JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia has ranked among the top 50 countries in the world in the Nature Index Annual Tables 2021 for the amount of natural science research conducted last year.

It comes as a result of the Saudi leadership’s support for the national research and innovation system, said Dr. Munir bin Mahmoud El-Desouki, president of King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology.

He added that the Saudi leadership took “accelerated steps to promote the Kingdom’s global position” in scientific research by forming the Research, Development and Innovation Authority, headed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

El-Desouki said that the body will improve the Kingdom’s competitive ranking in scientific research and consolidate its leading global position, which will help achieve the objectives of Vision 2030 and aid in moving toward an innovation-based economy.

Within the rankings, the Kingdom maintained its position as the largest contributor among Arab countries for all natural sciences, and was the second-largest contributor among the West Asian, Middle Eastern and African grouping.

The Kingdom also topped Arab countries in all four unique natural science disciplines that were analyzed.

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