RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia has announced that a Six Flags theme park is expected to be built in a new entertainment city that will be the first of its kind in the kingdom.
Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman says the project will also include a safari area. The kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, known as the Public Investment Fund, will be main the investor in the project.
In a statement published Saturday by the Saudi Press Agency, the prince says the city will serve as an important landmark for young Saudis’ recreational and social needs, and will create more job opportunities for young people.
The entertainment city southwest of the capital Riyadh is part of a broader effort by Prince Mohammed to appeal to the country’s majority young people and diversify the economy.
Six Flags Entertainment Corp., based in Grand Prairie, is the world’s largest regional theme park company with $1.3 billion in revenue and 18 parks across the United States, Mexico and Canada.