RECREATING URBAN SPACE IN SAUDI ARABIA: PRIVATE SECTOR PARTICIPATION IN LEISURE, SPORTS, AND RECREATION

Abstract

Saudi Arabia is a conservative Muslim country with few leisure facilities. These facilities include squash courts, aerobics studios, saunas, solariums, swimming pools, and other places where people gather to enjoy themselves. Leisure involvement among Saudi nationals has been low and so is leisure satisfaction, mainly because some leisure activities are considered to be incompatible with many in the Islamic faith. What few facilities there are in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, are predominately privately owned and are mostly enjoyed by expatriates and their families. Therefore, there is a need to create leisure facilities by engaging the private sector in physical planning policies. Public private partnerships are integral in urban planning, and these partnerships will insure the development of urban space to build Riyadh into a cultural and economic center.

Leisure has a dynamic role to play in the lives of individuals, so it is useful to find out how the fulfillment gained from leisure activities relates to social change. In addition, it is important to investigate how the involvement of the citizenry in leisure, sports, and recreation contributes to the organic growth of cities and their contribution to the national economy.

This study examined the level of leisure involvement and satisfaction among the residents of Riyadh. The research also sought to determine the role of private industry in promoting or creating leisure satisfaction to Saudi Arabians. The study investigated the factors that limit the participation of Saudi nationals in leisure activities and identify the ways of increasing the awareness and improving the quality of life among the people in Saudi Arabia.