KUALA LUMPUR: In recognition of his efforts to promote peace, solidarity and understanding among Islamic nations and the world at large, King Salman was conferred an honorary doctorate by the University of Malaya (UM) in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.
The degree was presented to the king at the UM by the sultan of Perak state, Nazrin Moizzuddin Shah, who is also UM chancellor.
In his acceptance speech, King Salman said: “The institutions of higher learning in Muslim countries must take on the challenge to produce more work that can contribute to the development of the Muslim world.”
He added that the Muslim world is facing “various challenges” in education and technical fields, besides political and economic constraints.
The UM is a top research university in Malaysia with more than 20,000 students and 2,000 academic staff. Its curriculum covers the full spectrum of learning, including arts, sciences and humanities.
King Salman is visiting Malaysia as part of his Asian tour, which will also take him to Indonesia, Brunei, China, Japan, the Maldives and Jordan.