Riyadh city wins WCCD ISO 37120 golden certification ‎

On March 27, 2017, HRH Prince Faisal ‎bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, Chairman of the High Commission for the Development of ‎Arriyadh (HCDR), received the WCCD ISO 37120 golden certificate awarded to Riyadh Urban Observatory by the World Council of Cities Data (WCCD). HE Engr. Ibrahim Al-Sultan, HCDR member and President of ‎Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA), delivered the certificate in the presence of senior ADA officials.

Riyadh won this certification in less than three years after obtaining WCCD membership and applying ISO 37120‎ standards to the indicators issued by Riyadh Urban Observatory. Riyadh was selected with other 36 cities to get this certification from among 255 nominated cities worldwide.

ISO 37120 is the first international standard on city data. It was published in May 2014 by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This international standard was developed using the framework of the Global City Indicators Facility that has been extensively tested by more than 250 cities worldwide. ISO 37120 defines and establishes definitions and methodologies for a set of indicators to steer and measure the performance of city services and quality of life. The standard includes a comprehensive set of 100 indicators — of which 46 are core — that measures a city’s social, economic, and environmental performance.

Indicators issued by Riyadh Urban Observatory have been qualified to meet the ISO 37120 standards and reviewed by the following neutral international organizations: University of Toronto, UN Development Programme, UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, and Local Governments Network.