Saudi Cultural Missions Theses & Dissertations
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Item Unknown Assessing the Prospects of Economic Diversification in Saudi Arabia The Case of NEOM(Saudi Digihal Library, 2025-09-07) AL-adwani Mona; Dr. W. Abdul RahamanThis study explores economic diversification in Saudi Arabia focusing on the NEOM project under Vision 2030. if examines the shift from an oil-based economy to a more diversified and sustainable economic model. The study finds that NEOM has strong potential to attract investment and support innovation and non-oil sectors, but it also faces challenges related to cost, implementation, and long -term sustainability.4 0Item Restricted The Impact of Vision 2030 on Sustainable Tourism and Community Development in Saudi Arabia(Saudi Digital Library, 2025) Alharbi, Jamilah; Jason, ChenThis dissertation examines the impact of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 on sustainable tourism and community development, focusing on Al Ula, Diriyah, and the Red Sea Project. A quantitative survey generated 127 valid responses. The study tests how Vision 2030 initiatives relate to outcomes in sustainable tourism and community development, with stakeholder engagement treated as a mediating mechanism. Multiple regression and mediation analysis were conducted using the Hayes PROCESS macro with bootstrap confidence intervals. Results show strong explanatory power for sustainable tourism R2 =0.770, p<0.001 and solid explanatory power for community development R2 =0.525, p<0.001. Stakeholder engagement functions as a partial mediator in both models. The indirect share equals 32 per cent for sustainable tourism and 45 per cent for community development, indicating a stronger dependence of social outcomes on engagement processes. Respondents acknowledge environmental protection efforts and economic gains in employment and entrepreneurship, while 85.8 per cent report concern about higher cost of living. The study contributes to sustainable tourism and stakeholder theory by showing outcome specific mediation patterns within a state led transformation context. It also offers actionable guidance. Recommendations include greater transparency in decision making through public portals and documented consultations, community benefit agreements that set local hiring and MSME procurement targets, skills programmes for residents, and affordability safeguards in project regions. These measures can enhance the translation of national initiatives into inclusive and sustainable community outcomes.48 0Item Restricted Factors Influencing Public Engagement in Water Resource Conservation for Food Security in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia(Saudi Digital Library., 2025) AlRashdi, Mohammed Salem; Dallison, RichardWater scarcity in Saudi Arabia's hyper-arid climate leads to complex food security challenges that require a sustainable development approach crucially involving water conservation. This study provides a contextually grounded analysis of factors influencing public engagement in water conservation in Jeddah, offering insights relevant to Saudi Vision 2030. This research employs a descriptive-interpretive qualitative methodology to gain deep insights into the lived experiences of residents. Data were collected via semi structured interviews with ten purposively selected Jeddah citizens until thematic saturation was achieved. A rigorous, reflexive thematic analysis was then conducted to identify emergent patterns shaping conservation attitudes and practices. The findings reveal a complex duality of powerful drivers and formidable barriers. Key motivators, embedded in the socio-cultural fabric, are a profound spiritual duty derived from Islamic principles to reject wastefulness (Israf) and intergenerational transmission of traditional wisdom. Furthermore, rising water tariffs are an economic impetus. However, noble aspirations can be undermined by critical obstacles. The primary barrier is financial, specifically the high upfront cost of water-efficient technologies, which disproportionately affects lower-income households and prevents widespread adoption. Psychologically, a ‘desalination paradox’ was identified, wherein public confidence in large-scale state-led technological solutions fosters a sense of security that diminishes personal agency. This is compounded by a ‘responsibility-efficacy gap’, as individuals struggle to connect their household conservation efforts with the vast challenge of national food security, often feeling their seemingly small actions are inconsequential. Advancing public water conservation requires a multi-pronged strategy beyond awareness raising campaigns. To be effective, policy interventions must be culturally resonant, integrating religious and traditional narratives into public messaging. They must be economically enabling, deploying targeted financial incentives, such as subsidies, to overcome the initial investment hurdle for efficiency technologies. They must also be psychologically empowering, actively working to close the identified cognitive gaps by transparently communicating the collective impact of individual savings and clarifying the complementary role of technology in achieving water security.18 0Item Restricted Future Challenges of Major Tourism Projects in Saudi Arabia: A Prospective Study on Environmental Sustainability(Saudi Digital Library, 2025) Alanazi, Bassam; Zadeh, Shiva IlkhaniThis research critically examines Saudi Arabia's largest tourism projects—NEOM, The Red Sea Project, Qiddiya, and Riyadh—under the lens of environmental sustainability, and focuses on their place within the Kingdom's Vision 2030. These massive projects, in spite of their ecological claims, causes serious threats to delicate marine and desert ecosystems. The research reveals a disconnection between the projects' ambitious rhetoric of sustainability and their real-world environmental consequences, and alarms both environmental management and government control. This study employs qualitative case study method, and invokes the Triple Bottom Line, Resilience Theory, and Stakeholder Theory, based on eight in-depth interviews as well as extensive examination of government policies, academic scholarship, and media articles. It evidences widespread gaps in sustainability, such as deteriorated water scarcity, loss of biological diversity, increased energy needs, and deceptive marketing that falsely overhypes environmental success. The study points to a lack of responsibility in the projects, with some initiatives such as quantifiable environmental goals, while others are based heavily on promotional hype. The views among stakeholders differ, with some being cautiously optimistic about new technology while others are seriously worried about the long-term environmental impacts. The study calls for a shift in paradigm—one where real ecological protection is coupled with economic development to ensure that such projects deliver sustainability.92 0Item Restricted Governance and Development of SMEs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Public Policy and the Role of Multiple Government Actors(The University of Manchester, 2025) Alfageer, Mansoor; Hossain, FarhadSmall and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are key drivers of economic growth, job creation, and social development. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, SMEs account for 99% of all businesses, yet their contribution remains modest relative to international benchmarks and face persistent growth obstacles. This research aims to explore how public policy, public governance and regulatory frameworks, implemented by multiple government actors (MGAs), affect the development, contribution and sustainability of SMEs in Saudi Arabia. It has three main objectives: to explore the factors that influence SME growth, development and contribution; to explore how government policies shape SME resilience and market adaptation amid economic, social and institutional transformations; and to assess the role of MGAs in addressing SME development challenges and identifying governance gaps in greater depth for improvement. Adopting a multidisciplinary public policy and management approach, the study draws on theoretical governance perspectives and SME development concepts to explain how policy design, implementation and coordination among MGAs shape SME outcomes in Saudi Arabia. A qualitative case study approach was adopted. Data were collected in Riyadh through semi-structured interviews with 45 participants recruited via snowball sampling. Participants included senior government officials as key informants, SME owners, and business executives and professionals, who shared their perceptions of public policy and SME development, particularly after the launch of national transformation in 2016. Data were coded and thematically analysed in alignment with the research questions. Findings reveal that the national transformation since the launch of Vision 2030 has reshaped the macro-environment affecting SMEs. Requirements to nationalise employment, comply with a rapidly evolving regulatory framework, and meet taxation and a variety of fees collected by MGAs have increased SMEs’ sensitivity to policy design and implementation and have raised the costs and burdens of doing business. Fragmented governance, limited institutional coordination, communication gaps, limited collaborative governance and SME engagement, rising compliance requirements, shifting market dynamics, limited resources, and skills gaps across public and private sectors increase risks to SMEs’ survival and growth, underscoring the role of MGAs in closing governance and performance gaps identified for improved developmental outcomes. Conceptually, the study shows how MGA governance design, coordination and enforcement, under central state steering, shape SME development and position SMEs as policy recipients and instruments of state reform. Empirically, it links lived implementation to outcomes within a contemporary administrative development context, offering original qualitative evidence from an embedded case study that informs governance and management scholarship. Implications reveal that policy should prioritise coordination, predictability and communication, a unified e-government system, transparent enforcement and accountability, SME engagement, a long-term set of defined policies that enable SMEs’ strategic planning, and targeted support guided by outcome-oriented indicators. SMEs should embed compliance readiness, manage costs and regulatory burdens, engage through formal channels, build supply-chain partnerships, strengthen digital capability, and adopt formal governance practices. For sustainable finance, promote legal and financial literacy and encourage investment in promising businesses as an alternative to starting a new venture while remaining in professional employment. Within this macro case limitation, recommended directions include policy-specific and sectoral analyses by firm size, comparative regional work, and longitudinal assessment of regulatory and performance-management effects on development outcomes.30 0Item Restricted Influence of Environmental, Social and Economic Factors on Willingness to Participate in Green Events in Saudi Arabia(Saudi Digital Library, 2025) Albalawi, Elham Hassan; Strafford, DavidThis study investigates the impact of personal and sustainability credentials of events on the willingness to attend green events in Saudi Arabia, guided by the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). It explores key variables including environmental awareness, peer behaviour, price, perceived value for money, and ease of access and how these variables influence the willingness of people to attend green events in Saudi Arabia. Using a positivist philosophy and deductive reasoning, the research employs a mono-method quantitative approach through online surveys, collecting responses from 80 participants using snowball sampling. The data was analysed using multiple regression, Pearson correlation, and independent sample t-tests to test the formulated hypotheses. Findings reveal that while environmental awareness alone does not significantly influence willingness to attend, peer behaviour, perceived value for money, and ease of access have positive and significant impacts. Gender-specific differences are noted, with women showing higher price sensitivity and valuing perceived benefits more than men. Practical recommendations include enhancing sustainable transportation options and clearly communicating the value proposition of green events to attract a diverse audience. The study underscores the importance of considering cultural and demographic factors in promoting sustainable practices.19 0Item Restricted BARRIERS AND OPPORTUNITIES IN IMPLEMENTING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENTS FOR MEGA PROJECTS: THE CASE OF NEOM(Saudi Digital Library, 2024-12-12) Alfaqiri, Abdulaziz; Dunning, RichardEnvironmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) is useful in ensuring that mega projects like NEOM, a pioneering urban development initiative in Saudi Arabia, are sustainable and environmentally responsible. Given the unprecedented scale, complexity, and ambition of NEOM, conventional EIA methodologies are often insufficient to address the unique environmental challenges posed by such a large-scale project. This paper explores innovative strategies to enhance the EIA process in NEOM, focusing on the adoption of a phased EIA approach, the establishment of robust regulatory and policy frameworks, and the implementation of a digital environmental monitoring system.68 0Item Restricted The Nexus between Sustainable Development and Economic Dynamics in MENA and SSA Countries.(Western Sydney University, 2023) Alghamdi, Thamer; Gangopadhyay, ParthaThe complex interplay between economic dynamics and sustainable development in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) remains underexplored. This thesis investigates this nexus, focusing on the roles of corruption, governance, foreign direct investment, and trade in shaping sustainable development outcomes. Additionally, it examines the relationship between energy poverty and education, as well as the hidden barriers to renewable energy transition in SSA. Findings indicate that while good governance and corruption reduction can significantly advance sustainable development in SSA and MENA nations, the region faces substantial challenges in mitigating energy poverty. Employing CS-ARDL approach to assess more robust and reliable results, the findings reveal that – contrary to existing literature – governance has a significant positive effect on sustainable development, indicating that the governance is essential to achieving sustainable development in this region. The findings also reveal that the corruption has a significant positive effect on sustainable development. Furthermore, foreign direct investment and trade were found to have an insignificant relationship with sustainable development. By uncovering the intricate connections between economic factors, energy poverty, and sustainable development, this research contributes to a deeper understanding of the barriers hindering progress in these regions. The findings underscore the urgent need for innovative policies that prioritise governance, education, and renewable energy to accelerate sustainable development in SSA and MENA.30 0Item Restricted The Role of Green Buildings Practices in Achieving Sustainable Development(University of Birmingham, 2024) Alnafisah, Rayyana; Schacht, VeronikaThis dissertation aims to investigate the role of Green Building Practices (GBP) in promoting sustainable development by examining their environmental, economic, and social impacts. A systematic review was performed in accordance with the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) standards. Relevant literature was identified through a comprehensive search of academic databases, including ScienceDirect, Pub med, and Google Scholar, using predefined search terms related to GBP and sustainability. The screening process involved title and abstract reviews, followed by full-text analysis. Studies were included if they addressed GBP in the context of sustainability and reported on environmental, economic, or social outcomes. There were 25 studies that fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Data extraction and qualitative synthesis were performed, and themes related to GBP's contributions and challenges were identified. The analysis revealed that GBP substantially contribute to reducing environmental footprints through energy efficiency, resource conservation, and reduced carbon emissions. Economically, GBP present challenges related to high initial costs and limited incentives, particularly in developing regions. Socially, GBP improve occupants' health and well-being but face barriers in achieving equitable distribution of benefits. Despite these challenges, GBP offer superior long-term environmental and economic performance compared to conventional building practices. GBP significantly contribute to sustainable development, but their widespread adoption requires overcoming economic and policy barriers. The study emphasizes the need for integrated approaches that balance environmental, economic, and social dimensions to achieve sustainable outcomes. Further research is recommended to explore adaptive strategies for enhancing the accessibility and effectiveness of GBP across diverse geographic and economic contexts.37 0Item Restricted Sustainable Brand Development Through The CBBE Model , A Path Way Of Customer Loyalty in Riydh Cafes Sector.(Leeds Beckett University, 2024-05-10) Aljamaih, Hajar Ibrahim; Cox, PeterCoffee shops and cafes are important to Saudi Arabia, which has seen significant social and economic change with the introduction of Vision 2030. With a population of 36 million, Saudi Arabia currently boasts over 3,500 coffee shops or 40% of the entire Middle East region. To compete and gain market share, coffee shops and cafes, like other businesses, have turned to branding as their primary marketing strategy. This study critically investigates the effect of Customer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) on customer loyalty for a homogenous product. Through the use of a comprehensive survey instrument, this study indicates that Saudi customers positively value the food and drink quality and the courteous, helpful, and knowledgeable staff that can deal with complaints. One of the most surprising findings of the study is that brands that consumers love have a concentric effect on them; that is, the brand makes them feel loved, and their purchases reinforce that feeling. Even in the face of this validation of love, the study finds little evidence that brand love leads to long-term devotion. Love and desire endure until they give way to something better or entirely different. This suggests that, from a commercial standpoint, operators of coffee shops and cafés must constantly be relevant to their customers and be ahead of any potential competitor that can drive away loyalty.30 0