Protected Areas

The Kingdom sought assistance in conducting the necessary biological and social studies and surveys to prepare its protected areas national system with the expertise of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Experts from the Union and the NCWCD in 1991 prepared a document “A national system for conserving wildlife and sustainable rural development in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” based on which the declared network of protected areas was established till the time being.

The system, which was recently updated according to environmental developments, includes a proposal to preserve 75 areas (including 62 terrestrial areas, 13 coastal and marine areas).