JEDDAH, 27 March 2004 — A housing project for medium income earners is taking shape in the historical area of Abraq Al-Raghama, east of Jeddah. Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed will lay the foundation stone for the SR320 million project on April 11.

The Um Al-Khair project is being built by Ewa Al-Deera for Real Estate Development in cooperation with Zuhair Fayez Office and Fast Contracting Company.

The project with 423 housing units is located close to the Makkah-Madinah Expressway and covers an area of 250,000 sq. meters.

Abdul Monem Murad, executive director of Ewa Al-Deera, said work on the project’s first phase would start soon. “This is an important project to providing housing to medium-income earners,” Murad said.

Developers plan to construct 80 units in the first phase and will be ready by the end of this year. “About 30 percent of the units have already been reserved,” Murad said.

The management has signed an agreement with Riyad Bank’s real estate department to market the units under the Islamic murabaha system. The housing units sell for between SR600,000 and SR800,000.

The two-story family houses of between 375 to 395 sq. m comprise three to four bedrooms, a living room, a hall and three bathrooms. Studies show that Jeddah needs more than 50,000 housing units to cater to the needs of its growing population.

Charity Projects in Asir

Asir Governor Prince Khaled Al-Faisal is overseeing charity projects stretching from Sarat to Tuhama that have been launched to provide accommodation and better housing facilities to the residents.

The projects were launched after locals refused to leave the area in order to improve their living conditions.

The residents of this mountainous region are poor and are cut off from the outside world. They rely on an underdeveloped infrastructure and depend on primitive technology to survive.

Asir authorities kicked off development of the area by establishing charity projects that will serve the local people. Eleven charity centers were opened in Marba, Wadi Al-Haya, Ein Al-Luwi, Hajri, Sawalha, Amwah, Hamda, Azraq, Ein, Khanqa and Keera. These centers study the local requirements and make suggestions taking into consideration the availability of underground water, economic foundations such as agriculture and tourism, and accessibility.

More than 50,000 people will benefit from these projects, which will provide housing, schools, water, health care and employment. The charity programs include distribution of 10,000 pieces of land to the poor.

Past charity projects, such as King Faisal village and Prince Sultan project have benefited many families in the area.

Prince Alwaleed ibn Talal signed a contract to build 200 housing units while visiting Asir. He also promised to construct between 200 to 300 housing units in other centers.

— Additional input from Saeed Asiri