The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the second largest state in the Arab world, with a reported population of 33,413,660 as of 2018. A significant percentage of the nation's inhabitants are immigrants seeking economic opportunity, making up 37% of the total Saudi population. Saudi Arabia has experienced a population explosion in the last 40 years, and continues to grow at a rate of 1.63% per year.
The economy of Saudi Arabia is one of the top twenty economies in the world (G20). It is dependent on oil as the country has the second-largest proven petroleum reserves, and the country is the largest exporter of petroleum in the world. It also has the fifth-largest proven natural gas reserves and is considered an "Energy Superpower". With a total worth of US$33.2 trillion, Saudi Arabia has the second most valuable natural resources in the world.
With the arrival of petrodollars, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has initiated many mega infrastructure development projects in the country, and the extensive development of the transportation network has followed suit in support of various economic developments. As a result, the country now boasts an extensive transportation network.
Jeddah, also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda, is a city in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia and the country's commercial center. With a population of about four million people, Jeddah is the largest city in Makkah Province, the second-largest in Saudi Arabia, and the tenth-largest in the Arab world. Jeddah Islamic Port, located on the Red Sea, is the second-largest and second-busiest seaport in the Arab world.
Saudi Aramco, officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, is a Saudi Arabian multinational petroleum and natural gas company based in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.
The Eastern Province is the easternmost of the 13 provinces of Saudi Arabia. It is the largest province of Saudi Arabia by area and the third most populous with a population of 4,900,325 as of 2017, after the Riyadh Province and the Makkah Province. Of these, 3,140,362 were Saudi citizens and 1,759,963 were foreign nationals The province accounts for 15.05% of the entire population of Saudi Arabia and is named for its geographical location relative to the rest of the kingdom.
Yanbu' al Bahr, also known simply as Yanbu, Yambo or Yenbo, is a major Red Sea port in the Al Madinah Province of western Saudi Arabia. It is approximately 300 kilometers northwest of Jeddah. The population is 188,430. Many residents are foreign expatriates working in the oil refineries and petrochemical industry, mostly from Asia, but there are also large numbers from the Middle East, Europe, and North America.
Khobar, is a city in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the coast of the Persian Gulf. It ranks 20th by population with an estimated 165,799 people living there as of 2019. Khobar is part of the 'Triplet Cities' or Dammam metropolitan area along with Dammam and Dhahran and serves as the residential core of the region.
King Abdullah Economic City is a megaproject announced in 2005 by king Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the then-king of Saudi Arabia.
Al Qunfudhah, also known as Kunfuda, is Saudi city in the Tihamah region on the coast of the Red Sea. Its population is the fourth largest in Makkah Province, the area of the governate is estimated at 5,195 km², which occupies about 3.65% of the area of the region and is ranked ninth among the governorates of the region in terms of area. It is also one of the large sea ports of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea. Al Qunfudhah was founded in 1311 A.C-709 Hijri according to the ancient sources.
Saudi Arabia is the second biggest tourist destination in the Middle East with over 16 million visiting in 2017. Although most tourism in Saudi Arabia still largely involves religious pilgrimages, there is growth in the leisure tourism sector. As the tourism sector has been largely boosted lately, the sector is expected to be the white oil for Saudi Arabia. This is proved as tourism sector is expected to generate $25 billion in 2019. Potential tourist areas include the Hijaz and Sarawat Mountains, Red Sea diving and a number of ancient ruins.
Saudi Ports Authority is a government agency that supervises the ports of Saudi Arabia. It was founded in 1976 as an independent agency of the Prime Minister's office, to bring together the governance and operations of the multiple ports of the country to one office. Over time the actual operation of the ports was devolved by government contract to independent port operating companies.
The Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. It is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by all adult Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey, and can support their family during their absence.
The e-Government in Saudi Arabia was established as per Royal Decree No. 7/B/33181 dated 7 September 2003. The e-Government was created by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. In 2005, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology created the e-Government Program Yesser with the ministry of finance and the Communications and Information Technology Commission. The portal offers around 2500 services for people of Saudi Arabia. The main goal of the service is to facilitate the transactions of citizens, residents and visitors by providing a quick and sufficient assistance. Moreover, Yesser contributes to encouraging governmental agencies in achieving a sustainable progress by improving efficiency and capacity.
Visitors to Saudi Arabia must obtain a visa unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries. Some visitors are eligible to obtain a visa online or on arrival while others needs to apply at one of the Saudi diplomatic missions in advance.
Neom is a planned cross-border city in the Tabuk Province of northwestern Saudi Arabia. It is planned to incorporate smart city technologies and also function as a tourist destination. The site is near the Red Sea and the borders that Saudi Arabia shares with Egypt and Jordan. It will cover a total area of 26,500 km2 (10,200 sq mi) and will extend 460 km along the coast of the Red Sea.
The following lists events in the year 2019 in Saudi Arabia.
The Ministry of Culture is a governmental organization in Saudi Arabia was established in June 2018 and responsible for various aspects of Saudi culture. Minister of Culture is Prince Badr bin Farhan Al-Saud who was appointed as its new and first minister.
The King Fahad Industrial Port (Yanbu) is a Saudi port located in Yanbu city of Saudi Arabia on the Red sea coast. It is the largest port for loading the crude oil and petrochemicals in the Red Sea.
The King Fahad Industrial Port (Jubail) is a Saudi port located in Jubail city of Saudi Arabia. The port was established in 1974 to serve Jubail Industrial city and now is considered as one of the largest industrial ports in the world.
