RIYADH: The Ministry of Municipal, Rural Affairs and Housing recently launched a program to train its employees and increase their efficiency in collaboration with the UN Development Programme.   The participants are from municipalities, regional development councils and royal commissions across the Kingdom. Adel Al-Zahrani, deputy minister for urban planning and land at the Ministry of Municipal, Rural Affairs and Housing, said the program aims to improve employees’ skills in urban and regional planning and raise the quality of public and private projects, contributing to the achievement of Vision 2030 objectives. He said the ministry is eager to attract local and international experts in planning, urban economy and city management in order to confront the most pressing challenges. The program explores issues related to the urban economy, including diversification of the economic base and of project-financing mechanisms that contribute to prosperity in line with the ministry’s goals of improving the quality of life in cities and ensuring their sustainability. Al-Zahrani said that the ministry is continuously working to support the comprehensive urban renaissance and is eager to respond to the aspirations of Saudi city residents in improving the urban environment and the quality of services provided, achieving sustainability, preserving cultural identity and humanizing cities.  Khalid Al-Mubarak, vice president of the human development organization Hemmah, told Arab News this program aligns with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030, which emphasizes sustainable development and making cities more people-friendly. Al-Mubarak, who previously served as the director of planning and quality at the National Center for Assessment and Evaluation, added that those in charge of this and similar programs face several challenges, the most prominent of which is selecting candidates and transforming knowledge into practical application. He emphasized the importance of training and continual development in order to achieve the Kingdom’s vision of a society whose people acknowledge the challenges they face, believe in their own capabilities and apply the education they receive to become responsible citizens, regionally and internationally.