The UK government and Saudi Arabia have agreed to a deal designed to support a range of endeavours from food security and clean energy to improved R&D connections.

Earlier this week UK science minister Andrew Griffith, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia minister of communications and information technology, the chairman of the board of directors of the Research Development and Innovation Authority, and His Excellency (HE) Abdullah Alswaha, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on plans to improve the two countries’ science and research links.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is on an ambitious journey to modernise its economy and harnessing the power of science and technology is central to that transformation," said Griffith. "This is a huge opportunity for UK businesses, scientists, and researchers.

"Collaboration on a global scale is an essential part of realising the UK’s ambitions in science and innovation. The sheer scale of Saudi Arabia’s aspirations means this relationship will be a key part of our own hopes for science and tech, in the years to come.”

The latest collaboration with Saudi Arabia follows SABIC (Saudi Basic Industries Corporation) and Alfanar committing to investing a combined total of £1.85 billion into decarbonisation and clean energy technology in Teesside.

“We are proud to partner with the United Kingdom to advance science and technology and strengthen the research and development capabilities across both nations,” said Abdullah Alswaha. “This agreement will drive collaborative efforts to harness innovation and address health, clean energy, and climate change challenges.”

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