On Thursday, Ramadan 20, 1438H, the UQU President, and Chairman of the Grand Mosque Projects Supervisory Committee, Dr. Bakri M. Assas, paid a visit to the headquarter of Technical Committee for the 3rd Saudi Expansion Project, where he met with the head and members of the committee, and participated in several meetings.

The Head of the Technical Committee, Dr. Faisal Wafa, pointed out that Dr. Assas held the regular meeting with the members of the committee, where he was briefed on the agenda of the committee for the upcoming six months. He added that this meeting, which is the third meeting held in Ramadan, reflects his keen interest in assuring that the implementation of the programs planned for this month proceeds by leaps and bounds. Meanwhile, he expounded that construction projects in the Grand Mosque are put on hold during Ramadan, in order to maintain safety of its visitors. As a result, he added, more than 100 qualified engineers specialized in safety and occupational health were directed to work at other sites opened for visitors of the Grand Mosque in Ramadan. Dr. Wafa went on to say that the adopted approach is centered on making optimal use of the available potentials for the benefit of the guest of Allah (pilgrims), through the Technical Committee and the project contractor, in coordination with the Civil Defense and the General Presidency of Haramain Affairs. If followed that Dr. Assas met engineers of the Technical committee, who briefed him on their activities and achievements.

For his part, Dr. Wael S. al-Halabi, member and spokesman of the Technical Committee, mentioned that paid thorough attention to the directives given by Dr. Assas with the Committee engineers, during his meeting with them. Dr. Assas, according to Dr. Al-Halabi, reiterated that Almighty Allah has honored the Committee member by allowing them to serve His guests, and provide best-quality safety services at their sites. Dr. Assas expounded that, by qualifying Saudi engineers to participate in the vital projects, the Technical Committee seeks to go in line with the initiatives of the Saudi Vision 2030, which is centered on the Saudi citizen. Dr. Halabi went on to say that the Committee engineers explained the technical approach adopted to open and supervise projects, as well as following up the Committee's PMO, staffed with Saudi engineers by over 95%.

As the his tour came to a close, Dr. Bakri M. Assas, UQU President, and Chairman of the Grand Mosque Projects Supervisory Committee, delivered greetings of the Minister of Education, Dr. Ahmed M. al-Eisa, to the Committee members for their colossal efforts. He made clear that this visit comes as part of the efforts he makes in collaboration with the Technical Committee members, whom he takes great pride in as Saudi engineers and faculty members, with a view to serving our religion and our nation.

Dr. Assas added that what witnessed in the Technical Committee stands out as a proof that the Saudi citizen, once granted the opportunity, shows impressive capability of achieving success in the important and vital projects. He stressed that the high level of qualification of the Committee engineers is the output of the collaborative work of all Committee members. He reemphasized that the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, HRH the Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and HRH the Deputy Crown Prince, Prince Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, show keen interest in providing all means of comfort for the sons of this country.

Those projects, he stressed, aim at serving the visitors of the Grand Mosque; both Hajj and Umrah pilgrims. The Leadership's interest providing all means of comfort for the pilgrims is well embodied in the directives given by HRH Prince Khaled al-Faisal, Advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and Governor of Makkah Region. He stressed that what the Kingdom provides to visitors of the Two Holy Mosques is a source of pride for all of us.

As the meeting drew to a close, Dr. Assas received a souvenir from the Committee engineers. It was an aerial photo of the accomplished work in the 3rd Saudi Expansion Project, and the Circumambulation Capacity Raising Project.