What does Saudi Arabia’s mega project ‘NEOM’ actually stand for?

From the moment Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced the launch of NEOM project on Tuesday, a project representing the next generation city and global center for innovation, trade and creativity in the kingdom, people wondered what does the project’s name stand for.

According to Al Arabiya the first three characters "NEO" comes from the Latin word which means “new”.

The fourth character "M" is the abbreviation of the Arabic word “Mostaqbal” which means “future.”

Everything you need to know about NEOM project

NEOM’s land mass will extend across the Egyptian and Jordanian borders, rendering NEOM the first private zone to span three countries. The project will be backed by more than $500 billion over the coming years by Saudi Arabia.

NEOM is born from the ambition of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 to see the country develop into a pioneering and thriving model of excellence in various and important areas of life.

Saudi crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman appointed Dr. Klaus Kleinfeld, the former Chairman and CEO of Alcoa and Arconic Inc. as CEO of NEOM.

NEOM aims to thrive the transformation of the Kingdom into a leading global hub through the introduction of value chains of industry and technology.