AL-BAHA, 27 July 2006 -- Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah laid foundation stones for more than SR2 billion worth of development projects at various locations in Al-Baha region yesterday, reported the Saudi Press Agency.
Two children welcomed the king with bouquets, showering his path with flower petals at Aqiq where the function was held.
King Abdullah began the series of inaugurations by first opening new projects worth SR500 million for the General Organization for Technical Education and Vocational Training (GOTEVT). They include a technical college at Al-Qelwah, a higher institute for technology for women, and seven institutes of vocational training, Labor Minister Ghazi Al-Gosaibi, chairman of the GOTEVT, said.
The king opened the Baha University project, which would be built on a 3-million-square-meter campus. The first phase of the university, including the construction of the faculties of science, engineering, applied medicine and a community college, is estimated to cost SR400 million.
More than 900 kilometers of road projects at an estimated cost of SR1.3 billion are currently being planned in various parts of the Kingdom. The king opened three projects at a total cost of SR360 million in the Al-Baha region yesterday. They included the 103-kilometer Baha-Mikhwa-Madlaif two-way road to link Al-Baha with the Red Sea at a cost of SR115 million, Transport Minister Jabara Al-Seraisry said in a statement to SPA.
The second project was the 50-kilometer road connecting Al-Baha with the Bisha-Riyadh highway cutting the distance from Al-Baha to the capital by 300 kilometers. The cost of the road is estimated at SR63 million.
The third road project inaugurated yesterday was the SR181 million 44-kilometer Al-Baha-Aqiq-airport road.
Speaking on the new health schemes in the region, Minister of Health Hamad Al-Manie said the 200-bed Baljurashi General Hospital has been upgraded to a 500-bed hospital besides the construction of 43 Health Care Centers at the cost of SR150 million.
The water projects launched by the king included a project involving 20 wells with a production capacity of 20,000 cubic meters per day.
The wells are to be dug at a location 90 kilometers away from Al-Baha. The project also includes an 81-kilometer pipeline with several pumping stations and an 11,800 cubic meter water tank, Water and Electricity Minister Abdullah Al-Hussayen said after the king inaugurated the projects.
The minister also stressed the importance of opening new dams in the region, which receives rainfall at the rate of 400 mm while the Kingdom average is 80 mm. The region already has 26 dams while four are under construction.
The water and electricity minister added that there are 12,500 electricity subscribers in the area while the cost of electricity production and supply in the region was SR600 million.
The king also opened a number of school projects in the region yesterday, Education Minister Abdullah Al-Obaid said. They include 31 schools for boys at the cost of SR125 million, 21 schools for girls at SR 80 million and 47 educational projects for boys and 16 projects for girls.
After the inaugural functions, the king viewed the models of various new projects. Municipal and Rural Affairs Minister Prince Miteb and Interior Minister Prince Naif were among the dignitaries who attended the functions.
© Arab News 2006
