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The Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND) will honor four clean energy projects with the Prince Talal International Prize for Human Development at a ceremony in Yerevan on October 28. The event will be held under the patronage of Armenian President Vahagn Khachaturyan and coincides with the COP17 biodiversity conference, which Armenia is hosting.
Riyadh – Under the patronage and in the presence of His Excellency Vahagn Khachaturyan, President of the Republic of Armenia, the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND) will hold the 27th edition of the Prince Talal International Prize for Human Development ceremony on 28 October at the Dvin Music Hall in Yerevan, Armenia.
The ceremony will also be attended by His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Chairman of AGFUND’s Board of Directors and Chairman of the Prize Committee; Her Majesty Queen Sofía of Spain, Member of the Prize Committee; and Their Excellencies the members of the Prize Committee. The ceremony will honor the organizations and individuals behind the winning projects across the categories of the 2025 Prize cycle, dedicated to “Affordable and Clean Energy,” the seventh United Nations Sustainable Development Goal.
Yerevan was selected to host the ceremony to coincide with the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17). This choice reflects the connections between this Prize cycle’s theme and international efforts to protect the environment and advance sustainable development, highlighting the role of innovative solutions in improving lives and safeguarding natural resources.
The ceremony will recognize four projects offering innovative solutions across clean energy and human development. Their work encompasses climate-resilient water supply systems, food security and livelihoods, waste-to-biofuel technology, and solar-powered irrigation services for smallholder farmers. Together, these initiatives demonstrate how energy can help meet basic needs, strengthen productive opportunities, and improve quality of life in the communities they serve.
The Prize carries a total award of US$1 million across four categories, recognizing projects implemented by UN agencies and international and regional organizations, national NGOs, government bodies and social business enterprises, and individuals. This structure brings visibility to diverse development approaches and encourages wider adoption of successful solutions.
Established in 1999 as the AGFUND International Prize for Pioneering Human Development Projects, the Prize reflects a vision centered on investing in people and encouraging innovation to address poverty and exclusion. It was subsequently renamed in honor of AGFUND’s founder, Prince Talal bin Abdulaziz, commemorating his humanitarian legacy and contribution to human development.
The Prize identifies successful development projects, recognizes the people and institutions behind them, and shares their solutions and experience to encourage replication and expand their impact, particularly in improving the lives of those most in need.
Since 2017, the Prize’s themes have been aligned with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. In each cycle, the Prize Committee selects a theme linked to one of the Goals, highlighting practical initiatives that contribute to its achievement.
Continuing this approach, the next Prize cycle, for 2026, is dedicated to “Good Health and Well-being,” Sustainable Development Goal 3, recognizing projects that help ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.
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