RIYADH: The Gulf Cooperation Council’s waste management market is forecast to exceed $104 billion by 2031, as governments step up investment in recycling, waste treatment and resource recovery.
The market is expected to expand from $68.3 billion in 2025 at a compound annual growth rate of 7.29 percent through 2031, according to a report by the Gulf Cooperation Council Statistical Center, cited by the Emirates News Agency, or WAM.
The outlook reflects growing opportunities for private investors as Gulf states pursue waste-management strategies, expand recycling capacity and seek to recover more value from industrial and agricultural waste.
Saudi Arabia expects its recycling sector to generate about SR640 billion ($170.6 billion) in private-sector investment opportunities by 2040, while contributing an estimated SR650 billion to gross domestic product, according to the Invest Saudi investment platform. Dubai is also seeking to attract private investment through its Integrated Waste Management Strategy 2021–2041. The plan has a budget of 74.5 billion dirhams ($20.3 billion), including 70.5 billion dirhams in direct private-sector contributions, and focuses on waste treatment, recycling and waste-to-energy projects, according to the UAE government. Waste volumes rise across the region
The GCC statistical report highlighted the region’s leadership in solid waste management.
