you will lead a luxurious life that was never experienced by your fathers or your grandfathers.”

Al-Badr noted: “Today we live this luxury of which the seeds were planted by our ancestors and we enjoy its fruits today, and now, decades after the founder’s statement, we are continuing this journey with Vision 2030, about which Prince Mohammed bin Salman said at the time of its launch: “We try to work only with dreamers; Those who want to create everything new in this world.”

Al-Badr emphasized that these remarks were what made the Misk Foundation invest SR4 billion ($1.6 billion) over the course of 10 years to impact the lives of more than six million young men and women and establish this forum that brings together dreamers under one roof.

Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman participated in the first session of the forum titled “Now the future of youth begins,” which highlighted the investment of youth and their exceptional abilities in shaping the future.

Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Ahmed Al-Rajhi spoke about the impact of investing in promising talents towards the new industry of tomorrow while addressing the session titled “The importance of developing human capital.”

Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef attended the session titled “Leading the Transformation: Paving the Way” during which he spoke about his experience and the most prominent challenges he faced in managing the transformation.

There are several zones at the forum. These include the ‘Stage,’ which is a space to present innovative and creative concepts and ideas, and provide the opportunity for speakers to inspire the audience by presenting personal experiences and stories; ‘Leaders Diwan,’ which is a space that connects young people with decision-makers, to talk to them face-to-face, to talk more about their personal experiences, and to know the requirements and needs of young people; and ‘Majlis,’ which is a space for getting to know each other, socializing, and sharing different experiences among them to benefit from the lessons they have experienced, in addition to talking with influencers in various fields around the world.

There is also ‘Skills Shop,’ which provides various workshops offered by major international and local companies for young people and is designed to highlight the most important skills required in the business world and provide them with various resources to support their professional capabilities.

The forum will see more than 50 public workshops that visitors can attend in person and via the virtual platform. The forum seeks to discover the capabilities of young people, stimulate their energies, and empower them in many fields in order to achieve economic and cognitive growth