The General Authority for Survey and Geospatial Information (GEOSA) is implementing a national initiative to collect and classify more than 300,000 points of interest (POIs) across Riyadh while updating their data in line with international best practices.

The initiative aims to update the Kingdom's unified national geospatial database and enhance its completeness and reliability in order to support planning and smart decision-making based on accurate, up-to-date geospatial data.

POIs are locations with functional or service value. In addition to their geographic coordinates, they include descriptive information and detailed classifications that define the nature and characteristics of each site according to an approved classification framework. The framework is based on international best practices for structuring and classifying geospatial data. This project relies on field verification of locations and associated data while utilizing state of the art technologies to host and manage information through an interactive platform that enables progress monitoring and output review. The approach is designed to improve the accuracy and currency of geospatial data and strengthen its integration with data held by relevant entities. The initiative has collected and classified more than 100,000 POIs, covering about 35% of Riyadh. Work is ongoing to target over 300,000 locations across the city, including sites in the education, healthcare, hospitality, infrastructure, tourism, transport, attractions, sports and entertainment, and commercial sectors.

The data will support geospatial analysis, artificial intelligence (AI), and geospatial intelligence applications, improve search results on digital maps and platforms, and enhance their use in national projects as well as urban and development planning.

The initiative is part of GEOSA's mandate to develop the national geospatial infrastructure and provide geospatial data, products, services, and applications. The authority aims to enhance the quality, reliability, and integration of national geospatial data, supporting their use in planning, decision-making, and the implementation of development projects.