RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launched the Strategy of the Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques Scholarship Program on Monday. The strategy marks the beginning of a new era in the scholarship program that will contribute to enhancing citizens’ competitiveness through upskilling people in new and promising sectors to fulfil the needs of the future labor market, Saudi Press Agency reported. The launch is also part of the Kingdom’s efforts to develop the capabilities of people and achieve Vision 2030 objectives. The Human Capability Development Program committee has developed the Strategy of the Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques Scholarship Program in collaboration with relevant entities, and the strategy is designed to cover different educational paths aligned with Vision 2030 priorities, programs, and the evolving needs of the labor market. The Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques Scholarship Program Strategy includes three strategic pillars, according to SPA. The first pillar raises awareness among students on the importance of early planning for their educational and practical journey at global institutions and universities in different fields. The aim of the second pillar is to create scholarship paths and programs in order to elevate the Kingdom’s competitiveness both locally and globally by focusing on future disciplines and fulfilling the needs of local and global labor markets in collaboration with top educational institutions. The third pillar ensures proper post-graduation follow-ups and guidance for scholarship beneficiaries, providing them with services to improve their readiness to join the labor market locally and globally. The Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques Scholarship Program Strategy consists of four paths with specific objectives. The “Al-Rowad” (pioneers) path aims to have students enrolled in the top 30 educational institutions around the world, in various disciplines, which will enable citizens to excel and compete in all fields. The “Al-Bahth wa Al-Tatweer” (research and development) focuses on sending post-graduate students to the best institutes and universities around the world to produce the scientists of the future. The “Emdad” (supply) path aims to meet the needs of the labor market in specific disciplines that are periodically updated through scholarships to the best 200 universities to ensure that the labor market is equipped with the required competencies. The “Wa’ed” (promising) path aims to train scholarship recipients in promising sectors and fields based on national demands from giga projects and priority sectors, such as manufacturing and tourism. The launch of the strategy is a continuation of the Kingdom’s efforts to increase citizens readiness for the future and to improve their global competitiveness. Students can apply for the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Scholarship Program through the Ministry of Educations “Safeer” platform.