Advisor at the Royal Court and Supervisor General of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Rabeeah said Saudi Arabia ranked first among donor states in offering official development assistance to low and medium income countries with a total of SAR26.71 billion (around $7.12 billion), according to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) data.
Data published by OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) showed the official development assistance offered by donor countries in 2021.
Al Rabeeah noted that this assistance constitutes 1.05% of the Kingdom’s gross national income, saying by this proportion Saudi Arabia has topped the donor countries and surpassed the target approved by the United Nations General Assembly in October 1970 that donor countries should allocate a 0.7% of their gross national income as official development assistance while seeking innovative sources of financing development in developing countries.
He noted that KSrelief is exerting relentless efforts to register the Kingdom’s humanitarian and development assistance in the Saudi Aid Platform launched by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in 2018, where assistance is documented in cooperation with relevant ministries and departments to highlight Saudi Arabia’s humanitarian and development identity.
The supervisor general also expressed appreciation for the great efforts of such agencies in documenting and recording the assistance provided by the Kingdom to the peoples and countries of the world through international platforms in accordance with internationally approved standards.
He said that the directives of King Salman and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, “have contributed to this big achievement that put the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at the top of international humanitarian action.”
He noted that Saudi Arabia, throughout its history, has always been a supporter for the needy wherever they are, and that it will continue to play this role.
Al Rabeeah extended his appreciation and gratitude to the wise leadership for its unlimited support and big concern for humanitarian action, which allowed the Kingdom to assume a prestigious global status in this field.
