The Jeddah Muncipality has released 3 million square metres of land from illegal occupants in the south of the city, according to local media reports.

The reports quoted a senior municipality official, who said the authorities knocked down illegal structures and fencing in order to free up the land for development and public housing.

Authorities have been trying to tackle the housing shortage across the country and in January, MEED reported that Saudi Arabia’s Housing Ministry plans to impose taxes on undeveloped land.

The ministry says the policy targets unused, privately owned land across the country that can be better used to solve the housing problem.

According to government statistics, there are currently 750,000 families eligible for public housing in the kingdom. Despite a $67bn plan in 2011 to build 500,000 homes over several years, Saudi Arabia’s poorer citizens have suffered from rising rental prices in cities such as Riyadh and Jeddah.