The Saudi Green Building Forum, an annual conference organised by MEED in partnership with the Saudi Green Building Trust Foundation, this evening presented leadership awards to 10 Saudi Arabian organisations and companies that are making a significant contribution to increasing the sustainability of the kingdom’s built environment.
The awards were presented to:
- The King Saudi Foundation
- Mecca Municipality
- The Ministry of Justice
- Jeddah Municipality
- The Urban Development Institute
- The Presidency of Meteorology & Environment
- The Saudi Electricity Company
- The Arriyadh Development Authority
- The Saudi Environmental Society.
- The Saudi Binladin Group.
The awards were presented on behalf of Prince Mansour Bin Miteb Bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Municipality & Rural Affairs and patron of the forum, by Abdulrahman al-Dhamash, the ministry’s adviser on technical affairs.
The Saudi Green Building Forum is sponsored by the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic), Carrier and Tawuniyah.
“The ministry is preparing for new technical standards and other rules and regulations for green buildings,” Al-Dhamash said.
Saudi Green Building Forum Secretary General Faisal Alfadl said that the Saudi Arabia has made enormous progress since the first forum was held in 2010.
“This is an historic turning point for the green building movement in the kingdom,” he said. “We are looking forward to continuing to champion the green-building policies developed by government policymakers and private sector investors. The next achievable objective is to promote employment in the green building sector.”
A speech delivered on behalf of the US ambassador to Saudi Arabia Joseph Westphal said that the kingdom’s making solid progress in developing higher building standards.
“Standards are being developed in building materials, appliances, electronic systems, airconditioning and refrigeration,” the speech said. “These standards, when promulgated into regulation and if done in accordance with international standard norms, will change the landscape of the construction market and industry in the kingdom.”
The US plans to appoint a standards attaché in the US embassy in Riyadh to monitor developments in Saudi Arabia and other GCC states.
The Saudi Green Building Forum is being held on 17-18 November in Riyadh’s Al-Faisaliah Hotel.