King waives loans worth SR1.2 billion

Arab News
UNSHAKABLE BOND: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman along with Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal and National Guard Minister Miteb bin Abdullah while receiving scholars, princes and citizens who came to greet him in Jeddah. (SPA)

JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has approved a loan-waiver package of SR1.2 billion for 38,774 drought-hit farmers in the Arabian Shield areas (Al-Dera Al-Arabi).

“The King’s sympathetic gesture follows a recommendation by a committee which studied the farms affected by drought in these areas,” Abdul Rahman Al-Fadhli, minister of water, environment and agriculture, said.
Al-Fadhli, chairman of the Agricultural Development Fund Management (ADF), thanked the king. “The nation’s leaders are always keen to secure the citizens’ needs. They spare no effort in facilitating a decent livelihood for them and addressing their problems.”
Munir bin Fahd Al-Sahli, director general of ADF, said that the loan waiver came within the framework of unlimited support the agricultural sector receives in various forms.
The drought-affected farms are located within the Arabian Shield which covers Makkah, Asir, Al-Baha, Jazan and parts of Madinah, Riyadh, Qassim, Hail and Tabuk regions.