Saudi Arabia aims to make 10 of its cities among the top 50 globally

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing, H E Majed Al-Hogail, has said that his country’s goal is to transform at least 10 of its cities to make them rank among the top 50 global cities.

“This will be achieved through governance, sustainability, and interaction with the population to meet their aspirations and to realise a high rate of well-being for the citizens, the Minister said at a major firm in the, “ capital Riyadh.

The remarks came while inaugurating the first edition of the Global Smart City Forum 2024 which opened on 12 February. The two-day event was organised by the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA), in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing.

Around 80 speakers, including global city experts, specialists in data, artificial intelligence and digital solutions, smart city engineers, investors and economic policy makers from 40 countries worldwide participated in the conference held under the theme “A Better Life”.

Mr Al-Hogail said that Saudi Arabia was working to find solutions to many challenges facing the growth and prosperity of cities and the entire nation. He cited several examples of the action that the Kingdom has been taking.

“A waste management solution was presented in the city of Jeddah on the Red Sea coast of western Saudi Arabia, to plan and monitor operations, relying on emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things,” he said while noting that this resulted in reducing violations related to waste and cleanliness by 25 percent, leading to a cleaner city.

The Minister stated that in the city of Dammam on the coast of the Arabian Gulf, “we presented an application that manages more than 20,000 parking lots, and through it, we have access to the city’s most crowded areas so as to achieve a seamless experience for residents to find available parking.”

Mr Al-Hogail said that the ministry was continuing, with great ambition, to build one of the most prominent national applications and models, namely “Digital Twin,” which transforms the way cities are planned and operated.

“By 2025, we will be able to simulate the impact of urban policy, plan for emergencies and disasters, and connect more agencies and residents to contribute to joint design for cities with us,” he said.

The Minister continued saying that the development of smart cities takes place through four axes: an ambitious vision in Saudi Arabia, a group of licenses achieved, ongoing efforts and plans, in addition to the goal of partnership between entities to enhance urban life.

He stressed that the Kingdom’s ambitious vision is invested all the capabilities of the nation so that this renaissance would reflect positively on the entire region.

“This support and ambition made us search for distinctive experiences and attract exceptional models to move towards our goals as the vision is based on creating environmental and operational systems that enhance the quality of life. It fuels innovation in the city’s services and economy,” the Minister added.

The Global Smart City Forum is just one of the steps that the Kingdom has taken toward making it a leader among economies using data and AI. The forum is expected to support ongoing efforts of governments around the world to adopt innovative models of smart solutions that contribute to improving public services and safety, and enhance environmental sustainability, with human wellbeing right at the centre of the development.

Topics discussed at the forum included the future of smart cities, challenges facing their infrastructure, the search for innovative solutions to confront the growing population numbers of cities around the world, learning about best practices in building smart cities and about the latest technical developments and their applications in the Kingdom, how it can learn from the experiences of other countries, like, for instance, the UK, in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 as well as the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Sources: Saudi press