Saudi Crown Prince reveals plan for Riyadh to be in the top 10 largest city economy in world

[The SC]

2021

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman revealed a plan for the Kingdom’s capital, Riyadh, to be one of the largest city economies in the world at the second day of the Future Investment Initiative Summit.

“We are therefore aiming to make Riyadh one of the ten largest city economies in the world - today it stands at number 40, the fortieth largest city economy worldwide,” the Crown Prince said during a conversation with Senator Matteo Renzi, Former Prime Minister of Italy and member of the Board of Trustees.

“We also aim to increase its residents from 7.5 million residents today to around 15-20 million residents in 2030,” the Crown Prince added.

The Crown Prince noted that Riyadh was uniquely situated for expansion given its advantages in several key areas.

“Today Riyadh represents about 50 percent of the non-oil economy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The cost of job creation in Riyadh is 30 percent less than the other cities in Saudi Arabia. The cost of infrastructure and real estate development is 29 percent less than the other cities in Saudi Arabia,” the Crown Prince said.

“The infrastructure in Riyadh is already quite outstanding because of the work done by King Salman over a period of more than 55 years during which he managed and planned the city to grow form a city of 150,000 residents into a metropolis of 7.5 million people. Therefore, Riyadh is a huge opportunity to create tremendous economic growth in Saudi Arabia, and to develop industry, tourism, and great progress,” the Crown prince explained.

This growth in population in Riyadh is set to continue, with the Crown Prince envisioning the city expanding to 15-20 million people.

“We also aim to have Riyadh become among the world’s most prominent cities in terms of quality of life, tourism, and services in one way or another,” the Crown Prince said.

The importance of developing cities was previously noted by the Crown Prince during an announcement earlier this month of THE LINE in the futuristic city of NEOM, a new 170-kilometer (km) belt of hyper-connected communities designed without cars or roads and in concert with nature. The communities will be powered by artificial intelligence technology designed to learn and improve the lives of residents and businesses.

“There is no doubt that the world economies are not based on countries but rather on cities: 85 percent of the world economy comes from cities and in the next few years this number will increase to 95 percent,” the Crown Prince said.

“Therefore, true growth begins in the city, whether in terms of industry, innovation, education, services, tourism or other sectors. This is why in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia we must concentrate on the cities that have the potential for growth so they can achieve economic progress and growth in jobs and more services,” the Crown Prince added.

The FII summit has brought over 150 speakers together, some which will be attending from hubs in Paris, Mumbai, Beijing, and New York, while others attend in person in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The event had previously been postponed from December last year due to the pandemic and has adopted a hybrid in-person-virtual format.

FII takes place from January 27-28 and will be attended by tech pioneers, investors, executives, and policymakers to maximize the potential of this impact-oriented conference.

The speakers, of whom 60 will be attending in-person and 90 virtually, will discuss how the new rebirth of the global economy could be shaped despite the barriers imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.


https://www.ld-export.com/en/saudi-...argest-city-economy-in-world_news_fa2bd0.html

 

[The SC]

Saudi Arabia’s MODON Invests $98 Bln in 36 Industrial Cities ​

4 August, 2021

https://english.aawsat.com/home/art...a’s-modon-invests-98-bln-36-industrial-cities

 

[Corruptistan]

I am surprised to learn that Riyadh is the 40th largest city economy in the world and that it accounts for such a large percentage of the non-oil derived economy of KSA.

Riyadh has a lot of potential and there are many beautiful natural areas in the vicinity.

If the ambitious goals of planting 15 billion trees in KSA, greening more areas of Riyadh and helping restore the wadis around Riyadh (turning them into rivers again), there would be great potential for tourism with mountains, wild desert/steppe/historical sites in the vicinity.

Riyadh roads turn green as world’s largest urban greening project branches out

Riyadh roads turn green as world’s largest urban greening project branches out

RIYADH: The Green Riyadh project, one of the world’s largest urban greening initiatives, is rapidly bearing fruit as it transforms main roads in the capital. Major thoroughfares, including King Khalid, Makkah and King Salman roads, are getting a facelift as part of the Vision 2030 goal of...

www.arabnews.com

As for population was the population of Riyadh not almost 8 million back in 2017? Surely it must be approaching 9 million today rather than the mentioned 7.5 million in the article.

Also I am not sure if having a city with 15-20 million people is a good idea although Riyadh is an incredibly big city in terms of area and can easily "spread out" in the vicinity in all directions.

The problem as I see it (which works well in terms of defense) is that Riyadh lies in the middle of the country. You need to trespass several mountain ranges and deserts to reach it from every direction in KSA almost. Far away from the coastlines. Far away from the main (highest) mountain ranges in KSA although Riyadh lies on a plateau and close by there are mountain ranges approaching almost 2000 meters above sea level.

Nevertheless I am not sure if Riyadh can become a tourist hub nor am I sure if that is such a good idea with the many other more logical tourist destinations within KSA.

Also it would be a good thing if local Najdi architecture could be restored/preserved/used for new buildings. It would give Riyadh a unique vibe in the Middle East.

Take the Al-Rajhi Grand Mosque as an example.

In the name of modernism a lot of Najdi archtiecture was destroyed in Riyadh (in fact most).

https://twitter.com/x/status/1519048528831688705

KSA should be preserving its unique regionalism in terms of architecture and everything else. So many regions within KSA are practically unknown even for locals let alone outsiders. It is a bit of a shame but with KSA opening up and becoming a future tourist hub on a global scale, this will change.

Saudi Arabia aims to achieve 100 million visitors by the end of 2030​

Saudi Arabia aims to achieve 100 million visitors by the end of 2030

Representatives from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia attended World Travel Market London (WTM) and told the world that the country is ready to welcome international tourists. […]

traveltomorrow.com

@The SC do you know the name of this project or city and has it started? I would love to know more about it.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1355884436647243782

 

[Corruptistan]

Green Riyadh Project​

Green Riyadh project is one of the most ambitious urban forestation projects in the world. It is one of Riyadh’s Four Megaprojects launched by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, on 19 March 2019. The project will be a milestone that contributes to fulfilling a key goal of the Saudi Vision 2030 to promote Riyadh’s position among the world’s top 100 most livable cities.

Vision​

The Green Riyadh project will contribute to increasing the per capita share of green space, and raise the total green spaces by planting trees around all city features and facilities as well as in all its provinces. All of the greenings will be watered by recycled water from an irrigation network. The greening initiative will lead to improved air quality and reduced temperatures in the city. As a consequence, this project will encourage Riyadh citizens to follow a healthy lifestyle which is part of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

Project Elements​

Afforestation​

• Planting 7.5 million trees across the capital as follows:
  • 3,330 neighborhood gardens
  • 43 parks
  • 9,000 mosques
  • 6,000 schools
  • 2,000 car parking sites
  • 1,670 public facilities
  • 390 healthcare facilities
  • 64 universities and collages
  • 16,400 kms of streets and roads
  • 1,100 kms green belts along utilities lines (power stations oil pipelines, etc.)
  • 272 kms valleys
  • 175,000 square kms of empty land

Valleys

Parks and Gardens

Roads and Streets

Mosques

Public Areas and Facilities

Educational Facilities

Medical Facilities

Green Belts

Tree species​

About 72 native shade plant species compatible with Riyadh’s environment will be used for the project.

Key enablers​

• A new water treatment network for irrigation with a daily capacity of 1,000,000 m3.
• A network of plant nurseries to provide the required seedlings and trees.
• Improved urban regulations to enhance afforestation in both public and private projects.
• Awareness initiatives to encourage voluntary engagement.

Project Benefits​

• Reduce ambient temperature by 2 Celsius degrees during summer season
• Reduce temperatures by 8-15 Celsius degrees in selected intensively afforested locations across the city
• Improve the air quality by reducing CO2 concentration by 3-6%
• Reduce dust concentration in the air
• Reduce annual power consumption by 650 gigawatt/hour, through encouraging the principles of Green Building techniques that use green ceilings and walls
• Improve readiness for handling rainwater and minimize the flood hazards
• Improve urban landscape of Riyadh
• Encourage citizens of Riyadh to adopt a healthy lifestyle
• Preserve natural zones and improve the biological diversity
• Improve quality of life and promote Riyadh’s position among the world’s top livable cities.
• Yield about SAR 71 billion as ROI 2030, through less healthcare expenses, lower electricity consumption, higher real estate value and use of treated wastewater as a replacement for potable water for irrigation.
• Create new investment opportunities for the private sector in many sectors and businesses including: nurseries, horticultures works, afforestation, landscaping and irrigation.
• Contribute to fulfilling a key goal of the Saudi Vision 2030 to achieve environmental sustainability, build a vital community, and improve economic efficiency across the city sectors
• Achieve some of National Transformation Program goals, including: increasing the green spaces, reducing water waste, improving flood drainage network efficiency, and better utilization of treated wastewater.
• Achieve the goals of “Quality of Life program” by creating open areas for socializing, practicing and walking.

https://www.rcrc.gov.sa/en/projects/green-riyadh-project

Green Riyadh - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

• King Salman Park, a park located in Riyadh as a part of the Riyadh Green project. It is estimated to be five times bigger than London's Hyde Park, London and four times than the New York's Central Park.[6]

King Salman Park - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Would be amazing to see such a transformation of the city one day. Al-Riyadh would also live up to its actual name ("Gardens/Meadows") as was once the case in history.

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Speaking about Riyadh, what is the status of the Riyadh Metro? It is supposed to be the longest metro line in the Muslim world after the Mecca one (once that one is fully finished)?

Riyadh Metro - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The design looks amazing.

The video claims that 92% of the Riyadh Metro is finished is this correct? Video is from December 2021.

It looks like a lot of projects are being build, transforming Riyadh as well as the whole "Greening Riyadh" project.

https://twitter.com/AddadRuh