The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum entitled "Innovation towards Leadership" kicked off its sessions in Jeddah today, with a pioneering session in industrial innovation, during which axes seeking to consolidate the culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, its contribution to advancing national development, and the definition of leadership in industrial innovation were discussed. These sessions were attended by the deans of business schools, academics and specialists in the fields of innovation and entrepreneurship, and representatives of various business establishments and sectors. This forum coincides with Global Entrepreneurship Week.

Eng. Al-Badr bin Adel Fouda, and Director General of the General Administration for Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation, Dr. Majed bin Muhammad Al-Quwaiz participated in a session organized by Omar Kutbi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources and General Supervisor of the Ministry’s Agency for Industrial Empowerment.

The session of Modern Technologies in Industrial Innovation, which was held under the title "Innovation towards Pioneering", indicated that the forum touched upon the Kingdom's Vision 2030. The topics of "entrepreneurship competitiveness" and "entrepreneurs between reality and hope" were presented, while specialized workshops dealt with technology, energy, the environment and entrepreneurship, as well as issues of creativity and innovation, intellectual property and industry.

The session was moderated by the CEO of Desert Technology Company, Eng. Majed Al-Rifai, with the participation of the Dean of Scientific Research at the University of Jeddah, Dr. Muhammad Al-Qarni, an industrial development specialist under the Production and Advanced Manufacturing Department at the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, Eng. Ayman Al-Juhani, and the Director General of Technology Transfer and Marketing of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Dr. Basem Ismael.

It is worth mentioning that the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum works to empower owners of ideas and innovations through advisory sessions attended by specialists in the fields of entrepreneurship, technology and industry, and interaction by presenting projects and innovations in the exhibition accompanying the forum, which is attended by 20 innovators, male and female entrepreneurs. It contributes to the development and selection of ideas on the ground, amid aspirations to attract more than 10,000 innovators, including male and female entrepreneurs, owners of ideas and inventors, the business community and investors, to the forum.