RIYADH: Diriyah Company, responsible for developing the Diriyah project, the birthplace of the modern Saudi Arabia and its foremost historical, cultural and lifestyle destination, on Wednesday announced two high-profile, multibillion-dollar educational and arts districts to be developed in the $63.2 billion Diriyah project, on the outskirts of Riyadh.

The announcement was made at its annual international event, “Bashayer 2024 — Delivering our Future.”

These two high-profile districts demonstrate the accelerating growth and development of Diriyah, The City of Earth, one of the world’s biggest and most unique urban development projects spanning an area of 14 sq. km.

Diriyah Company is committed to establishing a vibrant global hub, the Qurain Cultural District, where culture meets modern urban living, offering a diverse range of arts, retail, office and residential spaces for people to live, work, shop local brands, and enjoy local dining experiences.

Its diverse range of multidisciplinary cultural offerings will include assets in a diverse range of areas including a cinema, museums, and several academies including writing, traditional Najdi architecture and mud building, Arab music, culinary, performing arts and theatre.

The Qurain Cultural District will additionally have two world-class hotels and branded residences, including the 195-room Ritz-Carlton Diriyah with 165 residences, and the Address Diriyah, which will have 204 rooms and 60 serviced apartments.

The district will include 19 mixed-use buildings, including office, retail and residences, 10 of which have various boutique office options, and a wide range of retail space and dining venues.

The development of the Qurain Cultural District includes a SR 5.8 billion ($1.55 billion) contract awarded to a joint venture between Nesma & Partners Contracting Co. and MAN Enterprise Al-Saudia.

The Northern District will make Diriyah a global center of learning for scholars, students and visionaries and will include the King Salman Foundation, museums, a university, a library, and a public square.

The new district will also be the site of the recently announced Capella Diriyah, a 100-room luxury hotel that announces Capella Hotels and Resorts’ groundbreaking entry into the Middle East.

Construction on elements of the Northern District is already underway following the announcement of a $2 billion joint venture contract with the China State Construction Engineering Corporation and El Seif Engineering Contracting Co.

Commenting on the new high-profile districts, Diriyah Company Group CEO Jerry Inzerillo said: “Qurain Cultural District and Northern District are two of our most important and significant areas of the Diriyah masterplan and demonstrate the range and diversity of what our City of Earth has to offer.

“They will both become global centers of excellence, of knowledge, learning and creativity as Diriyah once more becomes a gathering place for the world. We are delighted to share details of these major developments at Bashayer and share once more the unique range of investment opportunities and partnerships the Diriyah Company has to offer the world.”

Speaking to Arab News, Inzerillo said: “Every year in November and early December, we do our good news event — Bashayer — we have promised every year we would open new assets, ground break on substantial assets, and announce new assets. We started this in 2021 with 2030 projects. We opened assets in 2021, in 2022, Bujairi, the UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2023.

“Now we are putting many branded residences on sale, which are sold very quickly, like Ritz Carlton Reserves. We have parks, we have finished the golf course, and are building a new royal golf and polo and equestrian center, so many exciting developments.”

This milestone brings us closer to realizing Diriyah’s vision as a premier hospitality destination, with brands like Raffles, Armani, Orient Express, Baccarat, Corinthia, Fauchon L’Hotel, and Rosewood setting the standard for world-class luxury. Each of these properties will play a pivotal role in welcoming guests from around the world to the City of Earth, he added.

“The annual event Bashayer shows what we are building to complement His Royal Highness’s (Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman) master plan,” he said.  

The annual Bashayer event took place in the first of Diriyah’s planned 40-plus hotels — the 134-room Bab Samhan, a Luxury Collection Hotel. The new property is designed to reflect the 300-year-old Najdi architectural features and will begin welcoming guests at the end of this year.

The event attracted interest from global investors, hospitality companies, construction firms, infrastructure experts and representatives from the sports, arts, culture, tourism and retail sectors.

In addition to the new districts, the audience was also updated on the rapid progress being made in construction and the status of key assets at Diriyah Square with a tour of the project site, unveiled for the first time.

The Diriyah project is one of Saudi Arabia’s five giga-projects backed by the Public Investment Fund and is building homes for 100,000 people, creating 178,000 jobs, will host 50 million visits a year in the future and contribute $18.6 billion to Saudi Arabia’s GDP.