HRH Prince Faisal bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz President of the Saudi Red Crescent Society

Visit to Republic of Ireland

At the end of the visit of the president of the Saudi Red Crescent Society, Prince

Faisal Bin Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz thanked both the Irish Government and the Irish community for their hospitality and warm welcome during his stay in Ireland.

The visit was organised in response to an invitation received from Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Micheál Martin during his visit to Saudi Arabia as part of the Taoiseach led Trade Mission in 2007. The visit was planned to provide the appropriate information on the potential available in Ireland that will assist the Saudi Red Crescent Society (SRCS) to identify partners to enhance and build its internal capacities in areas of Emergency Medical Services training and operation.

Minister Martin said that the visit represented a unique opportunity for Ireland to showcase a range of products and services which the Saudi administration are interested in purchasing. Ireland has been pursuing closer trade links with Saudi Arabia and our exports to that country are expanding. The Minister was confident that further contracts would flow in due course and said this visit represented another bridge in building up our trade relations with a range of countries in the region.

Prince Faisal praised the excellent planning and preparation of the visit by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has resulted in successful mutual understandings with several organisations that were identified as potential partners in developing the SRCS, particularly the internal capacities of human resources and software for emergency medical services operation.

During the visit HRH held meetings with an Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern, T.D. and Minister Micheál Martin, T.D., Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. HRH also met with Mr. David Andrews, Chairman, Irish Red Cross. In addition, HRH visited the O'Brien Institute in Marino, Dublin (Dublin Fire Brigade Training Centre) as well as Our Lady of Lourdes hospital in Drogheda for a demonstration of emergency medical procedures. Included in HRH itinerary, was a visit to the Chester Beatty library, which reflects the rich culture of Ireland and its interest in the diversity and complexity of major world religions.

As a conclusion to his visits HRH Prince Faisal has announced that the Custodian of

The Two Holy Mosques has decided to present a part of the Ka'ba cover to the library to be displayed in the appropriate section of the museum. In addition to this he requested the King Abdulaziz Library to cooperate with the Chester Beatty library, while Prince Faisal will donate audiovisual material on development of the Two Holy Mosques to help visitors understand facts of Islam.

HRH also agreed to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Irish

Red Cross to establish coordination and preparedness in disaster response situations, and also to utilize the Irish Red Cross first aid programs to educate the public through a dedicated website. In addition to this, the Saudi Red Crescent Society found that the EMT education in Ireland could provide Saudi technicians with high quality training programs under the supervision of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and other relevant bodies.

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