Council of Ministers: Membership
The Council of Ministers was established by King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al-Saud in 1953. It consists of the King who is the Prime Minister, the Crown Prince who is Deputy Prime Minister, and Cabinet ministers. Under the bylaws announced by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud in September 1993, the Council is responsible for drafting and overseeing the implementation of the internal, external, financial, economic, educational and defense policies, and general affairs of the state. The Council meets weekly and is presided over by the King or one of his deputies.
On April 30, 2003, King Fahd issued Royal Decrees renaming a number of ministries, and dissolving two of them, effective May 3, 2003, to give a cabinet of 21 ministers with portfolio and 5 ministers of state in addition to himself as Prime Minister and Crown Prince Abdullah as Deputy Prime Minister. On December 23, 2003 he decreed a sixth minister of state with special responsibilities for the affairs of the Consultative Council (Majlis Al-Shura). On March 22, 2004, the Ministry of Labor and Social Services was divided into two, so that there are now 22 ministers with portfolio.On July 24, 2005, a new minister of state was appointed, with special responsibilities for foreign affairs. On March 25, 2011, King Abdullah issued a Royal Decree establishing the Ministry of Housing. There are now 23 ministries and 7 ministers of state, two of them with portfolio.
Previous changes are:
On May 7, 2016, the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources was renamed Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources; the Ministry of Commerce and Industry was renamed the Ministry of Commerce and Investment; the Ministry of Hajj was renamed Ministry of Hajj and Umrah; The Ministry of Water and Electricity was dissolved and a new Ministry of Water, Environment and Agriculture formed; the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowment, Call and Guidance was renamed Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance; and the Ministries of Labor and Social Affairs were integrated into the Ministry of Labor and Social Development.
On July 16, 2001, the Council of Ministers resolved to divide the Ministry of Agriculture and Water, and create a 23rd ministry; the new Minister was named on September 16, 2002, and the Ministry of Water came into effect on that date.On June 16, 1999, royal decrees made changes in the cabinet, and created a 22nd ministry, the Ministry of Civil Service. On August 2, 1995, King Fahd issued a Royal Decree dissolving the Council of Ministers and announcing the names of Ministers in the new Cabinet under his chairmanship.
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MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS:
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Prime Minister
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,
King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud
King Salman assumed the leadership of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on 3 Rabi' al Thani 1436H (January 23, 2015), on the death of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. He was Crown Prince to King Abdullah from June 18, 2012 to January 23, 2015.
King Salman was born in Riyadh in 1935 and received formal education at the Princes's School. He served as Acting Mayor of Riyadh, 1954; Mayor of Riyadh 1955-60; Governor of Riyadh Province, 1963-2011. In 2011, King Abdullah appointed him Minister of Defense in 2011 and Crown Prince in 2012.
Extended Biography
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MINISTERS WITH PORTFOLIO
Deputy Prime Minister
Minister of the Interior:
Crown Prince Mohammad bin Naif bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud
Born: August 30, 1959 in Jeddah
Education: BA in political science, USA, 1981
Positions Held: Assistant Minister of Interior for Security Affairs (1999-2012); Minister of Interior since November 5, 2012. Deputy Crown Prince and Second Deputy Prime Minister, January 23, 2015-April 29, 2015. King Salman named him Crown Prince and Deputy Prime Minister on April 29, 2015.
Extended Biography
Second Deputy Prime Minister
Minister of Defense:
Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud
Born: August 31, 1985
Education: BA in law, King Saud University
Positions Held: Secretary General of the Riyadh Competitiveness Center; special adviser to the chairman of King Abdulaziz Foundation; adviser at the Experts' Commission of the Council of Ministers; special advisor to the governor of Riyadh Province; President of the Crown Prince's Court and Special Advisor to the Crown Prince, since 2013; Minister of State and member of the Cabinet, 2014-2015. Chief of Royal Protocol, January 23-APril 29, 2015; special advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Minister of Defense since January 23, 2015. Named Deputy Crown Prince and Second Deputy Prime Minister on April 29, 2015.
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Minister of the National Guard
Prince Miteb bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud
Born: March 26, 1952 in Riyadh
Education: Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, United Kingdom, 1974; M.A. Military Science, Command and Staff College, Riyadh.
Positions Held: Member of the faculty of the National Guards military schools; chaired the committee charged with developing the curricula of the newly formed King Khalid Military College, 1982; appointed Commandant of the King Khalid Military College, 1983; Deputy Head National Guard military unit,1990-2000; Deputy Assistant Chief of National Guard for Military Affairs, 2000-2010; Deputy Chief of National Guard for Executive Affairs, June 11, 2010- October 20, 2010; Appointed Minister of State and member of the Council of Ministers and head of the National Guard, October 20, 2010. Minister of the National Guard since May 27, 2013.
Minister of Education:
Dr. Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Ahmed Al-Isa
Born:
Education:
Position: Named Minister of Education on December 11, 2015.
Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs:
Abdullatif bin Abdulmalik bin Omar Al-AsShaikh
Born:
Education:
Positions Held: Named Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs on January 29, 2015.
Minister of Foreign Affairs:
Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir
Born: February 1, 1962 in Majma'ah
Education: BA summa cum laude in political science and economics, University of North Texas, 1982; MA in international relations, Georgetown University, 1984; Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from the University of North Texas, 2006.
Positions Held: Joined the foreign service in 1987. Served at the Saudi embassy in Washington, DC, 1987-2000; Foreign Affairs Advisor in the Crown Prince's Court, 2000-2005; Advisor at the Royal Court, 2005-2007; ambassador to the United States, January 29, 2007-April 29, 2015. Named Minister of Foreign Affairs on April 29, 2015.
Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture
Born:
Education:
Positions Held:
Minister of Civil Service:
Khalid bin Abdullah Al-Araj
Born:
Education:
Positions held: Named Minister of Civil Service on January 29, 2015.
Minister of Finance:
Dr. Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf
Born: 1949
Education: PhD in Economics, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA; MA in Economics, Denver University, Colorado; BA in Economics and Political Science, King Saud University, Riyadh.
Positions Held: Lecturer in principles of economics 1971-1982, then associate professor of economics and head of the Department of Administrative Sciences 1982-1986 at King Abdul Aziz Military College in Riyadh; guest lecturer 1982-1983 at the College of Command and Staff; part-time advisor to the Saudi Development Fund 1982-1986; alternate Saudi executive director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) 1986-1989; Saudi executive director on the executive board of the World Bank Group 1989-1995; vice-governor of the Saudi Monetary Agency June to October 1995; Minister of State and Member of the Council of Ministers October 1995 to January 1996; Minister of Finance and National Economy 1996-2003; Minister of Finance since May 2003.
Minister of Health:
Dr. Tawfiq Al-Rabiah
Born:
Education: PhD in Computer Science, University of Pittsburgh; MS in Computer Science and MS in Information Science, King Saudi University; BA in Financial Management and Mathematics, King Saud University.
Positions Held: Assistant Professor at King Saud University, 1999-2002; Director General Saudi Industrial Property Authority (MODON) since 2007; Acting Deputy Minister, Ministry of Commerce & Industry (2010-2012; Supervisor for the National Industrial Strategy (2010-2012); Director General of the Information and Communications Technology sector at the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA); Faculty member at King Saud University; teaching fellow at the University of Pittsburgh; Minister of Commerce and Industry (2003-2016). Names Minister of Health May 7, 2016.
Minister of Commerce and Investment:
Dr. Majed bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi
Born:
Education: PhD in engineering management, University of Missouri, 1985; MA in engineering management, University of Missouri, 1983; MA in civil engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 1982; BA in civil engineering, University of Portland, Oregon, 1981.
Positions Held: Assistant professor of industrial engineering, King Abdulaziz University, 1987-1998; Secretary General, Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry, 1998-2002; director-general of the Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud Foundation, 2002-2013; Adviser at the Crown Princes' Court, 2010-2011; President of the Special Affairs for the Crown Prince, 2011-2014; Advisor at the Crown Prince's Court, 2010-2014; Chief of Private Affairs for the Crown Prince, 2014-2015; president, Jeddah Economic Forum. Served as member of the boards of the Council of Prince Salman Center for Disability Research Management, Association Majed bin Abdulaziz for Development and Social Service, Saudi Society for Alzheimer's Disease, Saudi Society to Preserve the Heritage, Council of the Saudi Ports Authority Management, High Commission for the Development of Hail, the Centennial Fund, and Supreme Economic Council; Minister of Social Affairs (2015-2016). Named Minister of Commerce and Investment on May 7, 2016.
Minister of Culture and Information:
Dr. Adel bin Zaid Al-Turaifi
Born: 1979
Education: PhD in international relations, London School of Economics and Political Science, 2012; MA in international conflict, University of Kingston, London, 2008.
Positions Held: Journalist and columnist, Al-Riyadh newspaper; editor-in-chief, The Majalla magazine, 2010-2012; deputy editor-in-chief, Asharq AlAwsat, 2013-2014; general manager, Alarabiya News Channel, November 2014 - January 2015. Names Minister of Culture and Information on January 29, 2015.
Minister of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance:
Sheikh Saleh Bin Abdulaziz Al-AsShaikh
Born:
Education:
Positions Held: Named Minister of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Call and Guidance on January 29, 2015.
Minister of Justice:
Dr. Walid bin Mohammad bin Saleh Al-Samaani
Born:
Education:
Positions Held: Named Minister of Justice on January 29, 2015.
Minister of Labor and Social Development:
Dr. Mufrej bin Saad Al-Haqbani
Born:
Education:
Positions Held: Minister of Labor (2015-2016), Named Minister of Labor and Social Development on May 7, 2016.
Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources:
Khaled bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih
Born:
Education: BS in mechanical engineering, Texas A&M University, 1982; MBA, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), 1991.
Positions: President and chief executive officer of the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), January 1, 2009-April 29, 2015, Executive Vice President of Operations, 2007-2008; Minister of Health (2015-2016). Names Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources:
Minister of Hajj and Umrah:
Muhammad Bantan
Born:
Education:
Held: Names Minister of Hajj and Umrah on May 7, 2016
Minister of National Economy and Planning:
Adel bin Mohammed Fakeih
Born: 1379 H (1959), in Makkah
Education: BA in Industrial Engineering
Positions Held: Minister of Labor, August 18, 2010.-April 29, 2015; Mayor of Jeddah Municipality, 2005-2010; Chairman of The Savola Group; Chief of Development of Services and Facilities at the Council of Makkah Region; Member of the Municipal Council of Jeddah Municipality; Member of the Supreme Body for Developing Makkah Region; President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jeddah; Chairman of Al-Jazirah Bank; Member of the Supreme Commission for Tourism; Member of the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu; Minister of National Economy and Planning since April 29, 2015.
Minister of Communications and Information Technology:
Dr. Mohammed bin Ibrahim Al-Suwaiyel
Born: December 25, 1950 in Al-Mahadon
Education: PhD in Computer Science (Algorithms), University of Southern California, 1979; MSc. in Computer Science (Algorithms), University of Southern California, 1975; BS in General Engineering (Systems), King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals, 1972.
Positions Held: Chairman, Systems Engineering Department, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals; dean, Computer Science and Engineering College, King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals; Vice President, Research Institutes, KACST, 1991-2003; member, board of directors, Saudi Aramco, since 2001; Governor, Communications and Information Technology Commission, 2003-2007; President, King Abdulaziz City for Science & Technology (KACST), 2007-2015. Named Minister of Communications and Information Technology on January 29, 2015.
Minister of Transport:
Solayman Al-Hamdan
Born:
Education:
Positions Held: Named Minister of Transport on May 7, 2016
Minister of Housing:
Majed bin Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Hogail
Born:
Education: MBA, University of Illinois; BA in accounting, King Saud University.
Positions Held: Deputy Finance Director, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) (1990-1998). Named Minister of Housing on July 13, 2015.
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MINISTERS OF STATE:
- HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz
- Dr. Muttlab bin Abdullah Al-Nafissa
- Mr. Mohammed bin Faisal bin Jaber Abusaq (for Shura Affairs)
- Dr. Nizar Obeid Madani (for Foreign Affairs)
- Mr. Mohammed bin Abdul Malik bin Abdullah Al-AshSheikh
