Rahnuma:RIYADH: Saudi Arabia on Wednesday launched the National Greening Season to expand vegetation cover, combat desertification, promote native species suited to the local climate, and encourage environmental volunteerism across the public, private and nonprofit sectors.
“As part of national efforts to restore lands and enhance environmental sustainability, the National Greening Season launches across the Kingdom under the slogan, ‘A generation plants for a thriving nation,’” the National Center for Vegetation Cover Development and Combating Desertification, which leads key environmental and sustainability projects under the Saudi Green Initiative, posted on X on Wednesday.
“With community awareness and institutional integration, we continue to develop vegetation cover and ensure a sustainable environmental future for present and future generations,” it added.
The National Greening Program, which announced last week that the Greening Season would launch on Oct. 7, posted on X: “From a small sapling begins a story of impact. In the National Greening Season, our relationship with the earth is renewed … Join us and share the impact with us; let us translate our concern for vegetation cover into steps and achievements.”
The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture said: “The National Greening Season contributes to entrenching the culture of environmental volunteering, raising awareness of sound practices among all segments of society, and supporting the integration of national and community efforts to sustain the environment and promote the prosperity of the homeland.”
In Najran, Deputy Gov. Prince Turki bin Hudhulul bin Abdulaziz inaugurated the Greening Season. The event was attended by Mureeh Al-Shahrani, director general of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture’s Najran branch, and Muhannad Al-Yami, director general of the National Center for Vegetation Cover in Najran.
Jazan University launched several initiatives to promote environmental sustainability, protect natural resources and expand vegetation cover, marking the start of the National Greening Season as part of efforts to support the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030 and the Saudi Green Initiative.
Abadi Mashlawi, acting director of the Environmental and Nature Research Center and head of the Biology Department, said the university had achieved 100 percent of its National Greening Program targets after planting 38,946 trees last year.
He said the university had planted about 60,821 trees and flowers to date across 24 locations on its campus.
Mashlawi highlighted the university’s focus on expanding green spaces and introducing species suited to local conditions in student housing, around colleges and at the university mosque. The efforts aim to reduce temperatures, improve air quality and enhance the campus environment.
Supporting the national goals of the Saudi Green Initiative, this year’s Greening Season is the third since its launch in 2024.
Building on the milestones of the past two years, which saw more than 51,000 hectares rehabilitated through rainwater harvesting and the sowing of 109 tonnes of seeds from 40 indigenous plant species, this year’s plans target the rehabilitation of an additional 60,000 hectares.
Operations will disperse more than 110 tonnes of seeds covering 70 native species, coordinated with cloud-seeding missions to enhance germination rates, with a cumulative target of 350,000 rehabilitated hectares by 2030.
