King's scholarship — cumulative since 2005
250,000+ Saudis funded to study abroad over two decades
Ambitious Nation pillar2 sourcesLast verified 2026-05-18
Hero metric
KASP cumulative beneficiaries
250K+
2005-2025250,000+ Saudis funded to study abroad over two decades
Publishers include: ICEF Monitor · Ministry of Education
The Story
Before
Access to top international universities for Saudis was limited to those with personal means.
Initiative
KASP, launched in 2005 by King Abdullah, fully funded Saudi students at qualifying international universities — tuition, living costs, and family travel.
Outcome
Over 250,000 Saudis have been funded since 2005. Currently 23,400 are studying abroad. The program has approved 200 foreign institutions.
For citizens
An entire generation of Saudi professionals — engineers, doctors, researchers, executives — received their education abroad on full government funding.
Timeline of Milestones
2005
KASP launched by King Abdullah
2014
Peak headcount: ~200K Saudis abroad
2025
250K+ cumulative beneficiaries
Evidence library · 2 primary sources
Sorted by tier, newest first
1 million+ Saudis trained in AI
Three-year target met in under one year
1.1M+
Saudis studying at the world's best universities
70,000 students abroad by 2030 — 23,400 already at top-200 institutions
23,400
6 million students on one school platform
98% of K-12 reached — equal access from Riyadh to remote villages
6M+
Active Madrasati teachers
525,000+ Saudi teachers operating in the unified digital platform
525K+
Initiative attribution: King Abdullah Scholarship Program (KASP); Ministry of Education. Citizen benefit category: Education & opportunity.