Riyadh: According to state media, Saudi Arabia has begun compensation for residents who have lost their property in a large-scale redevelopment project in the coastal city of Jeddah. An official Saudi Arabian press said in a report late Sunday that “the first batch of compensation for the removed assets has begun to be offered,” but the number of people compensated so far has not been identified. ..
He said 1 billion Saudi riyals ($ 267 million) would be distributed as part of the “first batch of compensation” without providing a timeline or indicating when future payments would occur. Authorities have cleared and built the kingdom’s second-largest city, Jeddah, as the latest ambitious project of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to replace the “slammed area” with facilities such as stadiums, oceanariums and opera houses. Proposed.
Still, some who have lost their homes have bristled the official description of their old neighborhood as an unwanted hotbed of drugs and crime. They also expressed concern about how compensation works, saying earlier this year that AFP had no clear way to assess the value of assets that had already been destroyed.
The demolition began in October last year and will expel up to 500,000 people. The SPA said Sunday that it was being evaluated by an “independent committee” representing four government agencies. Often referred to as the “gateway to Macca,” the holy city of Islam, Jeddah has been a vibrant tourist center for beachfront restaurants and galleries, with major film festivals and F1 for the past few months. We have held the Grand Prix.
Demolition was at risk of fueling anti-government sentiment in the 32 affected areas, many containing a mixture of foreigners from Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries and Asia. According to the SPA, the process of clearing 20 neighborhoods so far and the remaining 12 neighborhoods is expected to be completed by mid-November.
The Saudi government has promised to provide compensation and announced in February that it would complete 5,000 replacement homes by the end of the year. Authorities defend the project by stating that it will modernize the city and add 17,000 new housing units while maintaining its characteristics. – AFP
