العربية
The interest and development of the Hajj and Umrah sector was and still is one of the main axes that the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Prince Muhammad bin Salman focused on, due to its large economic returns and its ability to create and increase many jobs.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is working hard to develop its economic systems that are reflected in the private and public sectors, in order to keep pace with the goals of Vision 2030, especially when it comes to Hajj, Umrah, visit and traffic, as the Kingdom seeks to receive more than 30 million pilgrims by 2030, This will bring revenues to more than 50 billion riyals (13.32 billion dollars) by 2030.
The Kingdom’s vision 2030 came to present an integrated strategy to develop the Hajj and Umrah system:
“By providing an opportunity for more Muslims to perform their rituals, as it included in its axis “vital society” and under the title “solid value”, an explicit reference to stressing the importance of harnessing energies and capabilities to serve the guests of Rahman. In making every effort and providing everything that meets the needs of the guests of Rahman and fulfills their aspirations, and we believe that we must redouble our efforts to remain a symbol of hospitality. “
Among the most important steps taken by the Kingdom in order to achieve this goal was the expansion of the Two Holy Mosques, which is the largest expansion since the Islamic renaissance, and the Kingdom’s government is keen to create the appropriate atmosphere to serve the pilgrims to perform their rituals. Accordingly, the Kingdom has made full use of all external and internal arenas, and all roles in the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques project to expand the Grand Mosque. Adding that the Ministry of Finance represented by the Project Management Office supervised the construction and maintenance works, in coordination with the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque.
But despite all these exerted efforts, the problem of housing still exists, with the increase in the number of Al-Rahman guests, Mina (the area where pilgrims stay during the performance of their sacred rituals), which is the largest tent city in the world, is unable to accommodate this large number of pilgrims, and providing them with the appropriate luxuries. And here comes the role of INJ studio, one of the leading offices in architectural design, as it has a modern and new architectural philosophy, and one of the most important ambitions of this office is to provide the necessary assistance to his hometown.
INJ studio, in cooperation with the architectural organization UNI, which attracts architects, practitioners and students, has created a distinctive architectural competition under the title “The White Lands”, which is characterized by the emergence of new and contemporary architectural solutions to redesign the tent city. Sustainability will also be taken into account and better utilization of spaces to be able to keep pace with the Kingdom’s goals of Vision 2030, while ensuring that pilgrims receive the best possible experience during their stay in Mina.
This is among the important goals that INJ seeks to reach, and for them, contributing to the service and development of society is a simple approach that sustainable architecture aspires to achieve in the near future by preserving the imprint of the past and its dimensions.
