SAUDI ARABIA ANNOUNCES NEW MEGA PROJECT TO DEVELOP RED SEA TOURISM - Foodex Saudi

Saudi Arabia’s Under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has launched a new global tourism project that aims at developing touristic venues along the Kingdom’s Red Sea coasts.

 

The project comes in accordance with the Saudi Vision 2030 national transformation project, which targets the diversification of the economy to include sources of income other than oil revenues.

 

According to a statement published by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the new project will be funded by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), and will be developed in accordance with international standards.

 

“The foundation will be laid in the third quarter of 2019 and the first phase will be completed in the last quarter of 2022,” the statement read.

The Red Sea project will include the development of an airport, a port, a number of hotels and luxury residences, other facilities and infrastructure, and transportation services.

The project is planned to cover 34,000 square kilometers of Saudi coasts and islands.

“The PIF will inject initial investments into this project and open partnerships with leading international companies, which will bring new and direct investments to the Kingdom while seeking to attract and redirect Saudi tourism expenses into the kingdom.

“The project will attract the world’s leading names in the tourism and hospitality sectors to harness its expertise, competencies and financial investments to enrich the experiences of this destination, provide more value to its visitors and maximize the economic gains of the Kingdom,” the statement added. The project aims to generate SR15 billion ($4 billion) annually to the Saudi economy and create 35,000 jobs.

For decades, the Saudi tourism sector has been largely confined to religious tourism, as millions pour towards Islam’s holiest destinations of Makkah and Medina each year.

However, recent projects that come as part of the kingdom’s new vision, include the development of other touristic and entertainment projects.

 

Source: Forbes Middle East