Jeddah, SPA:
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet's session at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah on Tuesday afternoon.
At the outset of the session, the King briefed the Cabinet on the results of his meetings with the new High Commissioner for the United Nations Forum of the Alliance of Civilizations, Miguel Moratinos, and British Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond.
The King welcomed pilgrims who started arriving in the Kingdom to perform the fifth pillar of Islam, praying to Allah Almighty to help them perform and accept their Hajj rituals, directing various governmental and civil sectors to facilitate performance of Hajj rituals for all pilgrims, provide security, stability and tranquility for them, and improve services being provided at land, sea and air ports and in various facilities on the routes of their journey to the Two Holy Mosques and holy sites, as it is usual every year since the founding of the Kingdom and carrying out this great honor to serve all pilgrims.
Minister of Media Turki bin Abdullah Al-Shabanah said in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency that the Cabinet renewed its call to pilgrims to devote all times to perform Hajj rituals, take care of their brothers and the privacy of the holy sites and their spirituality, keep away from everything that disturbs Hajj and its tranquility by raising any political or doctrinal slogans, and that such actions will not be accepted in any way, all necessary measures will be taken to prevent them, and regulations will be applied against anyone who perpetrates this.
The Cabinet praised the progress being made by Hajj services every year, commending in this regard Makkah Road Initiative, which is one of the initiatives being implemented within the National Transformation Programs 2020 to achieve the Kingdom's vision 2030 to improve the quality of services being provided for pilgrims, facilitate the performance of their rituals, and save times and efforts for pilgrims in a number of countries.
The Minister said that the Cabinet discussed a number of issues and latest developments at the international arena, commending the agreement during OPEC and OPEC+ meetings to extend the production reduction agreement until the end of the first quarter of 2020, which will contribute to the stability of oil markets.
The Cabinet also commended the agreement on the draft charter of cooperation between countries which would establish a sustainable cooperation framework aiming at long-term balance and stability of markets for the interests of producers, consumers and the global economy.
The Cabinet reaffirmed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's welcoming of the agreement reached in the sisterly Republic of Sudan, expressing the Kingdom's hope that this important step would be the start of a new stage of security and stability that meets the aspirations of brothers in Sudan. It also affirmed the Kingdom's steadfastness in support of Sudan and its people to achieve stability and prosperity.
The Cabinet issued the following decisions:
First:
The Cabinet approved an air services agreement between the Government of The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Republic of Seychelles.
Second:
The Cabinet approved a memorandum of understanding between the General Auditing Bureau of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the National Audit Chamber of the Republic of Sudan for cooperation in the field of supervision, auditing and professional work.
A royal decree has been prepared in this regard.
Third:
The Cabinet approved the E-commerce System.
A royal decree has been prepared in this regard.
Forth:
The Cabinet approved forming a board of directors for the Sustainable Agricultural Rural Development Program, under the chairmanship of the Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, membership of representatives of a number of government agencies and a representative of the Council of Cooperative Societies.
Fifth:
The Cabinet appointed Dr. Abdullah bin Hassan Al-Abdalqader as a retired member of the civil service and retired general Musaed bin Abdulaziz bin Shalhoob, as a retired military member to the Board of Directors of the Public Pension Agency. The cabinet also renewed the membership of Mazen bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir and Dr. Abdul Malik bin Abdullah Al-Huqail as members representing the private sector, in the Board of Directors of the Public Pension Agency.
Sixth:
The Cabinet amended the name of "Public Transport Authority" to the "General Authority for Transport" and amended the regulation of the Public Transport Authority, issued according resolution No. (323) dated 14/9/1434H, as stated in the resolution.
Seventh:
The Cabinet appointed Dr. Mohammed bin Saeed Al-Ghamdi, Dr. Maha bint Ali Al Khashil, Dr. Jawhara bint Fahd Al-Zamil, Jawahir bint Ziad Al-Sudairi, Fahd bin Mohammed Al Hammadi and Dr. Fouad bin Amin Bougari, as members of the board of directors of the National Center for Social Studies (NCSS).
Eighth:
The Cabinet approved promotions to 15th and 14th ranks and the post of ambassador, as follows:
1- Abdulaziz bin Ibrahim bin Abdulrahman Al-Nasser is promoted to the post of Director General of Administrative and Financial Affairs, at the Ground Forces (rank 15).
2- Fahd bin Ma'ayouf bin Haddaj al-Ruwaili is promoted to the position of Ambassador, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
3- Eng. Adel bin Abdullah bin Abdulrahman Al Salem is promoted to the position of Advisor for Technical Affairs, at the Governorate of Riyadh Region (rank 15).
4- Abdulrahman bin Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Namla is promoted to the position of Financial Adviser, at the Naval Forces (rank 14)
5- Shohail bin Abdullah bin Hussein al-Siber is promoted to the position of Director General of Finance, at the Medical Services of the Armed Forces (rank 14).
6- Adeeb bin Salem bin Ghalib al-Otaibi is promoted to the position of Administrative Cousellor, at the Directorate General of Passports (rank 14).
7- Walid bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Mane'a is promoted to the position of Administrative Cousellor, at the General Sports Authority (rank 14).
8- Naqa'a bin Khalid bin Naqa'a al-Otaibi is promoted to the position of Regular Expert, Scale B, at the Experts Commission of the Cabinet (rank 14)
9- Bader bin Abdulaziz bin Hamad Al-Jarba is promoted to the position of Expert, Scale B, at the Experts Commission of the Cabinet (rank 14)
10- Mohammed bin Faleh bin Mutair al-Rizni al-Shammari is promoted to the position of Director General of Administrative and Financial Affairs, at the Experts Commission of the Cabinet (rank 14)
11-Moneef bin Falih bin Soudan al-Otaibi is promoted to the post of Director General of the Department of Auditing the Government Civil Sector Accounts, at the General Auditing Bureau (rank 14).
The Cabinet was briefed on a number of general issues on its agenda and made relevant recommendations, in their regard.