Saudi-Led Global Quality of Life Index Launched at Davos

A new UN-backed Quality of Life Index developed with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme has been launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos, led by Saudi Arabia’s Quality of Life Program.

The index provides a human-centred, multidimensional framework assessing areas such as healthcare, education, mobility, safety, culture, entertainment and green spaces. It separates core liveability fundamentals from experiential factors, and invites cities to register voluntarily and submit data for assessment. More than 120 cities have registered, with over 20 vetted and qualified at the time of launch.

Individuals and families can use the index to inform decisions on where to live, work, retire or visit, while city leaders can identify gaps and target investment and reform. The tool is intended to evolve to reflect changing expectations across generations. While Saudi cities are expected to participate, the organisers said the index is not designed as a competition.

The initiative has been developed over three years within the Kingdom’s Quality of Life Program, which began in 2017, in partnership with UN-Habitat. It was presented in Davos by Ahmed Al-Khateeb alongside Princess Reema bint Bandar.