Saudi Roadmap to Build World’s Largest Park

King Salman Park in the center of the Saudi capital (Asharq Al-Awsat)
King Salman Park in the center of the Saudi capital (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Roadmap to Build World’s Largest Park

King Salman Park in the center of the Saudi capital (Asharq Al-Awsat)
King Salman Park in the center of the Saudi capital (Asharq Al-Awsat)

At a time when Riyadh’s green strategy is in full swing, an official source at the King Salman Park Foundation confirmed that efforts are underway to transform the proposed large-scale public park and urban district in Riyadh into a tangible reality.

Director of Public Relations and Marketing at the King Salman Park Foundation Faisal Al-Majed revealed that a road map for operational work is currently being carried out.

According to Al-Majed, the Foundation’s participation at Riyadh’s International Exhibition and Forum on Afforestation Technologies, which was held from May 29-31, confirms its commitment to planting one million trees.

Al-Majed noted that the Forum had advanced efforts on exchanging research and expertise and contributed to launching a scientific study that can map out the implementation of the park project.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Al-Majed confirmed that the Foundation will work to re-engineer the park’s soil to prepare it for planting.

Soil re-engineering includes adding more than one layer of soil and microorganisms.

Moreover, it also incorporates increasing the level of nitrogen to increase fertility.

The Green Riyadh project alone will see 7.5 million trees planted across the capital, and will contribute to an increase in per capita green space.

Al-Majed noted that gains from such projects include boosting biodiversity, whether in birds, insects, or the green environment of the city of Riyadh.

He also pointed out that King Salman Park Foundation is one of the four major projects launched by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz in March 2019.

King Salman Park is built on more than 16km2 to become the largest urban park in the world offering a wide range of options and quality activities for the city's residents and visitors.

The Park will contribute significantly to increasing the vegetation in the region and raising the rate of per capita green spaces, which will have a direct and positive impact on the quality of the environment and the climate.



Saudi Arabia's Liquidity Hits All-Time High of SAR2.825 Trillion

Saudi Arabia's Liquidity Hits All-Time High of SAR2.825 Trillion
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Saudi Arabia's Liquidity Hits All-Time High of SAR2.825 Trillion

Saudi Arabia's Liquidity Hits All-Time High of SAR2.825 Trillion

Saudi Arabia's liquidity levels continued to grow strongly, reaching SAR2,825,715 million at the end of May 2024, marking an annual growth of approximately 8.6%, reported the Saudi Press Agency on Sunday.

This represented an increase of more than SAR222,928 billion compared to the same period in 2023, which stood at SAR2,602,786 million. These levels reflect the broad money supply (M3) as reported in the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)'s monthly statistical bulletin for May 2024.

Since the beginning of the year, liquidity has grown by 4%, representing an increase of more than SAR104,757 billion. At the end of January, it stood at SAR2,720,957 million.

Liquidity levels also achieved a monthly growth of approximately 1.2%, with an increase of about SAR32,402 billion compared to the end of April of the same year when it stood at SAR2,793,313 million.

These liquidity levels strongly support economic and commercial activity, contributing effectively to the economic development process and enabling the achievement of the goals of Saudi Vision 2030. This reflects the strength and solidity of the banking and financial sector.

A breakdown of the four components of the broad money supply (M3) is as follows: Demand deposits, the largest contributor to the total money supply (M3) at 49.2%, recorded a level of SAR1,390,893 million at the end of May 2024.

Time and savings deposits, the second-largest contributor to the total money supply (M3) at 31.5%, recorded a level of SAR889,558 million.

Other quasi-money deposits amounted to SAR314,807 million, representing a contribution of approximately 11.1% to the total money supply (M3), making it the third-largest contributor. Lastly, "currency in circulation outside banks" amounted to SAR230,456 million, contributing approximately 8.2% to the total money supply (M3).

Quasi-money deposits consist of residents' deposits in foreign currencies, deposits against letters of credit, outstanding transfers, and repurchase agreements (repos) conducted by banks with the private sector.

Domestic liquidity includes M1, which comprises currency in circulation outside banks in addition to demand deposits only, and M2, which includes M1 plus time and savings deposits. The broad definition, M3, includes M2 plus other quasi-money deposits.