Solutions sought at International Humanitarian Forum in Riyadh

Riyadh hosted the opening day of Saudi Arabia’s first International Humanitarian Forum yesterday.

The two-day event is being held under the patronage of King Salman and organised by the King Salman Humanitarian and Relief Centre (KSrelief).

The conference set out to deliver ways of dealing with the changing global humanitarian needs, organisers said.

The attendees will “review and adapt previous humanitarian initiatives to reflect the latest developments and realities in the field to better serve the victims of conflict, including refugees and others in need of urgent assistance”, KSrelief announced.

KSrelief has implemented 328 projects in 38 countries to date, with particular focus on Yemen, Syria, Iraq and Somalia.

State representatives, including Britain’s minister for the Middle East, Alistair Burt, the United Nations and more than 65 regional and international NGOs were expected to attend.

Heads private sector orghnaisations, academia and research groups are also attending.

The forum comes weeks after Kuwait hosted a three-day conference to raise funds to aid Iraq in its post-ISIL reconstruction. Gulf countries pledged almost 10 per cent of the estimated $88 billion (Dh323.18bn) needed to rebuild the war-torn country.