On Wednesday, December 20, 2023, Imam Mohammad ibn Saud Islamic University signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Digital Government Authority (DGA) in Ritz Carlton Hotel in Riyadh. This event took place as part of the 2nd edition of the Digital Government Forum, organized by the Digital Government Authority on December 19-20, 2023.
The MoU aims to regulate digital government work in government agencies to achieve a proactive, responsive, and capable digital government that can provide high-quality digital services. It also aims to achieve integration in the field of digital government between all government agencies, which contributes to increasing investment returns, which reflects on the value of the national economy.
The agreement also aims to provide a common ground between the university and the Digital Government Authority, which is the national reference in digital government affairs. A collaborative effort was reached between the two entities to execute both short-term and long-term training initiatives, establish specialized programs focused on shared interests, and create academic programs at the diploma, bachelor's, and master's levels.
Furthermore, the agreement seeks to foster collaboration in domains pertaining to open-source software, thereby aiding in the cultivation of expertise in this sector among academic institutions. This entails supporting software clubs and graduation projects that aim to raise awareness regarding open-source software providers, technologies, and products, as well as foster a technical culture in this field. Furthermore, the agreement intends to facilitate collaborative training within the software industry through the provision of training programs.
In conclusion, the agreement seeks to foster innovation and research and development through the formation of collaborative research groups between the authority and the university. Such endeavors would yield valuable scientific products and ranked research articles in the realm of free and open-source software technologies and products, which would fulfill the requirements of both entities.