Saudi Arabia adopted nature-based solutions (NBS) as part of its Saudi Green Initiative, launched in 2021, to restore degraded lands, combat desertification, and reduce carbon emissions. NBS includes reforestation, mangrove restoration, and ecosystem protection. The goal is to turn 30 percent of Saudi Arabia’s land into nature reserves, plant 10 billion trees, and restore 40 million hectares of degraded land. A successful example is restoring Thadiq National Park, a 600-square-kilometer park, a sprawling expanse of arid land north of Riyadh, capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, by planting 250,000 trees and 1 million shrubs.

At the same time, the state-owned oil company, Aramco, is making significant investments in wetland-related practices, including planting and protecting mangroves in Saudi Arabia and restoring coral reefs in the Kingdom and overseas. As of 2023, the oil giant company has planted over 30 million mangroves, with a target to plant 300 million in the Kingdom by 2035. Additionally, the Coral R&D Accelerator Platform (CORDAP), launched by the G20 nations and hosted by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), focuses on innovative solutions to protect and restore coral reefs, which are vital for marine biodiversity in the Kingdom and overseas.

While these efforts are ambitious, comprehensive data quantifying their direct impact on national emissions is currently limited. NBS can play a crucial role in Saudi Arabia’s climate strategy. However, their success will depend on effective implementation, monitoring, and integration with technological solutions to achieve significant emission reductions.

This Post was submitted by Climate Scorecard Saudi Arabia Country Managers Abeer Abdulkareem and Amgad Ellaboudy.