JEDDAH: Hundreds of purebred Arabian horses are to be paraded near Riyadh as owners vie to have theirs judged the most beautiful.
The 11th Championship for Purebred Arabian Horse Beauty starts on Oct. 27 at the Almortajaz Equestrian Center in Malham, north of the capital, under the patronage of Gov. Prince Faisal bin Bandar.
The three-day event, supervised by the King Abdulaziz Arabian Horse Center, will include around 350 horses and is considered one of the most important in the Kingdom.
Organizers said that the center maintains the highest international standards on horse safety.
Saudi Arabia meanwhile retained its status as the leading producer of Arabian horses, with 5,246 born last year.
The country’s top position, which it has held since 2016, was announced at the convention of the World Arabian Horse Organization in Jordan last week.
More than 30 of the organization’s members attended the meeting, held in the presence of Abdulaziz Al-Moqbel and Ahmed Al-Saneh, the director general and the director of registration respectively of the King Abdulaziz Arabian Horse Center.
The convention discussed developing the registration system for Arabian horses and the issuing of documents and genealogy records. Annual reports on Arabian horses’ registration for the WAHO member states were also reviewed.
Al-Moqbel expressed his gratitude to the Saudi leadership for its support of the purebred Arabian horses’ sector. He added that efforts are ongoing to develop fertile land to produce more animals.
Purebred Arabian horses the mane attraction at Riyadh beauty contest
https://arab.news/5buuu
Purebred Arabian horses the mane attraction at Riyadh beauty contest
- Organizers said that the center maintains the highest international standards on horse safety
National program identifies 165 native plants for afforestation efforts in Asir
- The survey is part of broader plans focused on restoring degraded land, using native vegetation
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s National Afforestation Program has identified more than 165 species of native plants suitable for afforestation in the Asir region, highlighting the ecological diversity of one of the Kingdom’s most environmentally varied areas, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The findings form part of broader national efforts to expand vegetation cover, address land degradation, and support sustainability goals linked to the Saudi Green Initiative and Vision 2030.
According to the program, the identified species are distributed across a wide range of natural environments in Asir, including mountainous terrain, highlands, slopes, valleys, plains, rocky landscapes, and coastal areas stretching from the Red Sea to Tihama.
The species belong to numerous plant families, including Fabaceae, Anacardiaceae, Burseraceae, Capparaceae, Ebenaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Malvaceae, Myrtaceae, Oleaceae, and Primulaceae, among others.
Plants suitable for afforestation range from large and small trees to perennial and annual shrubs, herbs, succulents, bulbs, and climbing plants.
Among the most notable species identified are the grey mangrove, mastic tree, mooring or ben tree, juniper, sycamore fig, wild olive, henna, wild jasmine, hawthorn, and arak.
The Saudi Arabian Botanical Society described the announcement as an important step in protecting plant diversity and strengthening the ecosystem conservation in the Kingdom.
Munirah bin Hamad Al-Hazani, founder and president of the society, said that prioritizing native species is central to sustainable afforestation.
“Focusing on the cultivation of native plants adapted to diverse environments forms the cornerstone of sustainable afforestation projects, as it plays a pivotal role in enhancing vegetation cover, combating land degradation, and conserving natural and financial resources,” she told Arab News.
Al-Hazani added that long-term success depends on cooperation between government bodies and the nonprofit sector, alongside community involvement and environmental awareness programs.
The National Afforestation Program has increasingly emphasized community participation, working with government agencies, private companies, and nonprofit organizations to support planting initiatives and environmental education. Its approach includes promoting volunteerism and discouraging harmful environmental practices, while focusing on the use of native plants adapted to local conditions.
Parallel efforts are underway in other regions of the Kingdom to support vegetation restoration through research and infrastructure development. In Jouf, often referred to as the Kingdom’s food basket, the King Salman bin Abdulaziz Royal Reserve Development Authority has established a Central Nursery and a Wild Seeds Research and Production Station to address the growing demand for reliable sources of native seeds and seedlings.
The project was launched in 2023 under the directive of Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif, the minister of interior and chairman of the authority’s board of directors.
Since then, the facilities has become a key component of vegetation restoration efforts within the reserve.
The authority has focused on building operational capacity by recruiting and training specialists to manage cultivation and research activities. The research and production station includes 14 mother-seed production fields containing over 400,000 trees and shrubs.
Planting began in late 2024, with more than 30 native plant species represented, selected for their role in the reserve’s natural ecosystem.
The facility also includes two seed storage units with a combined capacity of 3,000 kilograms. Seeds are collected annually from multiple sites within the reserve and used for seedling production habitat rehabilitation.
The Central Nursery spans 6,000 square meters and includes 30 greenhouses spanning 1,500 square meters, as well as two shade houses used during summer months. A plant hardening facility, designed to prepare seedlings for natural environmental conditions, covers 10,000 square meters and is divided into seven sections. The nursery’s annual production capacity reaches 1.5 million seedlings, representing more than 15 native plant species.
Together, these initiatives underscore the growing role of native plant research and propagation in Saudi Arabia’s afforestation strategy, particularly as the Kingdom works to balance environmental restoration with long-term sustainability goals.
