JEDDAH: Prince Sultan bin Salman, secretary-general of the General Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (GCTA), has announced plans to develop the historic area of Jeddah into an international heritage center.
“The commission and the country’s government have made concerted efforts to preserve and develop the historical part of Old Jeddah in the past several years. It will now witness a new phase of development,” Al-Madinah newspaper quoted Prince Sultan as saying.
“The commission is also working with the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs to develop historical places in Taif, Majmaa and Hofuf,” the prince added.
“Preserving historical areas is not the responsibility of the commission alone. It is a national duty. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and Crown Prince Sultan have shown keen interest in this regard,” he said.
Prince Sultan said Saudi Arabia would witness tremendous progress in the area of conserving the country’s architectural heritage. “This will include not only implementation of projects but also public awareness programs,” the prince said.
The GCTA has set out a new law for the protection of architectural heritage. Prince Sultan presented a paper on the challenges facing the preservation of architectural heritage during a recent forum that was held at Petra University in Jordan.
“Ever since the commission has been entrusted with the task of protecting the country’s heritage and museums, we have implemented a number of conservation programs,” the prince said.
The commission cooperates with other government departments and agencies to protect heritage cities and villages around the Kingdom and highlight their historical importance.
“In this respect, we plan to register major heritage centers in the Kingdom with UNESCO to include them in the international agency’s World Heritage List,” the prince said, adding that UNESCO this year granted World Heritage status to Madain Saleh near Al-Ula. “We now plan to submit two more sites — Old Jeddah and Al-Diriya — for inscription in the global list,” he said.
Prince Sultan said the commission has embarked on a project to renovate iconic buildings constructed during the era of King Abdul Aziz in different parts of the country and transform them into tourist centers and museums.
“We have also carried out a feasibility study on prospects of setting up a company to invest in heritage buildings owned by the state in order to convert them to heritage hotels and hospitality centers,” Prince Sultan said.
