The second gathering of the youth from Makkah Province has started with more than 300,000 male and female students from all the 13 regions of the province participating. Cultural, sport and touristic competitions will be held during the gathering, which was initiated by Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal. It is aimed at shedding light on the gifts and talents of the youth through various competitions and enabling them to effectively contribute to the development of the region. The gathering is being organized by the Makkah Governorate in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, the Presidency of Youth Welfare and Sports, the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) and the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The Governorate\'s Director of Studies and Public Relations Sultan bin Arar Al-Dousary said the gathering was in line with the strategy of the Governorate to build and develop the area by amassing the talents and energies of the youth through effective activities and competitions that would enable them to contribute to the drawing of development plans. He said while the preliminary qualifying tests started in all regions, the executive committee of the gathering under the chairmanship of the undersecretary of the Governorate, Abdul Aziz Al-Khodairy, was preparing to host the winners for the final competitions, which will be held in Jeddah in April. According to Al-Dousary, the executive committee comprises representatives of 15 government departments who will make plans and supervise the gathering. Al-Dousary said Prince Khaled was hoping that the gathering would be a pillar for the building of the Makkah youth through guidance and investing of their leadership capabilities. \"The gathering will enable the youth to show their sports, literary and cultural talents and will also help in the development of tourism in the region,\" he said. He said the gathering would strengthen ties among the youth, will explore creative talents and make use of the human resources and financial potential available in the region. In the first gathering last year, which continued for 30 days, the youth competed in 15 different activities.