Saudi Arabia has unveiled new multibillion-dollar education and arts districts within the $63.2 billion Diriyah giga-project on the outskirts of Riyadh.
The new districts, named the Qurain Cultural District and the Northern District, include several cultural assets. The former will feature a cinema, museums, and academies for writing, Najdi architecture and mud building, Arab music, and performing arts.
It will also have two world-class hotels, including the 195-room Ritz-Carlton Diriyah, and 19 mixed-use buildings for work, retail and living.
The development of the Qurain Cultural District includes a SAR 5.8bn ($1.55bn) contract awarded to a joint venture between Nesma & Partners, UJSC and MAN Enterprise.
As for the Northern District, this will include the King Salman Foundation, as well as museums, a university, a library, and a public square.
It will also boast the Capella Diriyah, a 100-room luxury hotel that marks Capella Hotels and Resorts’ entry into the Middle East.
Construction on elements of the Northern District is already underway after a SAR 7.8bn ($2bn) joint venture contract was given to China State Construction Engineering and El Seif Engineering Contracting.
Museums, hotels and more
Diriyah Company Group CEO Jerry Inzerillo said: “Qurain Cultural District and Northern District are two of our most important and significant areas of the Diriyah masterplan and demonstrate the range and diversity of what our ‘City of Earth’ has to offer.
“They will both become global centers of excellence, of knowledge, learning and creativity as Diriyah once more becomes a gathering place for the world.”
A culture and lifestyle destination, Diriyah is one of Saudi Arabia’s five giga-projects backed by the world’s fifth largest sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
The development will create 178,000 jobs, host 50 million visits a year, and contribute $18.6bn to Saudi Arabia’s GDP.
Images courtesy of Diriyah Company
