Page 41 - U4SSC Factsheet, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, June 2020

Education

Category KPI Result Performance to Benchmark SDG

Student ICT Access 32.39 %

School Enrolment 97.51 %

Higher Education
Degrees
(per 100 000 17 233
inhabitants)

Adult Literacy 96.00 %

Riyadh performs well across all most of these indicators. For example, it benefits from the presence
of several universities, including the King Saʿūd University, the Islamic University of Imam Muḥammad
ibn Saʿūd, as well as a number of military academies such as the King ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Military College,
the King Khālid Military College and the King Fahd Security College.

The one area that should be a focus for development, however, is the provision of ICTs to students
in schools. A planned, integrative approach for all levels of education from the relevant level of
government’s education and technology departments is recommended.

Making learning smart: This should include adoption of e-learning systems for students and fostering
public-private partnerships that will invest in the city’s schools to develop a future labour force that
is ICT ready. The socio-economic disparities among various neighborhoods should be accounted for
and mitigated in this proposed approach. Policies should ensure inclusiveness by offering media,
internet, and digital literacy to all students, regardless of city area or socio-economic group. Investment
should also be made toward teacher support and other policies aimed at effective ICT use by school
administrators. Detailed ICT education itself should be integrated into the standard school curriculum.
Lastly, ICT introduction policies should employ incremental, agile and forward-looking pathways by
bringing in sustainable and easily upgradable ICTs into the schools.

For specific projects already planned and underway in this regard, please see the section on ‘Goals
and Projects for a Smart Sustainable Future’.

U4SSC Factsheet | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | June 2020 35