Scheduled for 2024, Saudi Green Initiative Day broadens awareness of the progress made in the Kingdom in terms of environmental action, conservation, and rehabilitation. It also encourages citizen and resident participation in creating a more sustainable future for everyone.

Under the motto "For our present and their future, we move towards a more sustainable tomorrow", this occasion serves to reiterate the launch by His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister - may God protect him -, of the Saudi Green Initiative on March 27, 2021. The initiative aims to unify and amplify sustainability efforts across the Kingdom, carrying forward the goals of Saudi Vision 2030.

By adopting an approach that enables community participation across different segments, the Saudi Green Initiative aims to address the effects of climate change, enhance innovation in sustainability, and protect the Kingdom's rich natural environments to improve the quality of life for future generations.

The Cabinet's decision to designate March 27 of each year as "Saudi Green Initiative Day" emphasizes the importance of raising awareness about the positive impact of ongoing environmental efforts since the launch of the initiative in 2021. It also aims to bolster community and institutional efforts towards achieving environmental sustainability.

This day highlights the tangible impact of over 80 initiatives being implemented under the Saudi Green Initiative by public and private entities, with investments exceeding 705 billion riyals in the green economy. These initiatives have accelerated the green transition, enhancing quality of life while offering economic opportunities in new sectors in line with Saudi Vision 2030 goals. They also support environmental restoration, biodiversity protection, and the reduction of dust and sand storms, thereby contributing to combating desertification and sand encroachment.

Since the launch of the Saudi Green Initiative, efforts to achieve its goals, including reducing carbon emissions by 278 million tons annually by 2030, are accelerating. Projects with a renewable energy capacity of 2.8 gigawatts have been connected to the national electricity grid, sufficient to power more than 520,000 homes.

Additionally, several renewable energy projects with a capacity of 8.4 gigawatts are under construction, along with projects of 3.3 gigawatts in various development stages. These will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of 2 million homes, showcasing the Kingdom’s ongoing progress in transforming the energy sector to generate 50% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030.

Another goal of the initiative is to plant 10 billion trees in the coming decades. Over 49 million trees have been planted and 94,000 hectares of degraded land have been reclaimed - an area larger than 146,000 soccer fields.

At the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week hosted in Riyadh in October 2023, Saudi Arabia announced a roadmap for planting 10 billion trees, based on a two-year feasibility study that included more than 1,150 field surveys conducted in collaboration with over 50 experts.

The third goal of the initiative is to protect 30% of the Kingdom’s total terrestrial and marine areas by 2030. Currently, 18.1% of terrestrial and 6.49% of marine areas are protected, including the successful reintroduction of over 1,660 endangered animals like the Arabian oryx, sand gazelle, and ibex into natural reserves across the Kingdom.

In 2023, Saudi Arabia witnessed the birth of seven Arabian leopard cubs in Taif as part of a breeding program aimed at protecting endangered species, significantly increasing the protected population of Arabian leopards since the program’s inception.