JEDDAH: The 33rd Janadriyah Festival, an annual celebration of Saudi heritage and culture, that got underway on Thursday, will see a series of seminars and other events in Riyadh featuring guest speakers from the Kingdom and around the world, who will discuss a wide variety of cultural, political, social and literary subjects.
In addition to the events in the capital, poetry nights will be held throughout the Kingdom as part of the festival, along with special events at literary and cultural clubs in Jeddah, Najran and Dammam.
The festival kicks off on Saturday with events at the InterContinental Hotel in Riyadh that will include a talk on the role of women in Saudi Vision 2030. Those who will participate in the discussion include Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Development Tamader bint Yousef Al-Rammah who will speak on “The Labor Ministry’s Efforts in Training and Empowering Women;” Shoura Council and Inter-Parliamentary Union member Dr. Hoda Al-Helaissi, who will discuss “Saudi Women and International Conventions;” Dr. Hind bint Mohammed Al-Asheikh, the director the women’s branch at the Institute of Public Administration, who will discuss “Women and the Employment Market, Opportunities and Training Areas;” and Huda Al-Ghoson, the executive director of human resources at Saudi Aramco, who will discuss “Aramco’s Efforts in Training and Empowering Women.”
Indonesia, the guest of honor country at this year’s festival, is the focus of a seminar on Sunday, also at the conference hall, titled “Indonesian-Saudi Relationships: Prospects and Aspirations.” The topics that will be discussed include: “The Depth of Saudi-Indonesian Relationships and their Development,” “Saudi-Indonesian Relationships” and “Prospects for Economic Relationships and their Development.” The event will be hosted by Dr. Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Salamah, director of the King Saud Institute for Diplomatic Studies.
On Monday, the conference hall will host an event titled “Al-Quds: Key to Peace in the Arab-Israeli Conflict,” the speakers at which will include Grand Mufti of Al-Quds and Palestine Sheikh Mohammed Ahmed Husain.
The subjects up for discussion include: “Why is Al-Quds Key to Peace, Arabs and the Palestinian Cause?” “Saudi Arabia and the Palestinian Cause” and “Jordan as the Future of the Palestinian Cause in the Current Situation.”
The seminar will be chaired by Dr. Saleh Al-Khuthlan, professor of political science at King Saud University and a member of the Shoura Council. It will be followed by a seminar titled “Renewal of Religious Discourse,” which will discuss “Legitimate Speech: Criticism and Innovation” and “Terrorist Ideology and its Fundamentals in Arab Countries.”
“Cybersecurity in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” is the subject for discussion on Tuesday. The specific subjects that will be explored include “Security Threats on Space Technology and the Internet,” “Cybersecurity” and “Identity and Digital Citizenship.”

It will be followed by a seminar titled “Saudi Diplomacy and Regional, Arab and International Stability,” which will discuss “Saudi Foreign Policy Strategy,” “Humanitarian Factors in Saudi Diplomacy,” “Saudi Diplomacy and the Islamic Perspective,” “Saudi Diplomacy and the International Dimension,” “Yemen in Saudi Diplomacy” and “Saudi Diplomacy and the Arab Dimension.”
During an event titled “The Kingdom and the Revival of Tangible and Intangible Heritage” on Wednesday, the topics under discussion will include “The Kingdom’s Efforts in Tangible Heritage Preservation,” “Arab Manuscripts in the World: Italy, France, Great Britain and America,” “Arab Manuscripts in the Arab World,” and “Mechanisms for Intangible Heritage Preservation.”
On the same day, “National Identity at a Time of Tension and Intellectual Transformations” will include discussion of “Nationalism, Livelihood and the Virtual World,” “Assertion of National Identity and Confirmation,” “Citizenship Characteristics and Nation-Building Mechanism,” “Citizenship and National Security” and “Cultural Fortification for Youth and Promotion of Nationalism and a Sense of Belonging.” This session will be followed by “Iran and Regional Security,” which will discuss “Iran and Arab Regional Security,” “Iran and Gulf Regional Security” and “Iranian Strategy for Destabilizing Regional Security.”
On Jan. 14, a seminar titled “Media, Fear and Brutality Propaganda” will be held at King Saud University, during which the following topics will be discussed: “Security Factors in Media Repercussions and Fear Propaganda,” “The Brutality Syndrome in Arab Media” and “Public Role in Promoting Fear and Brutality Propaganda.”
A day later, Al-Imam Muhammad Ibn Saud Islamic University will host a discussion titled “Islamic Ideology and Cultural Communication Issues.”