According to a study conducted by international property consultancy Knight Frank, Jeddah is expected to experience the development of $90B worth of real estate and infrastructure projects by the year 2030. Faisal Durrani, Partner – Head of Middle East Research at Knight Frank said: “As the tentacles of Vision 2030 spread across the Kingdom, we are seeing every corner of the Kingdom transformed… As Saudi Arabia’s ‘second city’ and historic gateway to the Holy Cities of Makkah and Madinah, Jeddah is being revitalised through a dramatic wave of investment that is set to transform the city… With some 89,000 new homes, 250,000 sq m of offices and nearly 1.4m sq m of retail space, the city will be significantly revitalised by the end of the decade”.
According to Knight Frank, over $14B of the whole budget would go toward building new infrastructure, including a “land bridge” that will require building 1,500 km of railway lines to connect towns and cities in Saudi Arabia’s east and west. An additional $7B has been allocated for the Jeddah Islamic Port’s expansion, which will increase its container capacity to 20 million, placing it among the top 10 busiest ports in the world.
According to Knight Frank, while the government tries to develop and enhance the habitability and liveability of Saudi cities, there is a strong focus on projects related to wellbeing, just like there is elsewhere in the Kingdom. Yazeed Hijazi, Associate Partner, Real Estate Strategy and Consulting KSA, said: “With nearly $3.3B earmarked for wellbeing projects, the residents of Jeddah are set to benefit from improvements to the city’s leisure, cultural, education and healthcare facilities.
“While perhaps considered secondary to more grandiose giga-projects elsewhere in the country, improved healthcare and educational facilities in particular help to boost the standard of living and make cities more attractive places to live – and this is something that will help Jeddah cement its position as the Red Sea’s main commercial hub while also making it an even more attractive city to live and work in, reinforcing the Quality of Life Program which forms part of Vision 2030.”
Knight Frank identifies the hospitality industry in Jeddah as a potential growth area that has not yet been fully realised. The tremendous potential of the hotel industry is supported by the remarkable demand growth brought about by economic diversification initiatives as well as the current surge in leisure and religious tourism, according to Arabian Business. The government is anticipating a rise in visitor numbers, thus new hotels are being planned to meet the growing demand and as part of the plans for economic transformation.
In fact, according to data from Knight Frank, Jeddah currently has 9,300 rooms under development or in the planning phases, with a total of 21,000 rooms scheduled to be completed in the city by 2030. Only 2,700 rooms, or 29% of the city’s overall pipeline of hotel supply, have, however, been officially confirmed to be erected as part of the city’s big projects. According to Durrani, Jeddah’s potential as a prominent tourist destination for travellers from across the world is only now beginning to increase because of the success of the Jeddah Season and the Jeddah F1 as well as the ultra-modern and quick rail connections to the Holy Cities.
