GS Paper - II

The Wall Street Journal published a highly critical report on Neom, the ambitious Saudi megacity project championed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia’s Neom project contends with corruption, worker deaths, racism and misogyny, The WSJ report said.

What is Neom?

• Neom was visualised as part of Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Vision 2030 project, which sought to diversify the country’s economy and thus reduce its dependence on oil.
• Spread over an area of 26,500 sq km, Neom is situated in Saudi Arabia’s western Tabuk province.
• First announced by the Crown Prince in 2017, its name is a fusion of the Greek word “neo” meaning “new”, and the Arabic word “mustaqbal” meaning “future”.
• Initially pegged to be a $500-billion project, the costs have swelled to $1.5 trillion, according to a Bloomberg report from April 2024. It is set to be completed in 2039.
• Neom will comprise five regions, each home to a project ambitious in design, scale and imagination.

Five regions

• The Line – Probably the best-known among all the Neom projects, the Line will be built as a 170-kilometre-long mirrored city line spanning 34 square kilometres across the desert.
• Oxagon – The Oxagon is an octagonal industrial city which will house an integrated industrial port and residential apartments.
• Trojena – Trojena is set to host the Asian Winter Games in 2029. The region is home to Saudi Arabia’s tallest mountains, and will house a ski resort.
• Magna – Magna is designed to be a luxury lifestyle coastal destination, located on the coast of the Gulf of Aqaba.
• Sindalah – Sindalah is a luxury island in the Red Sea, which hopes to rival the likes of the Greek isles, the Caribbean Sea and the Mediterranean coastline, all favoured by yacht and boat owners.

What are the various controversies that have plagued Neom?

• Displacement of the indigenous residents - The BBC in 2020 reported that Saudi security forces were resorting to force to evict the Huwaitat tribe, the indigenous residents of the Tabuk region where Neom is being built.
• Sluggish progress of the projects - Bloomberg in April 2024 reported that the Neom project had been considerably scaled down.
• Apathy of the higher-ups at Neom - From the start, Mohammed bin Salman has delegated key elements of the project to executives who would get the job done by any means.
• Concerns about surveillance - A 2020 Neom press release announced its intent to create “cognitive cities,” which would rely on real-time information to anticipate and offer proactive insights to its residents.