A new Saudi Arabia on display in G20

NEW DELHI | Updated: 10 September, 2023 2:15 pm IST

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia set the ball rolling for further investments and exposure into its many projects, including NEOM city, in an event at the Oberoi Hotel

NEW DELHI: Saudi Arabia, the home of Mecca, which is known around the world for its religious and cultural significance in Islam, is turning into a hub of innovation, tourism, and sports. As Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visits India for the G20 Summit, the Ministry of Media of the Saudi government organises a three-day exhibition on the sidelines called Media Oasis.

The event aims to provide an immersive and interactive experience of Saudi Arabia’s leading projects in the sectors of tourism, entertainment, technology, culture and sports. The overarching theme of the exhibit is Vision 2030, an initiative by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia aimed towards the diversification of the country — economically, socially, and culturally.

Organised at the Oberoi Hotel in New Delhi, the event exhibits all fronts where the Middle East giant is focused in order to move toe to toe with the world. The lavish banquet was fully decked up in Saudi flavour with many delegates, ministry officials and royal family members hosting the event in traditional apparel.

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Saudi Arabia has shown tremendous progress in the fields of technology, infrastructure and sports, which was excellently displayed at the exhibition. One section of the exhibition was full of LED screens that displayed the Saudi Arabian football team’s awe-inspiring triumph over Argentina, the eventual world champions, at the FIFA World Cup 2022. It also showed the rapidly growing Saudi Premier League (SPL), which owes its success to the large-scale investments which brought some of the world’s best players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar Jr., and Karim Benzema to various SPL clubs.

Another section of the exhibition was dedicated towards the ambitious NEOM city project which will incorporate several pathbreaking infrastructure and technological developments. The NEOM city plans to have a skiing mountain with artificial snow approximately at a height of 1000 metres above sea level.

The first day of the event was graced by the presence of Saudi princess Nouf bint Muhammad Al Saud, the CEO of King Khalid Foundation, one of the leading non-profit organisations in Saudi Arabia.