Speaking at a press conference announcing the inauguration of the First International Conference for Architecture in the Islamic World on May 23 to 28, Prince Sultan said SCTA wants to make the Kingdom’s Islamic architectural heritage thrive and is working to attract investments for this.

The chairman said the SCTA will adopt an international award to maintain heritage, the details of which will be announced during the conference. He also announced that 56 Islamic countries are to participate in the event.

“Whoever believes we have no architectural heritage is ignorant," said Prince Sultan, pointing out that the commission has detected 1,000 locations of architectural value in the Kingdom. He added that investing in the field would create jobs for the young.

Tourism at heritage sites form 50 percent of a country’s national tourism industry, said the prince, adding that such sites are turned into gold mines in other countries.  In 2009, the chairman announced, the Kingdom issued a royal decree prohibiting trespassing on Islamic heritage sites, admitting that some sites and locations had been overlooked in the past.

Prince Sultan commended people for working together in valuing and preserving heritage sites, including Taif’s historical downtown area and Qaisaria market in Hufouf.

He added that the Kingdom is rising to the challenge of generating income from its Islamic architectural heritage.