King Khalid served as the King of Saudi Arabia from 1975 to 1982. He is remembered by his country, his people and his family as a generous, caring and just Monarch, dedicated and passionate about improving the social and economic conditions and lives of all Saudi citizens.
His legacy and unwavering dedication to social development and philanthropy continue to live to this day through the work and impact of the King Khalid Foundation, a Royal Foundation established by King Khalid’s family, in his memory, in the Islamic year of 16/12/1421 or 11/3/2001 and headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
King Khalid Foundation aims to be the leader and role model in the philanthropic and development work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and to positively impact peoples' lives by providing innovative solutions to critical socio-economic challenges in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The Foundation is a royal, family-run organization and is managed by a Board of Trustees composed of between nine and eleven members. Currently, the Foundation is run by nine Board of Trustees members, all of which are from King Khalid’s family.
KKF has an impressive list of accomplishments so far. Since establishment, the Foundation has developed and implemented a number of social and economic development and research projects and has awarded millions of riyals in grant and award money.
KKF programs, ranging from capacity building programs and grants to nonprofit organizations to awareness building, research in the field of social sciences and the King Khalid Awards have benefitted hundreds of organizations and thousands of people nationwide.
The list of Foundation’s programs includes but is not limited to:
Internally, KKF is a very well-run and managed organization that believes in efficiency and exceptional quality. KKF has a medium-size team of highly qualified, young staff. KKF strongly believes in training and supporting its staff to learn new skills and improve performance. The Foundation also believes in the power of collective impact and it partners with world-class institutions to create and deliver our top quality programs. The Foundation recognizes that only by working together they can scale their efforts and make significant progress in social change and poverty reduction. The list of KKF’s partners includes but is not limited to the Columbia Business School, INTRAC, National Commercial Bank, Exxon Mobil, CEDPA, Harvard University’s CSRI, Acumen Fund, Gerhart Center, Al Nahda Philanthropic Society, WCMP, UNOP, and many other reputable organizations.
People live in a dynamic, fast-moving world and the external conditions change rapidly, which significantly affects the work of their Foundation. They believe that KKF, as well as the philanthropic, human, social, and economic development arena in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, are at an important point of transition. This shift is reflected, among other things, in the need for a more in-depth understanding of the nature of development and philanthropic work; more responsible giving through rigorous selection, accountability, monitoring and evaluation; changes in policies and regulations; and the need for increased capacity building within the nonprofit sector in general.
Within this changing environment, KKF continuously works on determining what must be done to create the best future results and in turn take the necessary steps to ensure maximum impact. Transitions, while needing to be navigated carefully, can be a time to enliven and embolden organizations and can present excellent opportunities to achieve organizational success.