In Cairo, Saudi students are planning a pavilion in honor of the selection of Riyadh as Capital of Arab Culture for the year 2000 at the People's Festival to be held at Ain-Shams University from April 1 to 10. The pavilion will present a visual display reflecting the cultural and civilizational renaissance witnessed by the Kingdom under the support and care of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz.
In Riyadh itself, Governor of Riyadh Province Prince Salman Bin Abdul Aziz will patronize on April 22 the first national cultural exhibition for children. The ten-day event is being organized by the Ministry of Education in cooperation with the Riyadh Exhibitions Company. On the second day of the exhibition there will be a symposium on the culture of the child, attended by Minister of Education Dr. Muhammad Al-Rasheed, to which over 70 government and private bodies have been invited, including the National Guard, King Abdul Aziz Public Library, the General Presidency for Girls' Education, the Ministry of Information, the association for disabled children, and the international organization, UNICEF.

Meanwhile, in London, U.K., the Saudi Information Center organized a lecture on the occasion of Riyadh's selection as Arab Culture Capital for 2000. Honorary Secretary for the Society of Arab Studies in the United Kingdom Eunice Thomson spoke of her experience in Riyadh in the late 1970s and again from 1988 to 1996. In addition to working with the Saudi Development Fund and the International Saudi Bank, she taught English to Saudi women. She has written two books about the Kingdom. In her lecture she spoke of the historic architecture in Riyadh that has been preserved by the Saudi government; of the gardens, farms, and wildlife areas around the capital; and of the annual Festival for Culture and Heritage at Jenadriyah. She remarked that anyone who knows Riyadh, understand why it was chosen as Capital of Arab Culture for the year 2000, adding that Riyadh reflects many aspects of Arab as well as Saudi culture.

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