Saudi Arabia's nationwide fund- raising campaign for victims of the Asian tsunami collected more than 117 million riyals (about US$31.27 million) in its first day.
The campaign, initiated by King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz and Crown Prince Abdullah, began Thursday afternoon and was set to continue until early Friday morning, the official Saudi Press Agency said.
The first donation was announced 45 minutes after the launch of the campaign, and came from a Saudi national in the Eastern Province who pledged US$266,600.
The biggest donor in the country has so far been the construction company Saudi Oger, owned by former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, which pledged US$6.7 million.
King Fahd pledged US$5.3 million, while Crown Prince Abdullah gave US$2.7 million. Defense Minister Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz offered US$1.3 million.
On Tuesday, King Fahd announced that in view of the unexpected severe damage caused by the quake and tsunami in Asia, his country will increase its aid by US$20 million to US$30 million.
Earlier, Saudi Arabia promised to donate US$10 million in emergency aid to tsunami-hit Asian countries. The aid includes US$five million in cash and another US$five million worth of disaster relief material, food and medicine.
The Dec. 26 quake and tsunami, which devastated many Asian countries, killed about 150,000 people and left millions homeless.