Saudi Arabia bets the House on a greener planet

Saudi Arabia bets the House on a greener planet

There is no escaping the prevalence in Saudi Arabian life of Vision 2030, the hugely ambitious economic and social plan to transform the Kingdom that was launched five years ago today and the success of which will, within his own country, define the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.Arrive at King Khalid International Airport and almost the first thing you see are huge advertising hoardings bearing its distinctive starred logo. Talk to senior officials and every proposal is explained in the context of how it contributes to the plan's success. Roam the streets and the Vision 2030 branding is repeated across government institutions.It is the defining economic and social narrative of contemporary Saudi Arabia: a mission statement broken down into 96 strategic objectives that in its approach mimics the documents produced by multinationals seeking corporate change. Here in the world's second largest oil producer and the home to the Two Holy Mosques, however, it is being adopted to transform a country.The plan's genesis, unsurprisingly given its format, came from the work of management consultants. The Crown Prince, knowing the scale of the problems faced, contracted McKinsey, which in 2015 produced a report titled ‘Saudi Arabia – Beyond Oil'.This warned