Ad-Dammam
Introduction
The eastern province of Saudi Arabia is mainly known for a large number of oil fields present in the region and its the fifth-most populous city in Saudi Arabia after Jeddah, Riyadh, Makkah, and Al-Madinah. One such major city in the province is Ad-Dammam. The city holds the rank of being the sixth populous in the nation and is mainly renowned being a commercial hub full of oil and natural gas reserves.
It was the year 1938 when the major reserves of oil and natural gas were first discovered. The discovery of this liquid gold channelized major industrial growth in the city that resulted in the development of commercial and administrative centres in the city. Apart from having major hubs of oil and natural gas, Ad-Dammam is also a major seaport for trade business in the country.
The city has been fully developed since the 1940s and has a modern layout with brimming suburbs. Even though oil and natural gas are the main industry in Ad-Dammam, the city also has various agriculture and dairy farms.
The cities of Dammam, Al Khobar, and Dhahran collectively form the Dammam metropolitan area. The whole area was once a fishing village before the discovery of the oil wells and natural gas reserves that sparked the start of industrialization.
With the industrial growth and discovery of oil wells, the city has become a world-leader in the oil industry and occupies the fourth rank in gas reserves.
The capital of the eastern province of Saudi Arabia, Ad-Dammam acts as a major link to the other states in the Gulf like Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Oman, and Bahrain.
Data and Facts about Ad-Dammam
- The city of Ad-Dammam is situated towards the east of the capital Riyadh and has geographical positioning as 26° 26′ 0″ north and 50° 7′ 0″ east.
- The capital city of Riyadh is 400 km away from Ad-Dammam.
- The total area covered by the city of Ad-Dammam is 800 sq.km or 310 sq.miles.
- The total population of the city as taken in 2015 is 1.75 million.
- The first major airport in the city was opened way back in 1999.
- Dammam is also served by one of the major seaports in the Persian Gulf which is known as King Abdul Aziz Seaport. The seaport handles all the import and export and is the second-largest in the country, the first one being Jeddah Islamic Port on the Red Sea.
Administration
The city of Ad-Dammam is not governed by any governorate while being independently known by the name City of Dammam.
The current Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia is King Salman Al Saud, and the crown prince of the region is Mohammad Bin Salman.
The governor of the Eastern province or city of Dammam, however, is Prince Saud bin Nayef and the deputy governor is Prince Ahmed Bin Fahd.
Economy
Ad-Dammam is the capital of the eastern province of Saudi Arabia and is also known as the epicentre for oil production and natural gas reserves. The main industry is the Saudi Aramco which looks after the production of oil and natural gas sector in the whole area.
The main economy of the city is dependent on the petroleum industry. A large group of people from the total population work for Saudi Aramco, thus generating major per capita income from the petroleum industry itself.
Business Environment
In the early 1940s before the discovery of oil and natural gas reserves in the area, Ad-Dammam was a small coastal town with fishing as its main activity. After large fields of petroleum and natural gas were discovered in the area, it leads to rapid urbanization fostering growth.
Ad-Dammam was a separate city in very close proximity to Al-Khobar and Dhahran. As a result of industrial development and fast growth, all three cities merged into one and are today collectively known as the Dammam Metropolitan Area.
Infrastructure
Dammam is connected to major cities of the world through the King Fahd International Airport. The airport is the largest in terms of the total land area and started operating from the year 1999. Apart from this, there are other airports which include Ahsa International Airport and Qaisumah-Hafr Al Batin Airport.
The city is not only connected through airways but also has a major port that is operating since the 1940s. The King Abdulaziz Seaport on the Persian Gulf is the second largest in the country after the Jeddah Islamic Port. A large variety of import and export work is carried out through these ports.
The Saudi Arabian Public Transport Company (SAPTCO) also several intercity buses operating in the area. There is also planning to construct Dammam metro the status of which is still unknown.
Technology
Ad-Dammam's main transformation came after the large varieties of oil and natural gas reserves were found out. Since then, the area has collectively transpired into a thriving hub of growth.
Today every sector in the area is so well developed that the city is alone home to around 2 million people. The collective province comes under the Dammam Metropolitan Area which also comprises Dhahran and Al Khobar within its territory.
As the oil industries drove a significant portion of the economy in the city, other sectors also saw the light of the day. The rapid industrialization leads to the growth of many hospitals, schools, colleges, hotels, and office buildings.
Ad-Dammam today is known as the major hub, which helps in the trade facilities between Saudi Arabia with other nations of the world.
Social Wellness and Human Resources
The vision of the government of Saudi Arabia is to develop more non-oil revenues in the eastern province and the whole of the country.
The main plan of the government for the eastern province and importantly Dammam is to raise as many as entertainment hubs across the city. This would include the construction of many amusement park projects, theatres, and others.
The King Salman Energy Park is planned to come up between Dammam and Ahsa and will cover an area of 50 sq.km.
Football is another game that is also known as the national game of the country. The Prince Mohammad Bin Fahad Stadium serves as the primary venue for football. The stadium also is the home ground for the different football teams of the nation like Ettifaq FC and Al Nahda Club.
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Province,_Saudi_Arabia
https://www.britannica.com/place/Dammam
https://energycities.org/member-cities/dammam-saudi-arabia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dammam
https://meconstructionnews.com/965/diverse-dammam
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dammam_metropolitan_area
https://www.mindat.org/feature-110336.html
https://www.smartertravel.com/tips-ad-dammam-warnings-dangers-stay-safe/
https://www.portofantwerp.com/en/ad-dammam-sadmm
https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Ad+Dammam
https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/22416/ad-dammam/population
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