According to AFP, the French Presidential Office said that the country and Saudi Arabia on August 24 (local time) signed a memorandum of understanding on Saudi Arabia's investment of 6 billion euros (about 7 billion USD) to build 3 amusement parks near Paris. The project will be implemented in the Cergy - Pontoise area, about 30km northwest of Paris.
The agreement on this large-scale project was signed within the framework of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's 2-day visit to France.
One of the 3 parks is expected to be built on manga themes, while information about the themes of the remaining 2 parks has not been disclosed.
The parks will be deployed and put into operation in stages, with a planned construction time of several years. There is currently no specific information about the official opening time of the parks.
The project will be implemented by Qiddiya - an investment company of the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. The French Presidential Office informed that the 3 parks are expected to create about 22,000 direct jobs, more than the number of jobs that Disneyland Paris currently creates.
French President Emmanuel Macron assessed that this is an "unprecedented announcement", and hoped that the parks would become "new international destinations".
An advisor to President Macron said that the project originated from an exchange between Mr. Macron and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh in December 2024, when the two sides realized they shared a common love for manga, especially Dragon Ball Z.
Previously, information about the plan to build a theme park for the famous Japanese manga brand in the Val-d'Oise region had appeared, but has not been officially confirmed.
In addition to the above project, during Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit, Saudi Arabia signed 2 more contracts with French businesses. A contract worth 434 million USD was signed with CMA CGM maritime logistics group to support the development of Saudi Arabia's Jeddah Islamic port in the Red Sea. The remaining contract worth 580 million USD was signed with Alstom railway transport group to supply subway cars for the Riyadh capital's metro system.
This is also Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's first visit to France in nearly a year. On August 23, President Macron received Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the Esports World Cup event. The talks on August 24 are expected to focus on many strategic issues, including the situation in the Middle East.
In December 2021, President Macron became one of the first Western leaders to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia. Since then, the Saudi Crown Prince has visited France many times.
