Saudi Arabia's Neom — the kingdom's $500 billion city of the future — will have millions of residents by 2030, the project’s head of tourism has said.
People are expected to begin arriving in 2024.
Andrew McEvoy told The National he expected two million “Neomians” to call the city their home by within the next decade.
Mr McEvoy made his comments on the sidelines of the Arabian Travel Market, currently being held in Dubai’s World Trade Centre.
Alcohol is definitely not off the table. We need to be competitive, and to do that, we have to match what competing destinations are offering
Andrew McEvoy,
head of tourism, Neom
“From 2024 you will see a lot of movement as our first tourism assets begin to open,” Mr McEvoy said.
“Work is already under way and the tourism projects will start to roll out from then.”
Neom will be home to a number of tourist attractions, including the Trojena mountain destination.
Expected to open in 2026, it will have a ski slope, mountain biking and facilities for watersports. It will also feature an interactive nature reserve.
Neom has been designed as a smart city, which will be powered by clean energy.
It has attracted attention worldwide owing to previously released plans that include flying taxis, classes taught by holographic teachers and an artificial moon, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Mr McEvoy said Neom would be treated as its own state, separate from the rules that govern the rest of Saudi Arabia. This will make it more appealing to people considering relocating there, as well as tourists, he said.
“It’s an appealing destination to a lot of people because it’s a chance to help create a new country almost completely from scratch,” he said.
“It’s fantastic career motivation and there is the backing from the Public Investment Fund to make sure it happens.
“Neom will be treated as a country within a country, with its own economic zone and its own authority. We need to make sure its laws and regulations match the ambitions of those we are trying to attract to work and live here.”
He also said people living there would not be referred as Saudis but would be called by the title “Neomians”.
“We have got about 2,000 Neomians living there already along with about 10,000 construction workers,” Mr McEvoy said.
“A lot of the people coming here to live and work will be experts in the fields of energy, water and health — we’re already attracting a lot of great people.”
Selling alcohol not ruled out
He also refused to rule out the sale of alcohol to try and entice people from other countries to come for work or visits.
“Alcohol is definitely not off the table,” he said.
“We need to be competitive, and to do that, we have to match what competing destinations are offering.”
The project is also on target to be car-free by 2030, he said.
“The city is being built to be completely car-free but I think there will be a slight period of transition,” Mr McEvoy said.
“A lot of the mobility options of the future are out there already, like electric hybrids, and we’re experimenting with things like flying taxis.
“This is about providing the tourism of tomorrow.”
Sustainability is also an important focus for the project. This is being driven by young people who have a more invested role in fighting climate change than previous generations, Mr McEvoy said.
“The most powerful force we have behind this is a new generation of young Saudis who are passionately embracing a new future and see Neom as a beacon of that future.”
The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
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Results
2pm: Handicap Dh 90,000 1,800m; Winner: Majestic Thunder, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
2.30pm: Handicap Dh120,000 1,950m; Winner: Just A Penny, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson.
3pm: Handicap Dh105,000 1,600m; Winner: Native Appeal, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
3.30pm: Jebel Ali Classic Conditions Dh300,000 1,400m; Winner: Thegreatcollection, Adrie de Vries, Doug Watson.
4pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m; Winner: Oktalgano, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
4.30pm: Conditions Dh250,000 1,400m; Winner: Madame Ellingtina, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
5pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m; Winner: Mystery Land, Fabrice Veron, Helal Al Alawi.
5.30pm: Handicap Dh85,000 1,000m; Winner: Shanaghai City, Jesus Rosales, Rashed Bouresly.
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
ENGLAND WORLD CUP SQUAD
Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Day 3 stumps
New Zealand 153 & 249
Pakistan 227 & 37-0 (target 176)
Pakistan require another 139 runs with 10 wickets remaining
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