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RIYADH: National center for vegetation cover development and combating ‎desertification (NCVC)‎ is preparing to plant ‎12 million trees, and shrubs and scattering seeds, which will be irrigated with renewed water, in 2024 in a number of regions of Saudi Arabia, according to Khalid Al-Abdul-Qadir, CEO of the NCVC.

Al-Abdul-Qadir ‎confirmed, during a ceremony held in Buraidah Oasis on the occasion of the completion of the planting of one million trees in the Oasis, that “Implementation of the first phase of rehabilitation of the floodplains and Meadows will witness rehabilitating 1000 floodplains and Meadows by planting 12 million trees, and shrubs and scattering seeds and the use of rainwater harvesting techniques”.

“The center seeks to achieve this through its partnership with the Royal Reserves to ‎apply the best ‎practices that guarantee the initiative to achieve its goals successfully”, he added.

Prince Faisal bin Mishal, Governor of Al-Qassim Region, inaugurated in February 2020 the “Green Oasis” project in Buraidah, and laid the foundation stone for the first phase of the project at a cost exceeding 77 million riyals, with a total area of 28 million square meters.

The NCVC has signed several agreements with the King Salman bin Abdul ‎Aziz Royal Reserve’s Development Authority, King Abdul Aziz Royal Reserve’s ‎Development Authority, Imam Turkey bin ‎Abdullah Royal Reserve’s Development ‎Authority, Imam Abdul Aziz Bin Muhammad Royal Reserve ‎Development ‎Authority, King Khalid Royal Reserve Development Authority to rehabilitate more ‎than ‎‎1000 floodplains and meadows across the kingdom.‎

In this regard, NCVC organized a ‎workshop to introduce the implementation plan to rehabilitate the floodplains and meadows, the plan’s goals, mechanism, and ‎partnership with the abovementioned Royal Reserves to implement it.‎

The workshop included several main aspects about the goals of the initiative, and the evaluation criteria for the techniques used in the rehabilitation process, the most important ‎evaluation methods for the outcomes of the rehabilitation implementation’s, prominent areas of cooperation and partnership between the NCVC and the Royal Reserves in rehabilitation, targeted development and ‎community partnership.

The area targeted for the rehabilitation exceeds 225 thousand hectares of degraded lands within a single area with a total area that exceeds 1.9 million hectares of floodplains and Meadows, which contributes to enhancing environmental sustainability, improving live quality, and to achieve the kingdom’s vision 2030.

These efforts are part of the Saudi green initiative which aims to plant 10 billion trees. It comes as a contribution of work on rehabilitation initiative of floodplains and meadows which was launched by the minister ‎of environment, water and culture last October, to rehabilitate 1000 floodplains and meadows across the kingdom.

NCVC has also implemented a number of farming projects in the Royal reserve, including planting of 1 million trees in Al-Khafs Meadows in king Abdulaziz Royal Reserve, planting 400,000 saplings of local trees in the Imam Turki bin Abdullah Royal reserve, and supplying the ‎King Salman Royal Reserve with 1.2 million seedlings to be planted in the Reserve.

In the same context, cooperation efforts between the NCVC and Imam Abdulaziz bin Mohammed Royal Reserve Development Authority also resulted in planting more than 600,000 trees and shrubs in the Imam ‎Abdulaziz bin Mohammed Royal Reserve and the King Khaled Royal Reserve (KKRR).‎

Dr. Talal Al-Harigi, CEO of the Development Authority of Imam Abdulaziz bin ‎Mohammed Royal Reserve, and Khalid Al-Abdul-Qadir, CEO of the NCVC, signed the agreement to implement the initiative in Imam ‎Abdulaziz bin Mohammed Royal Reserve and the KKRR.

This in addition to the memorandum of understanding that was previously signed between the two parties as part of the executive plan for the Fayyad and Kindergarten Development Initiative, which aims to rehabilitate 1000 floodplains and meadows in the regions of the Kingdom.

The agreement includes a strategic plan to develop vegetation in all natural habitats, through rehabilitation based on natural solutions. It stated that the work according to well scientific plans that ensure the sustainability of vegetation cover and achieve natural rehabilitation so that nature regains its balance.

CNVC works to develop, protect, and monitor vegetation sites, rehabilitate the deteriorated ones and detect violations against them and combat logging. This in addition to supervising the pasture lands, protecting and investing in forests and national parks ‎which enhances a sustainable development and an improved the quality of life.

Captions:
1. (From right): Ahmed Al-Maliki, Deputy CEO of the KSRNR’s Development Authority; Talal Al-Harigi, CEO of the Imam Abdulaziz ‎bin ‎Mohammed Royal Reserve Development Authority; Khalid Al-Abdul-Qadir, CEO of the NCVC; Mohammed Alshaalan, CEO the Imam Turki Bin Abdullah Royal Nature Reserve Development Authority; and Maher Al-Gothmi, CEO of the King Abdulaziz Royal Nature Reserve Development Authority.
2. Talal Al-Harigi, CEO of the Development Authority of Imam Abdulaziz ‎bin ‎Mohammed Royal Reserve (left), and Khalid Al-Abdul-Qadir, CEO of the NCVC (right), signing ‎an agreement to plant trees and shrubs in the Imam ‎Abdulaziz bin Mohammed Royal Reserve and the KKRR. 

3. A large number of specialists and interested parties attended the workshop ‎organized by the NCVC to introduce the implementation plan to ‎rehabilitate the ‎floodplains and meadows, the plan’s goals, mechanism, ‎and ‎partnership with the ‎Royal Reserves to implement it.