Saudi National Day, climate challenges, and the Kingdom’s vision for the future

Written By ندى ماهر عبدربه on 2023/09/20

This article was written originally in Arabic and is translated using a 3rd party automated service. ArabiaWeather is not responsible for any grammatical errors whatsoever.

Weather of Arabia - On Saudi National Day, the Saudi people celebrate the anniversary of the founding of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its unity under one flag. It is a day filled with pride and national unity, but it has also become a time to reflect on the challenges facing the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the world.

Among the most prominent challenges facing the Kingdom and the world at large are those related to climate change, as the world suffers from the devastating effects of climate change, such as rising temperatures, rising sea levels, and an increase in the frequency of natural disasters. While this can be a major challenge, the Kingdom Saudi Arabia has adopted an ambitious vision to confront these challenges.

Saudi Arabia Vision 2030

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 is known as a future strategy that aims to achieve economic diversification and reliance on multiple sources of income in several sectors. This vision was developed within the framework of an ambitious national initiative represented in the delivery of 80 huge government projects, with the cost of each ranging between 3.7 billion riyals. And 20 billion riyals, and these projects include large projects such as the Riyadh Metro project.

This vision was coordinated and planned by the Council of Economic and Development Affairs headed by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and was presented to the Council of Ministers headed by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for final approval. This vision depends on cooperation and guidance from the public and private sectors, in addition to the non-profit sectors, With the aim of achieving comprehensive prosperity and promoting economic diversification and sustainable development in the Kingdom.

The axes on which the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 was built

Based on the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 , the vital community points are based on achieving a decent life for all and economic prosperity. Saudi society is considered based on the values of Islam, patriotism and Saudi culture, and seeks to achieve social solidarity by providing world-class entertainment and promoting a sustainable lifestyle. These axes include:

Booming economy

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 is considered the ideal environment for entrepreneurship and expanding the economic base by creating job opportunities and attracting global investments, taking advantage of its strategic location and attracting talent.

The ambitious homeland

The goal of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 is to achieve an effective and transparent government, enabling citizens, the private sector, and institutions to achieve the desired goals with a high level of accountability and transparency.

Bio community

Based on the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 , we seek to build a vibrant society that provides everyone with a decent life that leads to economic prosperity, so that Saudi society is a society with deep roots and a strong structure, based on the values of Islam, love of the homeland, and pride in Saudi culture and heritage. Achieving this vision contributes to providing entertainment at the local levels. global, promotes a sustainable lifestyle, and contributes to achieving social solidarity.”

Objectives of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030

The Kingdom seeks to increase awareness of environmental issues, encourage the preservation of natural resources, and reduce harmful emissions. Initiatives such as the Shuaiba Solar Energy Project and the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy represent important steps towards achieving these goals, the most prominent of which are:

Increasing the capacity to receive pilgrims from eight million to thirty million pilgrims.
The number of archaeological sites registered with UNESCO has at least doubled.
Three Saudi cities were ranked among the 100 best cities in the world.
Increasing the percentage of household spending on culture and entertainment within the Kingdom from 2.9% to 6%.
Increase the percentage of people exercising at least once a week from 13% to 40%.
Raising the social capital index from rank 26 to rank 10.
Increased life expectancy from 74 to 80 years.
Reducing the unemployment rate from 11.6% to 7%.
Increasing the contribution of small and medium enterprises to the gross domestic product from 2% to 35%.
Increasing women's participation in the labor market from 22% to 30%.
Increasing the size of the economy and moving it from 19th to the top 15 globally.
Increasing the percentage of local content in the oil and gas sector from 40% to 75%.
Increasing the value of the Public Investment Fund’s assets from 600 billion to more than 7 trillion Saudi riyals.

Climate challenges facing the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has faced climate challenges through a set of measures and initiatives aimed at reducing harmful environmental impacts and achieving sustainability in multiple fields. Among these measures taken are:

Investing in renewable energy

Saudi Arabia has invested in renewable energy projects such as solar and wind energy, and has set an ambitious goal to increase the share of renewable energy in its energy mix. Perhaps the most prominent of these is the Shuaiba Solar Energy Project, which reflects the Kingdom’s efforts in promoting this field, as the cost of purchasing electricity produced from solar energy has been reduced to 1.04 US cents per kilowatt hour, which is the lowest globally.

Improve energy efficiency

Measures have been taken to increase the efficiency of energy use in various sectors, including transportation, industry, infrastructure, and planning for many projects, most notably the electric car project, as the “Sir” company is the first Saudi brand to manufacture electric cars in the Kingdom, and this step reflects the Kingdom’s commitment to achieving Its vision for the year 2030 is through developing and strengthening the local industry in general, and the electric car industry and its components in particular.

Sustainable agriculture

Developing sustainable agriculture to achieve food security and preserve biodiversity are among the measures taken to confront climate change. To achieve this goal, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, approved the Sustainable Agricultural Rural Development Program by allocating a financial budget amounting to 7.35 billion riyals over a period of seven years. This is in addition to approving an amount of 1.5 billion riyals as a capital cost for the project and an amount of 250 million riyals annually to develop the palm and date sector.

The Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Engineer Abdul Rahman bin Abdul Mohsen Al-Fadhli, explained that this support comes with the aim of enabling the agricultural sector to make the most of the available opportunities and resources, increase the income of small farmers, provide job opportunities, and enhance food security and balanced development.

This program includes several promising sectors with a comparative advantage for small farmers, and consists of eight sub-programmes, including small livestock breeders, fisheries, bees, honey, roses, Arabica coffee, and rain-fed crops, in addition to developing value added from small agricultural holdings.

Al-Fadhli stressed that this sector receives great support, including various activities and programs aimed at achieving the maximum benefit from natural and human resources, and this support aims to improve the services and activities provided to citizens in this important sector.

Environmental awareness

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's efforts to reduce these environmental challenges and problems were represented by its local and international efforts in the field of environmental protection, waste management and treatment programs, and renewable energy projects. In addition, the environmental regulations and legislation adopted by the Kingdom, and how they are consistent with international strategies and agreements related to environmental conservation.

Saudi Arabia has cooperated with the international community in the field of climate change and environmental preservation by participating in international agreements and exchanging experiences and knowledge. On the occasion of Saudi National Day, we can take a look at the Kingdom’s environmental vision and strategy for the future. It is a time to think about how to preserve the planet Earth and guide the world towards a brighter future. Environmentally sustainable.

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Activities of the 92nd Saudi National Day

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