RIYADH: Preparations are underway in Riyadh for the launch of the International Education Conference and Exhibition 2022 on May 8, with experts and specialists from around the world taking part. It will be one of the largest education forums to be held in the Middle East since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and will focus on “urgent issues in education, presenting opportunities for developing education, and exchanging expertise and experiences that reflect the desire for global competitiveness,” said Ahmed Al-Nashwan, chairman of the conference’s scientific committee. Among those taking part in the conference are: Nuno Crato, former Portuguese minister of education, Stefania Giannini, assistant director general for education at UNESCO, Andreas Schleicher, director for education and skills at the OECD, Fernando Reimers, professor of practice in international education at the Ford Foundation, Sir Steve Smith, special representative of the prime minister for education in the UK, and local and foreign researchers.  Ahmed Al-Nashwan. (Supplied) Nazim Al-Zahawi, secretary of state for education in Britain, Tarek Shawky, Egypt’s minister of education, Hussain Al-Hammadi, UAE minister of education, and Jaime Saavedra, global director of education practice at the World Bank, are also expected to participate. The scientific committee reviewed urgent issues in the educational field, especially those emerging during the pandemic, such as e-learning issues, digital transformation, and innovation in education. Al-Nashwan told Arab News that the committee discussed the development of educational curricula, modern trends in teaching and learning, best practices in quality education and alignment with sustainable development goals, financing, and investment and privatization in education. Speakers will address educational policies “in light of the challenges facing education and how to deal with them to ensure the sustainability of the educational process, as well as the future vision of education, and to come up with a forward-looking vision for the education sector and provide solutions that contribute to raising the level of its outputs following international standards and indicators.”