-Al Khobar-
The 25th Meeting of Presidents and Directors of Universities and Higher Education Institutions in the GCC countries, hosted by Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University (IAU), concluded its events on- Thursday, January 26, 2023, with valuable recommendations.
The meeting was chaired by His Excellency, the President of IAU, Dr. Abdullah Al-Rubaish, and was attended by Their Excellencies, presidents and directors of universities and higher education institution. During the events of the meeting His Excellency, Dr. Abdullah Al-Rubaish highly expressed his appreciation to the role of the GCC Secretariat in organizing the meeting that resulted several impactive recommendations.
His Excellency, Dr. Al-Rubaish, mentioned a number of these recommendations, such as:
- Launching the Gulf database (Jisr) in its new form, introduced by King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) which is currently working on constructing a Gulf database governance procedures guide.
- Organizing workshops by (Deanships of Student Affairs and University Counseling Centers) in the universities and the higher education institutions of the GCC countries to discuss their experiences in protecting moral, religious, and family values of the Gulf societies. Moreover, emphasizing these values in the agreements concluded by the universities of the GCC countries with other international universities and educational institutions.
- Adopting a unified guideline for professional development of universities’ faculty members, prepared by Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University (IAU).
- Exchanging experiences in treating the weaknesses of the educational platforms used in the universities of the GCC countries. In addition, focusing on building the capabilities and the infrastructures of these educational platforms, instead of building a unified learning management system, as this will highly contribute to unifying the efforts and will allow the private sector institutions, interested in the educational sector, to provide solutions.
- Forming a workgroup from Kuwait University, Jeddah University, Doha University of Science and Technology, Taif University and King Faisal University: to work on offering joint academic programs in the field of future technologies by mapping all the academic programs in these qualitative majors, that are highly demanded by current and future job market; and to work on all the required procedures as stated in the strategic plan.
- Assigning the Committee of Deans, Colleges and Community Service Centers at the universities and higher education institutions of the GCC countries: to develop a joint volunteer program for Gulf students; and to work on all the required procedures as stated in the strategic plan.
- Assigning Kuwait University: to develop a program for cooperation, partnership, and academic-student research exchange between the GCC countries and the other countries; and to work on all the required procedures as stated in the strategic plan through developing a cooperation plan and common course of actions with the international countries and groups.
- Establishing a joint Gulf program, introduced by the IAU, and intended for professional development in the fields of teaching and learning, and academic leadership for faculty members.
- Providing a vision of academic programs designed for the handicapped in higher education institutions of the GCC countries, introduced by the Arabian Gulf University.
- Approving the request of Qatar University to establish a committee secretariat to the colleges of law in universities and institutions of higher education in the GCC countries.
