RIYADH: King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) will launch the Qassim International Hackathon for Agricultural Technology, the largest of its kind in the Middle East in the agricultural sector, on Sept. 26.
The event is being supported by Prince Faisal bin Mishaal, governor of Qassim region.
The hackathon will be organized by KACST, represented by the Badir Program for Technology Incubators and Accelerators and in collaboration with the Faisal bin Mishaal bin Saud bin Abdul Aziz Community Foundation “Mojtamae.”
The event will consist of three tracks: Marketing and growth, management and follow-up of agricultural projects and the use of artificial intelligence and data in agricultural control.
FAST FACTS
- The Badir program was established in 2007 to improve technical entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia by guiding policy in collaboration with the private sector and universities.
- The program plans to support the establishment of 600 new companies that will contribute to the provision of 3,600 jobs for Saudis, as part of the National Transformation Program 2020.
Nawaf Al-Sahaf, CEO of the Badir program, said that the agricultural sector is one of the main pillars for supporting the Vision 2030 reform plans as the sector provides 25 percent of the country’s food.
The sector also delivers SR53 billion ($14 billion) to the GDP and employs 450,000 people throughout the Kingdom, he said.
The hackathon is open to programmers, designers, entrepreneurs, web developers and those interested in the agricultural sector.
The Badir program was established in 2007 to improve technical entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia by guiding policy in collaboration with the private sector and universities.
Al-Sahaf said that the program plans to support the establishment of 600 new companies that will contribute to the provision of 3,600 jobs for Saudis, as part of the National Transformation Program 2020.