ROSHN Group, a Public Investment Fund (PIF) giga-project, launched on Tuesday a mixed-use development in north of Jeddah, which will accommodate over 130,000 residents and house the first man-made canal in Saudi Arabia.
The new development, called MARAFY, will include an 11-kilometer-long and 100-meter-wide navigable canal, which will be surrounded by multiple districts, the developer said in a statement.
David Grover, Group CEO of ROSHN Group, said: “It is core to us as a giga project to introduce such huge development to the Kingdom. MARAFY will be a gamechanger on the real estate development sector, raising the bar of development in the region, boosting the quality of life, and creating a huge impact in Jeddah.”
He added that the project contributes to achieving the goals of Vision 2030 in creating a vibrant society and a prosperous economy.
For his part, Khaled Al-Mobid, CEO of Manassat Real Estate Company, told Asharq Al-Awsat that ROSHN’s development of the North Jeddah project will have a major impact in raising the efficiency of residential projects in the governorate, and will stimulate investments.
He added that the new development is an important indicator of the city’s economic recovery, stressing that the group seeks to develop the urban landscape of one of the most important tourist and commercial areas, as it provides infrastructure, public, recreational and residential facilities aimed at raising the level of quality of life, and transforming Jeddah into a global destination.
MARAFY’s canal will provide a waterfront comparable in size to those of Chicago, Stockholm, Hamburg, and central London, bringing the marine environment into the heart of a historic city that has been welcoming traders, travelers, and pilgrims for centuries.
According to ROSHN, MARAFY will house multiple distinct districts each with a unique character, including its existing integrated residential development, Alarous. It will accelerate Jeddah’s emergence as a global city while preserving the city’s cultural and architectural heritage, with facades inspired by the historical designs of Jeddah region and styles reinvented for today.
