JEDDAH, 7 January 2004 — In an attempt to improve the city environment, the Jeddah municipality has launched a cleanup campaign under the banner “Jeddah, Your Home and Mine.”
By linking the cleanup campaign with the home environment, the municipality hopes to develop a sense of ownership and responsibility in its citizens.
Jeddah Mayor Abdullah Al-Muallami officially launched the campaign on Monday in front of an invited audience at the Hilton hotel.
“Jeddah launches a variety of campaigns every year,” said Al-Muallami. “This year, the ‘Your Home and Mine’ campaign is our flagship and emphasizes our desire to keep the city environment clean.”
The campaign intends to target both the macro problems of garbage disposal and the more obvious eyesore of street litter and the unsocial behavior of discarding wrappings and food containers from car windows.
The campaign organizers hope to introduce a sense of responsibility for their environment to the residents of Jeddah and to raise awareness of decent social behavior. “We want people to treat the city they live in with as much respect as they treat their own homes,” he said.
The campaign — the largest environmental awareness campaign ever launched in the city — is intended to run long-term, with an educational aspect aimed at schools at the primary and secondary level with follow up through college level.
Supporting campaigns, for example art and painting competitions, quizzes, awareness seminars and public meetings are planned for residents across the city. By encouraging residents to participate in the campaign, Al-Muallami hopes to make residents aware that they can either be part of the problem or part of the solution.
“Participation in the cleanup campaign should make people aware that it is our own carelessness that creates many of Jeddah’s environmental problems,” he said. “I hope it will make people realize the importance of our own efforts in solving them. People will make the difference if they care about the city.”
