Saudi women at the conference for Smart Cities in Riyadh
The Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs Abdullatief Al-Asheikh revealed plans on Tuesday for setting up 10 Smart Cities around the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The announcement was made at the inauguration of the First Saudi Conference for Smart Cities three day event, which was held at the InterContinental Hotel in Riyadh from the 16 to the 18 May under the theme of “Smart solutions for a better living”, was attended by over 1000 male and female delegates from ministries and governmental bodies from across the Kingdom.
Al-Asheikh noted that the announcement was made in light of a study conducted by the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs in 2015 into the feasibility of implementing smart facilities in the Kingdom’s 17 major cities where 76% of the population live. The move is in line with the goals of the National Transformation Program of 2020. The ministry will create partnerships to develop the project, and the Kingdom will be investing over US$ 500 billion into the modernizing of its infrastructure.
