US, Saudi universities ink 6 deals during Prince Mohammed’s visit

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Saturday visited premier educational institutions in the US to develop a stronger relationship between the private sector and academia of the two nations, the Saudi Embassy in the US said in a statement.

The Crown Prince visited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University, where he discussed the importance of education and research to the success of Vision 2030 with top university officials.

The Crown Prince visited Harvard University, where he discussed the importance of education and research to the success of Vision 2030 with top university officials.

Prince Mohammed started his first, official, three-week long US tour last Monday. He is also scheduled to meet top business leaders and Hollywood fraternity members.

During his visit to the Greater Boston area, the Crown Prince oversaw the signing of several agreements between top Saudi and US universities, as well as private sector.

The agreements include:

1) A collaboration between Saudi Aramco and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has been signed to focus on global energy, climate, environmental sciences, and the transformation and sustainable development of the energy sector.

2) The Ibn Khaldun Fellowship program at MIT will be extended, with the support of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST). The program brings post-doctoral Saudi women scientists and engineers to MIT to conduct research and advance as leaders in their respective fields.  

3) SABIC and MIT agreed to focus on design and testing of a novel reactor for combustion pyrolysis of methane.  

4) KACST and MIT will further support the Center of Complex Engineering Systems to advance interdisciplinary research in complex engineering systems such as air and rail transportation systems, urban development, and the improvement of electrical grid and water distribution networks.

5) KACST and Brigham and Women's Hospital for the Center of Excellence for Biomedicine signed a deal to focus on three key medical research projects.

6) KAUST, Research Products Development Company RPDC, and Saudi VAX will establish the Saudi Vaccine and Bio-manufacturing Center at KAUST.