COP28 action , the region ’ s biggest sovereign wealth funds and Saudi giga-project NEOM taking shape – stories from December 2023 you may have missed

Giga city NEOM fast taking shape in Saudi

Described as the ‘ world ’ s most ambitious project ’, PIF-backed US $ 500 billion giga-project NEOM is a high-tech smart city being built in Saudi ’ s north-western region . Once complete , the world ’ s first cognitive city will be 33 times the size of NYC and home to flying taxis , the world ’ s first zero-gravity vertical city , zero-carbon living , and the Gulf ’ s first outdoor ski resort .

Call for corporate climate action in MENA region

With COP28 UAE done , the call for taking climate action in 2024 is more urgent than ever and especially in MENA , which is projected to experience warming at twice the global rate . Corporate climate action is lagging here , a report from WEF and Bain finds . Just 12 % of the region ’ s largest 200 companies have a net-zero target , and only 6 % have a roadmap to delivering these targets .

10 January 2024