Higher government authorities have called for the establishment of a supreme council for government lands to streamline measures and help government agencies set up projects, Al-Hayat Daily reported.

The call is aimed at tackling problems related to government projects in terms of the existence (or absence) of appropriate lands, ownership disputes or any obstructions that may befall projects, the source said.

The Supreme Council is supposed to assign notaries of the Ministry of Justice to produce documents for lands allocated for government projects and direct the steering committee at the Ministry of Finance to develop procedures needed to finance contractors and finalize measures on dealing with delays in implementation of pre-approved government projects.

He said that according to the proposed council, the ministry of municipal and rural affairs is to prepare database for contractors on projects they have already implemented, under construction, delayed or defaulting projects together with their categories based on the available data.

Every government agency will build its own database on projects being implemented in cooperation with the Council of Saudi Chambers (CSC) and e-Government Program (Yesser) to be linked to a unified national database on government projects. The ministry of economy and planning is to prepare a study to assess work progress in government projects after the application of arrangements dealing with the stalled projects.

He said that as part of the new arrangements, necessary funds will be allocated in the draft budget for each agency on design, supervisory works, and training programs for engineers. The Ministry of Labor will grant contractors the required visas as determined by the government agency to which the project is affiliated. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in cooperation with the ministry of municipal and rural affairs and the CSC, will work out and submit regulatory arrangements in a period not exceeding 90 days.