IRF chairman receives prestigious International Medal of Honour

3918 IRF Washington chairman Abdullah Al-Mogbel was presented with the prestigious International Medal of Honour by the Chairman of the Spanish Road Association at a ceremony in Madrid on June 6, 2012. The International Medal of Honour pays tribute and gives public recognition to individuals whose career has been closely related to the development of safe and efficient road infrastructure worldwide. Since its creation nearly fifty years ago, the Medal has been presented to eminent political, academic and industry actors. Each Medal bears the statement: “"Better roads for a better world.", IRF’s motto since 1948. “Few are more deserving of this award than Eng Abdullah Al-Mogbel,” stated Patrick Sankey, president & CEO of the International Road Federation. “His Excellency is a highway engineer by training, who began his career in 1978 in the then Saudi Ministry of Communications working on, and later leading, some of the country’s largest infrastructure projects, such as the Riyadh ring road,” continued Sankey. In 1997, Eng Abdullah Al-Mogbel was appointed deputy minister of Transport with a mandate to improve the efficiency of the country’s road system. In 2007, he received the Man of the Year award, IRF’s highest and most prestigious award, for his leadership in the development of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s exemplary national road network. Elected chairman of the International Road Federation in 2011, Al-Mogbel has led IRF’s worldwide advocacy initiative to develop safer road networks while continuing to empower the next generation of road engineers through unmatched contributions to the International Road Educational Foundation (IREF). The Medal of Honour recognises Chairman Al-Mogbel’s outstanding vision and embodies the values of road industry professionals throughout the 90 countries where IRF has member representation.