Saudi Arabia Adds 26 National Parks to Global Protected Areas Database

Saudi Arabia has added 26 national parks to the National Register of Protected Areas and updated their information in the World Database on Protected Areas, covering a combined area of more than 5,000 sq. km.

The National Center for Vegetation Cover Development and Combating Desertification said the move is intended to create a unified national reference for protected areas and align their management with international standards.

The centre said the registrations support the National Environment Strategy and the Saudi Green Initiative, which aims to protect 30% of the Kingdom’s terrestrial and marine areas by 2030.

It added that bringing the parks into the national register after aligning them with international criteria would strengthen the protected-area network, support its geographical expansion and improve environmental planning through more consistent data.

Lamia Al-Asheikh, director general of the centre’s general department of national parks, said the registrations were the result of coordination among environmental authorities and would support vegetation-cover management and compliance with international standards.

The centre also said the updated protected-area data could help inform future decisions on conservation, park management and environmental development.