Riyadh, Jul 22 (Arab News): The King Abdullah University for Science and Technology (KAUST) has been ranked first among 50 leading universities worldwide.

It has also ranked 19th among the 100 most developed institutions in the world in terms of the number of high-quality research publications, according to the 2016 Nature Index, which identifies ascendant performance in science and tracks the high-quality research of more than 8,000 global institutions.

Eight KAUST faculty members were also listed on the Thomson Reuters list of the world’s most respected researchers.

KAUST, founded in 2009, is a private research university located in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. In a record period, the university achieved its distinguished position among the world’s leading research and scientific universities based on its academic level, scientific and research outputs, innovations and discoveries contributing to a balanced economic growth.

The university has endeavored to harness science and technology for the benefit of humanity and to meet and promote the needs of society.

It has also attracted talented minds from all over the world and has continued its commitment to the principles of achievement, perfection, passion, inspiration, diversity, integrity and integration into society.

According to the Department of Innovation and Economic Development, the university is working to increase its contribution to the various economic fields. Moreover, it also endeavors to achieve a knowledge-based economy for the Kingdom as well as to promote the culture of entrepreneurship.