Outline
- Abstract
- Keywords
- 1. Introduction
- 2. Urban Governance, Power, and Political Will
- 2.1. from Government to Governance
- 2.2. Transformation Towards Sustainable Urban Governance
- 3. Urban Governance and Sustainable Development in Saudi Arabia
- 3.1. the Case of Urban Environmental Challenges in Riyadh
- 3.2. Pressures for Change in Saudi Urban Governance
- 4. Recent Changes in Saudi Urban Sustainability
- 4.1. Changes in Urban Governance
- 4.2. Urban Environmental Sustainability
- 5. Examining the Transformations in Saudi Arabia Using the Referenced Frameworks
- 5.1. Assessing the Changes in Saudi Urban Governance
- 5.2. Comparison with International Practices
- 5.3. Towards Sea-Based Sustainable Urban Development Framework in Saudi Arabia
- 6. Conclusion
- Acknowledgements
- References
رئوس مطالب
- چکیده
- کلیدواژه ها
- 1. مقدمه
- 2. حکمرانی شهری، قدرت، و اراده سیاسی
- 2.1. از دولت تا حکومت
- 2.2. تحول به سمت حکمرانی شهری پایدار
- 3. حکمرانی شهری و توسعه پایدار در عربستان سعودی
- 3.1. مورد چالش های محیطی شهری در ریاض
- 3.2. فشارهای تغییر در حکمرانی شهری عربستان سعودی
- 4. تغییرات اخیر در پایداری شهری عربستان سعودی
- 4.1. چالش ها در حکمرانی شهری
- 4.2. پایداری محیطی شهری
- 1. شهر هوشمند و پروژه های نظارتی شهری
- 2. جابجایی، زیرساخت شهری، و خانه سازی
- 3. فضای سبز شهری
- 5. بررسی تحولات در عربستان سعودی با استفاده از چارچوبهای مرجع
- 5.1. ارزیابی تغییرات در حکمرانی شهری عربستان سعودی
- 5.2. مقایسه با روشهای بین المللی
- 5.3. به سمت چارچوب توسعه شهری پایدار مبتنی بر SEA در عربستان سعودی
- 6. نتیجه گیری
Abstract
This paper focuses on transformation in sustainable urban governance by examining the prospect of fostering sustainable development through top-down urban governance. It takes a case study of urban development in Saudi Arabia, which had been administered through a centralized framework devoid of the environmental assessment of policies and plans. Urban planning documents made limited references to the environment. Consequently, Saudi cities have been ranked low on environmental sustainability. However, recently, due to the political imperative of addressing the problems, low oil prices, and the Arab Spring, there has been a remarkable transformation in urban governance. The planning of some of the major cities has been decentralized and some policies implemented to curb unsustainable development. This article reviews these changes to investigate how top-down approaches might still be relevant in promoting sustainable development. It concludes that there is a need to implement a framework of legislation and administrative procedures integrated with strategic environmental assessment (SEA) to ensure proper sustainable institutionalised urban governance. The findings could serve as lessons for those operating under similar political contexts especially in developing countries.
Keywords: Environmental assessment - Environmental policy - Institutional framework - Saudi Arabia - Urban governance - Urban sustainabilityConclusions
This article has explored the urban governance and sustainable urban development debate that a top-down approach to governance could influence urban sustainability in a positive way using the framework of sustainable urban governance. In the case of Saudi Arabia, there have been notable positive changes in urban governance and the governance for sustainable development. Due to the imperative of addressing pressing environmental issues, low oil prices and the pressure from Arab Spring, the government has implemented notable projects and policies to reduce Saudi environmental footprint.
These transformations buttress the point that a top-down approach initiated by those in the top echelon of a society can have a great influence on the move towards sustainability. The top-down approach provides the needed leadership and political will to “make things happen”. For example, the new Vision 2030 plan that provides a vision of urban sustainability and set of goals to be achieved which were previously non-existent was established by the central government and had been adopted by all agencies and the private sector. The new Saudi Vision 2030 plan and partnership with UN-Habitat on the Future Saudi Cities program might lead to an improvement in sustainable urban governance. The partnership with UN-Habitat can provide an opportunity for sharing experiences and technical skills. Also, the smart city projects, such as the new Neom city, are envisioned and supported by the government. The adoption and implementation of these projects by all the levels of government had been facilitated by the centralized form of governance. This could be relevant in other contexts as noted by Moser (2019). The adoption of the top-down approach does not preclude the need for bottom-up interactions through citizen and stakeholder participation. As argued by Patterson et al. (2017) there might be a need for both “top-down steering and bottom-up self-organization” to achieve a successful transformation to sustainable urban governance.
The development of public-private partnership projects is an aspect of the bottom-up approach that could be further explored. The main point is that government, either centralized or otherwise, might be motivated by pressures to carry out changes which might have great effects with the appropriate leadership. Leadership is an aspect of the top-down approach that might be usefully retained or explored in Saudi Arabia or elsewhere.
It should be noted that the changes in Saudi urban governance have not been experienced by some vital aspects of sustainability. The legislative framework and the administrative procedures for sustainable urban development are still mainly in business as usual mode. There is a need to implement a framework of legislation and administrative procedures to ensure proper sustainable institutionalised urban governance. Also, the drive towards decentralization has not been far reaching. The municipalities still depend on the central government for their finance. The adopted public-partnership has faced the challenges of lack of operational framework and legislation. These limitations need to be addressed to improve on the recent transformation.