Accompanied by Prince Sultan Bin Salman, President of Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, Princess Astrid of Belgium visits the National Museum, where she was introduced to the Saudi-Belgian archeological project in Al-Ghat. – SPA



Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH – Saudi Arabia and Belgium signed on Sunday 15 agreements in the fields of infrastructure, sciences, health, transportation, energy, engineering, information technology, and communications.



Princess Astrid of Belgium, representing King Philippe, attended the signing ceremony.



The Council of Saudi Chambers (CSC) also signed a cooperation agreement with the Belgian delegation to bolster private sector relations between both countries.



CSC president Abdullah Al-Mubti told the Saudi Press Agency that the meetings between the Saudi and Belgian sides will continue and that more agreements are expected to be signed.



He noted that one of the agreements signed on Sunday involved the CSC and the Belgian Chamber of Commerce. A Saudi-Belgian business council will be set up according to the agreement.



Princess Astrid arrived in Riyadh on Saturday, leading a Belgian Economic Mission. She is also visiting Jubail and Jeddah.



Over 350 participants, of which executives of over 150 companies in various sectors are in the mission. Sectors as diverse as healthcare, infrastructure, energy and ICT, to name just a few, will be represented.



On Sunday, Princess Astrid held a working breakfast with the Vice Chairman and CEO of SABIC, Mohamed Al-Mady, to strengthen the bilateral relation between SABIC and its Belgian business counterparts.



A working session followed with the Mayor of Riyadh, Abdullah Bin Abdul Rahman Al-Mogbel, where Belgian companies will have the chance to present their know how in, for example, public lighting, cleaning of public roads, etc.



An opening session “Saudi at a glance” was held at the Council of Saudi Chambers in the presence of Princess Astrid.



On the last day of the mission, Princess Astrid will arrive in Jeddah to attend the opening of the Saudi-Belgian Business Forum organized in cooperation with the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry.



Belgian company Besix will present its activities in Jeddah, where together with Saudi Aramco it is laying the last hand on one of the most beautiful projects in the Gulf —the King Abdullah Sports City.



The remainder of the afternoon will be dedicated to healthcare when Princess Astrid will visit the King Abdulaziz University to open a Belgian-Saudi healthcare seminar and witness the signing of a cooperation between the Belgian company Mithra Pharmaceuticals and Jamjoom Medical Industries.



A special website has been created for this mission.



The URL is www.belgianeconomicmission.be.