Ahead of Expo 2030, Saudi officials have revealed their intention to invest $92 billion to transform Riyadh. Within the next seven years, the investment seeks to decarbonize urban mobility and implement programs like the King Salman Park Initiative and Saudi Green Initiative (SGI), making Riyadh one of the world’s most sustainable cities.
Princess Haifa bint Mohammed Al Saud, the Vice Minister of Tourism, speaking during the third edition of the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI) Forum, which opened on the sidelines of COP28, explained: “One of the ways is to have more green spaces, and it’s the King Salman Park Initiative that we are going to develop in the middle of the city to enhance and create that,” she explained.
More than 43 million trees and shrubs have been planted throughout the Kingdom
Since the establishment of SGI in 2021, more than 43 million trees and shrubs have been planted throughout the Kingdom, and 94,000 hectares of damaged land—or 146,000 football fields—have been restored nationwide.
Saleh Al Jasser, Minister of Transportation, highlighted some of the actions being undertaken across the Kingdom to decarbonize urban transport: “We are implementing remote work in government agencies, which helps reduce demand for daily travel. To shift to less carbon-intensive modes of transport, we have set ambitious targets to increase the share of public transport, with the Riyadh bus and metro projects well underway.”
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