Ibdaa 2026: Riyadh Governor Presides Over Closing Ceremony Of National Science And Engineering Olympiad

Riyadh Region Governor Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz presided over the closing ceremony of the Ibdaa Science and Engineering Fair, part of the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity "Ibdaa 2026." The event highlighted Saudi students’ scientific achievements and marked the conclusion of this year’s national competition at the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity.

Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz used the ceremony to convey greetings to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and to His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. The governor stressed that leadership support for education strengthens Saudi Arabia’s position in global scientific fields.

The Ibdaa Olympiad is held each year as a scientific competition under a strategic partnership between the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) and the Ministry of Education. The contest is based on individual research projects, which are assessed using specific scientific criteria by academic experts and specialised reviewers across many disciplines.

This year’s Ibdaa Science and Engineering Fair formed the fifth stage of Ibdaa 2026 and marked the 16th edition of the fair. At this stage, 200 student projects competed after qualifying from the earlier central fair phase. These projects covered 22 scientific fields, reflecting a wide variety of research interests among participating male and female students across the Kingdom.

The 200 projects displayed at the Ibdaa Science and Engineering Fair were selected from more than 34,000 projects submitted to the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity. Overall, more than 357,000 male and female students from different regions of the Kingdom registered to take part in the Ibdaa 2026 competition during this cycle.

Projects that achieve high evaluations at the Ibdaa Science and Engineering Fair move forward to further competitive stages within Ibdaa 2026. The best entries are nominated to represent Saudi Arabia at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), as well as in other international scientific exhibitions, competitions, and Olympiads, supporting wider participation by Saudi students in global scientific events.

With inputs from SPA