Vegetation Cover Center Opens 103 Green Investment Opportunities

Saudi Arabia’s National Center for Vegetation Cover Development and Combating Desertification has unveiled 103 investment opportunities worth more than SAR 500 million, covering over 45 million sq metres of vegetation-cover sites across the Kingdom.

The opportunities are being offered through private-sector partnerships and span ecotourism, hospitality, entertainment, agriculture and environmental projects, with development plans tailored to the characteristics of each site.

Proposed ventures include parks, eco-lodges, camps, botanical gardens, retail areas, bazaars and seasonal events, alongside adventure activities such as paragliding, mountain climbing and other sports. Environmental projects include plant nurseries, apiaries, medicinal and aromatic plants, and the processing of invasive plant species.

Investment agreements will range from five to 25 years. The centre said projects are expected to generate returns of up to 16%, with an internal rate of return of 17%, while contributing more than SAR 1.4 billion to GDP and creating around 6,000 jobs.

Sites are spread across Riyadh, Makkah, Asir, Madinah, Qassim, Baha, Hail, the Eastern Province, Northern Borders, Najran, Jouf, Jazan and Tabuk.

The centre said environmental safeguards will be built into project implementation, including limits on construction activity, design approvals and on-site monitoring throughout the investment period.

The opportunities are listed on the Furas platform and form part of the centre’s wider effort to attract private investment into vegetation-cover sites while supporting afforestation, ecotourism and natural-resource development.