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| Al
Arabiyah as Suudiyah / Saudi Arabia |
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The
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia occupies 2.24 million square kilometers
in the Arabian Peninsula. Its topography consists of deserts,
plateaus, and mountains, with an overall desert-oriented feature.
In a period of about three decades, the government has invested
its large oil revenues into extensive and rapid infrastructure
development and expansion. To diversify the national economy,
huge industrial complexes and industrial infrastructures were
established, and domestic and foreign investments have been highly
encouraged. During the development expansion, the government has
recognised the imperative to integrate disaster management and
mitigation into the development processes. |
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Also,
the government has realised that responses to relief and emergency
situations are no longer viewed as charitable acts. In the mid-1980s,
the General Directorate of Civil Defense in the Ministry of Interior
was designated as the sole institution responsible for disaster-
and emergency relief related activities. The country is vulnerable
to natural and man-made disasters. This is in part due to a lack
of technical capabilities, outdated disaster mitigation plans,
unsafe clustering of industrial complexes, the heavy traffic of
oil tankers in the Arabian Gulf and the Red Sea, the threat of
terrorism, and an absence of disaster-related databases and early
warning systems. This vulnerability has been demonstrated during
several recent events. During the Gulf War of 1991, the explosion
of the oil wells in Kuwait and oil spills in neighboring territories
threatened Saudi Arabia. All affected countries consolidated their
resources and took measures to recruit specialised foreign firms
and expertise to control the spills and rehabilitate the damage.
Floods sometimes occur in some valleys after heavy rains and impacts
are relatively limited. The country experiences frequent sand
and dust storms but with no major losses of lives or to properties.
(...)
More information
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| More
information |
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UNDP Saudi Arabia
Country Office
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| Related
Projects |
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Activities
in Disaster Preparedness
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