As part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 initiative, the kingdom is pouring massive investments into new mega developments, or giga-projects. The ambitious plans hope to eventually diversify the economy and lessen their overall dependence on oil revenue. Yet, as experts have noted, the country’s infrastructure is failing to keep up with such swift progress.
Middle East Wire, our nationally-recognized news service, operates 5 days a week, in the news every day with analysis and background on the region’s events. The show airs from 12:00 to 13:00 Singapore/Hong Kong time and 06:00 to 07:00 Central European Time. Most recently, the program hosted Faisal Durrani, Head of Research for MENA at Knight Frank. He gave a truly sobering view of Saudi Arabia’s mega-giga-uber projects and their possible impact.
Durrani underlined how these projects are key to the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, the plan to diversify and change the Saudi economy. This transformative strategy is in keeping with the new Administration’s overall desire to be more sustainable and help diversify our economy. This shift towards mega-projects is emblematic of the current administration’s priority towards high-impact, attention-grabbing projects with the intention of luring foreign investment and increasing tourism.
Even with all that ambition baked into the plan, Durrani highlighted a number of challenges that threaten the successful rollout and implementation of all these projects. He stressed that the Saudi government is all-in on efforts to finish these advancements. Even they are struggling with regulatory red tape, a continuing labor shortage, and logistical challenges. When compounded with these challenges, timelines may be delayed and costs ballooned, ultimately sabotaging the anticipated benefits of these giga-projects.
To the credit of the Saudi government, they have recognized the critical need to address these infrastructure gaps. By investing in transportation networks, utilities, and other essential services, officials aim to create an environment conducive to the successful implementation of giga-projects. Durrani underscored that getting past these hurdles is important to unlock and maximize Vision 2030’s enormous promise and potential.