DHAHRAN: The ninth Saudi Film Festival kicked off at the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) in Dhahran on Friday with local and international film and media professionals walking the red carpet.
Many of them expressed their excitement about the industry’s future in the Kingdom.
Saudi actress Reem Al-Habib told Arab News that, as a young girl, she could never have imagined her life as it is now. “Back in the day, I would never have thought that this would happen, but (Crown Prince) Mohammed bin Salman made me live this moment. I have goosebumps,” she said. “Now I can stand in my country and say I’m a Saudi actress and proceed from there. The world will look at us and take us as role models.”
Director Salma Murad, whose movie “Kabreet” is screening at the festival, expressed her excitement too. “The fact that the movie is real, and Saudi, and the fact that I am with my Saudi brothers and sisters, makes me very proud and happy,” Murad said. “I think this festival in particular promotes all filmmakers very positively, and thank God I’m part of this experience. My advice to the young ones is to keep at it. No matter how difficult it gets, just keep doing it.”
After the red carpet, participants headed to Ithra’s Cinema Hall where Saudi producer Salah Al-Fawzan — founder of Shamel Productions and producer of 34 feature films since the mid-Eighties — and Bahraini screenwriter Amin Saleh were being honored by the festival for their significant impact in the film industry, which has, according to the organizers, paved the way for cinema professionals today.
The winners of this year’s festival’s awards — valued at more than SR1.5 million ($400,000) — will be announced on May 11.
Saudi Film Festival opens with glamor and gratitude on the red carpet
https://arab.news/vqf6k
Saudi Film Festival opens with glamor and gratitude on the red carpet
- Saudi actress Reem Al-Habib told Arab News that, as a young girl, she could never have imagined her life as it is now
- Director Salma Murad, whose movie “Kabreet” is screening at the festival, expressed her excitement too
Saudi Food and Drug Authority pioneering digital health safety
- Digital foundation enabled the development of centralized dashboards that provide real-time analysis of adverse events
- Major improvement has been the use of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to ensure medication safety works smoothly
TOKYO: Saudi Arabia is establishing itself as a regional leader in digital health regulation by integrating advanced technologies into the Saudi Food and Drug Authority’s (SFDA) pharmacovigilance and cosmetic safety oversight.
In line with Vision 2030’s digital goals, these projects are creating new standards for using data to protect public health, according to the SFDA.
A report by the Oxford Business Group says the transformation began with modernising the National Pharmacovigilance Centre’s adverse reaction reporting system. Moving from paper-based submissions to the fully digital “Saudi Vigilance” platform marked a significant step forward.
The introduction of smart reporting forms with structured data fields and behavioural nudges grounded in psychological principles significantly improved reporting quality and completion rates.
This digital foundation enabled the development of centralised dashboards that provide real-time analysis of adverse events, enabling early identification of safety signals and under-reporting trends.
A major improvement has been the use of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to ensure medication safety works smoothly. By letting computers handle repetitive tasks like sorting reports and checking data, the SFDA has become more efficient.
The new RPA system for identifying safety signals has also sped things up. These technology solutions have made work easier and happier employees by eliminating boring manual tasks.
The SFDA’s digital changes also help prevent risks by using new online learning tools. The aRMMs e-learning system, with training videos about high-risk medicines, has changed how health care workers learn. Adding digital safety steps directly into hospital computer systems has also made a big difference. This new approach puts safety alerts and learning materials directly into doctors’ daily work, ensuring important information reaches them when they need it.
Digital innovation has also helped prevent medication errors. Moving from the old Phonetic and Orthographic Computer Analysis system to the new Saudi Name Registration (SNR) platform has made it easier to spot potentially confusing drug names. With better computer programs that check both Arabic and English names, plus real-time alerts and automatic updates, the SNR system is a big step forward in ensuring the safety of medicines before they reach the market.
Looking ahead, the SFDA plans to use these digital changes to make cosmetic products safer as well.
Planned projects using artificial intelligence include computer systems that spot rule-breaking, automated ingredient checks, and tools that read customer feedback to identify early warning signs.
This digital strategy puts Saudi Arabia ahead in new ways of making rules. By using artificial intelligence, automation, and data analysis in its work, the SFDA is improving how it tracks medicine safety and preparing for further progress in keeping products safe for consumers.
All these efforts support Vision 2030’s goal of building a knowledge-based economy and keeping Saudi citizens as safe as possible.
