JEDDAH: King Salman has directed that Saudi Electronic University in Riyadh be renamed after Prince Musaid bin Abdulrahman, following a recommendation by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The directive honors Prince Musaid for his distinguished service and contributions as one of the Kingdom’s prominent statesmen, the Saudi Press Agency reported. Minister of Education Yousef Al-Benyan thanked the king and crown prince for the directive, saying it reflected the leadership’s continued support for Saudi Arabia’s education system and commitment to strengthening the role of educational institutions in human development. Al-Benyan said naming the university after Prince Musaid paid tribute to his national contributions and preserved the legacy of a key statesman whose career was closely linked to important stages in Saudi Arabia’s development and institutional evolution. Prince Musaid, a brother of Saudi Arabia’s founder, King Abdulaziz, was born at Al-Hukm Palace in Riyadh in 1918. He attended one of the capital’s leading traditional Qur’anic schools before studying Islamic sciences and Arabic under several prominent scholars. He held a series of senior government positions, serving as an adviser to King Saud, president of the Board of Grievances in 1954, state auditor before the establishment of the General Auditing Bureau, royal adviser and Cabinet member in 1957, interior minister in 1960, and minister of finance and national economy in 1962. He died in Riyadh on Dec. 9, 1986. Prince Musaid was known from an early age for his interest in education, knowledge and culture. In 1944, he established Riyadh’s first public library inside his palace, assembling a collection of valuable books and manuscripts and opening it to students and visitors. Renaming the university, established in Riyadh in 2011, is intended to carry forward that intellectual legacy and preserve the memory of a national figure closely associated with education and public service.