This was disclosed by Sameer Basabrain, head of the committee to monitor government land and prevent encroachments in Jeddah governorate.

Speaking to Al-Eqtisadiah business daily, he said that the committee, in line with the directives of Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, was strictly monitoring government land and preventing all types of intrusion. “We make use of all the highly advanced technical devices to detect any encroachments outside the populated area. There has been an effective coordination with the Jeddah municipality as well as with the branch municipalities of Dhahban, Briman and south Jeddah in addition to my office in this regard,” he said.

Basabrain said that a number of reclaimed plots, including those belonging to the Haramain Railway, road projects, eastern forests and the national park, have been handed over to the concerned government agencies.

On his part, Abdullah Al-Ahmari, chairman of the real estate committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the value of the reclaimed government land was estimated at more than SR14 billion on the assumption that the minimum market value of a square meter is SR50. “At present, cases of encroachment on government land have declined substantially, thanks to the strict surveillance of the committees to tackle land grabbers even in remote regions. The committees managed to prevent many cases of illegal constructions on government land,” he said, adding that these committees are functioning under the personal supervision of Prince Khaled Al-Faisal.

Al-Ahmari stressed the need for infrastructure development in these areas in a way that facilitates construction of residential projects to meet the growing housing demand in the region. He also warned citizens against being deceived by land mafias who intrude on government land and sell them to unsuspecting citizens. “These citizens lose both their money and their land when the concerned government agencies come to reclaim the plots,” he said.