Idle lands program official says fees imposed on 400 mln sqm

 Logo of Idle Lands Program

Abdulhamid Al Hammad, Chief Idle Lands Program Officer, said the program contributed significantly to raising ownership rates among citizens.

During the summit titled “The Real Estate Knowledge Initiative”, Al Hammad said that there is a significant impact on idle land fees, as fees imposed on more than 400 million square meters (sqm) of idle land, out of which 100 million sqm is either developed, or under development, or sold.

He noted that these lands were facing significant neglect, but the program facilitated the real estate market to encompass 100 million sqm.

Fees collected over the past years were being re-injected into housing projects, Al Hammad said, denying that the aim of the program was not only to collect fees, but to encourage developing lands.

New cities will also enter the fee program in the coming period, after monitoring the need of the real estate market and the growing demand for housing, which are the same reasons for raising the idea of the program in the first place, he concluded.