His Highness Prince Dr. Faisal bin Abdulaziz bin Ayyaf, Mayor of Riyadh Region, sponsored the Azwah Forum and Award for Community Participation, attended by a distinguished group of leaders, experts, and practitioners in the fields of community and development work.
During the ceremony, His Highness honored the winners of Ezwah Award from both institutions and individuals, praising their efforts and initiatives in serving Riyadh and their awareness of the importance of community participation and its positive impact on all aspects of social life.
Ezwah Award aims to promote the concepts of community participation and motivate individuals, government entities, private sector institutions, and non-profit organizations to develop innovative initiatives that enhance quality of life within neighborhoods and reinforce active partnership between the Municipality and residents. It also extends Riyadh’s strategic goal of empowering the community to contribute to urban development and strengthening collaboration among various sectors to achieve shared objectives.
In his speech at the forum, His Highness emphasized that this award serves as a platform to honor impactful community figures and highlight inspiring models that have contributed to improving neighborhoods and the urban environment reflecting the Municipality’s continued efforts to encourage, empower, and inspire creativity and innovation across all segments of society.
His Highness further explained that the Municipality has launched three tracks for community participation: Consultation, Participation, and Empowerment. He pointed out that municipal initiatives have had wide resonance among residents; from the beginning of 2024 to mid-2025, more than 100,000 volunteers participated in the Municipality’s initiatives, events, and activities, alongside about 600 associations, carrying out over 7,000 days of continuous community work, benefiting more than 7.7 million people. He affirmed that the Municipality will continue doubling volunteer campaigns across various fields and neighborhoods of the capital.
His Highness also witnessed the signing of five cooperation agreements during the forum between the Municipality and several entities. The first was with the Sakhaa Program, aimed at creating joint developmental opportunities to empower the non-profit sector and achieve sustainable impact. The second was with Alfanar Company, to develop a public park with an area of 2,188 square meters in the Al-Nafl District, as part of a community initiative to enhance social responsibility and quality of life. The third was with Naif Al-Rajhi Investment Company, to develop a public park with an area of 5,517 square meters in the Al-Malqa District, within a similar initiative to promote community participation. The fourth agreement was with Yazid Al-Adwani Contracting Establishment, to construct a mosque with its facilities and a cemetery on an area of 254,500 square meters in Al-Dawadmi Governorate. The fifth agreement was with the late donor Lulwah Saud Al-Dawood – may God have mercy on her, to design and implement a fully equipped park and build a prayer hall in Hawtat Bani Tamim Governorate.
At the end of the ceremony, His Highness honored the winners of the Azwah Award for Community Participation. In the Municipal Volunteering Track (Individuals), first place went to Rafaa Al-Subaie, second to Abdullah Al-Harbi, and third to Khalid Al-Jabr. In the Municipal Volunteering Track (Volunteer Teams), the Walkers Team took first place, Eye of the Nation Team came second, and ProWin Team came third. In the Pioneering Community Initiatives Track (Individuals), Abdullah Al-Issa earned first place, Abdulrahman Al-Zahim second, and Salwa Al-Huqail third. In the Pioneering Community Initiatives Track (Organizations), the Quality of Life Program won first place, Khairat Charity for Food Preservation came second, and the Ministry of Sports took third.
In the Social Responsibility Track, first place went to the National Housing Company, second to Al-Rousan Contracting Company, and third to the Cooperative Insurance Company. In the Honorary (Appreciation) Track, Abdul-Salam Mohammed received the Ideal Citizen Award in the individuals category, while Al-Omair Trading and Contracting Company won first place in the institutions category.