Saudi Gazette report

JEDDAH — Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, emir of Makkah and advisor to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, handed over documents of housing units to dwellers of Jeddah slums in a ceremony held at the headquarters of the emirate on Monday.

The ceremony was held in the presence of Abdullah Al-Badir, deputy minister of municipal and rural affairs and housing, and Mushabbab Al-Qahtani, undersecretary at the emirate of Makkah region.

The housing units were allotted to a total of 107 families in the first batch. The Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing will provide a total of 4,781 housing units to local residents whose shelters were razed in line with the directive of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. The slums were cleared for redevelopment of random districts in the city.

Speaking on the occasion, Al-Qahtani said a total of 69,000 humanitarian services have been rendered to the residents of the slums that were razed in Jeddah. These included most notably housing for 720 families, transportation of luggage, and provision of meals, medicines and supplies for children.

Al-Qahtani noted that the work of redeveloping certain neighborhoods in Jeddah was launched at this important stage in the history of Jeddah, taking into account the humanitarian concerns for the residents of those areas. As part of realizing this, an exclusive electronic portal has been set up to receive compensation requests from citizens whose homes have been razed.

“What we are witnessing today reflects the great interest that the leadership of this country attaches to its citizens and its keenness to provide them with all the services necessary for decent life. We thank all those who work around the clock to improve the place and serve the human beings in this region under the directives of the leadership,” he added.