RIYADH: King Salman Global Academy for Arabic Language, or KSGAAL, has announced the opening of registration for a higher diploma in Arabic, which started from Oct. 16.

This diploma program aims to enhance linguistic proficiency in government sectors by providing high-quality training in diverse areas of proofreading and qualifying specialists in this field.

The higher diploma program seeks to enhance linguistic identity and ensure adherence to the standards of Arabic language, explained KSGAAL Secretary-General Dr. Abdullah Al-Washmi.

The diploma also enhances the role of the Arabic language in professional fields, increases its effective use within Saudi entities and institutions, and contributes to meeting the labor market’s demands, Al-Washmi said.

He said that the higher diploma was accredited by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development and based on high-quality training standards.

Al-Washmi added that this certificate qualified trainees for an additional degree if they held the 10th rank or below within the public employee salary scale.

The program also aims to maintain the integrity of the language and support it in both pronunciation and writing, in addition to facilitating its teaching and learning both within the Kingdom and abroad.

Graduates of the proofreading diploma program are expected to possess advanced linguistic knowledge and skills.

This program qualifies its graduates for job opportunities as “linguistic specialists” and “proofreaders,” according to the unified Saudi classification of professions in both the public and private sectors.

The proofreading diploma is set to last for a full academic year, totaling 435 training hours.

Speaking the Arabic language enhances cultural and national identity as it is an integral part of this identity.

Consequently, proficiency in Arabic reflects employees’ respect for local culture and strengthens their national belonging, said Dr. Ayman Bayoumi Al-Jundi, a professor of grammar and morphology at Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University.

RIYADH: As climate change increasingly adds to the strains on national finances and economies worldwide, it is essential that international climate financing be significantly enhanced, a leading UN expert on the subject said on Thursday.

Simon Stiell, the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, added that increased access to affordable and reliable funding on a large scale is crucial for efforts to mitigate climate risks, encourage action and foster sustainable economic growth.

His comments came during a discussion about climate finance at a virtual event hosted by Brookings Institution’s Global Economy and Development program, as he highlighted opportunities to achieve meaningful progress in efforts to combat climate change and advance global development.

Highlighting the finance goals and plans he believes must be delivered next month at the UN Climate Change Conference, COP 29, in Azerbaijan, he said: “In the past decade, we have seen some real progress. Over a trillion dollars were invested in climate action last year, globally, up from a few hundred billion a decade ago.”

In 2022, developed countries provided more than $100 billion in climate financing to developing nations, Stiell said. However, even developed countries can struggle to properly address the effects of climate change, which are causing hundreds of billions of dollars of damage in rich and poor nations alike, he added.

“Under Brazil’s G20 leadership (this year), climate and finance ministers have finally been brought together,” Stiell said. “This essential collaboration must continue and be translated into clear outcomes.”

Discussions about financing for efforts to tackle climate change are critical to ensure all countries, in particular developing nations, small islands and the least-developed countries, receive the support they need to help reduce the effects of the environmental crisis and reduce emissions, he added.

“At COP 29 in Baku, all governments must agree to a new goal for international climate finance that truly responds to the needs of developing countries,” Stiell said.

“COP 29 must be the ‘stand-and-deliver’ COP, recognizing that climate finance is core business to save the global economy, and billions of lives and livelihoods, from rampaging climate impacts.”

This echoed a comment he posted on social media network X last week, in which he wrote: “The upcoming COP29 climate conference must be an enabling COP: Delivering concrete outcomes to start translating the climate pledges made by countries in last year’s COP28 UAE Consensus into real-world, real-economy results. It’s time to get the job done.”

The conference next month offers important opportunities to enhance climate financing, establish new global delivery objectives, and generate some much-needed momentum for existing commitments, Stiell said on Thursday.

“Ambitious outcomes at the annual meetings are vital to enable bolder climate actions that boost economies and strengthen societies everywhere,” he added.