Jeddah must open more public parks to spread a culture of health awareness and fight obesity, residents say.

Locals are keen on engaging in physical activity in their neighborhoods, but find themselves hard-pressed to find venues in which to practice sports.

Most local parks are narrow with limited pathways, which makes it difficult for women to walk and children to play on swings.

Several parks in Kilo Two, Tihama and Handisa did not contain an inch of landscape or greenery but remained popular with local residents for their entertainment facilities until they were shut down following the expiry of their lease with the Jeddah Municipality.

“The Jeddah Municipality is planning to develop parks with recreational facilities for children through private contributions. Hence the delay in completing these projects,” Ayad M. Abdullah, director-general of the Parks and Landscaping Division at the Jeddah Municipality, told Arab News.

“I need to walk every day, but often walk around in circles due to limited space,” said Rwanda Redan, an Egyptian woman who lives in the Samar district. “I am also reluctant to walk unless my daughters or other women join me.”

“Doctors have been advising me to exercise to combat high blood sugar but I cannot walk in the neighborhood’s streets thanks to traffic and the fact that the nearby park is dilapidated and dirty,” said Syed Kaleem Ahmed, an Indian resident of the Aziziah district working in the aviation sector. “I come home too exhausted every day to think of going to faraway parks.”

Other residents, however, are not as unhappy.

“We hardly see any parks like the one in the Handawiya district where I live,” Omar Al-Barabba, a resident of the Handawiya district, said.

The municipality has been accused of failing to maintain newly opened parks, while shutting down older entertainment facilities that were privately owned.