He said the event would extend support to the SR65 million-endowment fund for small enterprises and productive families that was launched in the first forum last year.

“There will also be an initiative at the forum to expand the Tayseer Program to ensure all buildings meant for the benefit of people with special needs are ready. The event will also see several other initiatives for productive families as well as for young Saudi men and women in addition to a number of humanitarian programs for vulnerable sections of society,” he said.

Al-Humaidan said the two-day event would come out with a road map on the future initiatives of Saudi companies toward consolidating a social responsibility culture, besides adopting a compassionate approach to addressing social problems and challenges.

Commenting on the forum, JCCI Chairman Saleh Kamel said organizing the event forms part of the framework of boosting cooperation between the chamber and the business community with the objective of spreading the culture of social responsibility among the business community and transforming it into a sustainable strategy. “This is also one of the strategies of JCCI during its current session,” he said.

Saleh Kamel noted the Kingdom has witnessed a great momentum with regard to the private companies’ readiness to take up social responsibility initiatives and programs, and that is reflected in increased social awareness in the private sector.

He commended the successful experiments conducted by a large number of Saudi companies in the social responsibility sector. “It is essential to deepen this culture of social responsibility among companies and link them with their working strategies and visions, and for which there should be enhanced cooperation between the government and private sectors.

The second forum is a continuation of the first forum, which was held under the patronage of Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal in June 2011. The event was attended by more than 600 prominent figures, including senior government officials and top managers of Saudi, Arab and international companies in addition to expert houses and consultancy offices.