Certified Monitor Rewards Conditions: Mandatory training and a ban on relatives

The Saudi Ministry of Municipalities and Housing, through its digital platform "Baladi," announced seven key controls and precise criteria for eligibility for financial rewards allocated to those reporting municipal violations, as part of the "Certified Monitor" initiative. This step comes within the framework of the Ministry's efforts to strengthen the concept of community oversight and effectively involve citizens in improving the urban environment.

Context of the initiative and the goals of Vision 2030

The “Certified Monitor” initiative falls within the broader national efforts to achieve the goals of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, specifically the “Quality of Life” program, which aims to enhance services provided in Saudi cities and improve the urban landscape. Community participation is a fundamental pillar of this vision, transforming the relationship between citizens and service providers from mere service recipients to strategic partners in monitoring and development. Through these regulatory mechanisms, the Ministry works to govern the reporting process to ensure its efficiency and credibility, thereby contributing to reducing visual pollution and increasing compliance with municipal regulations.

Eligibility requirements for the bonus and mandatory training

The ministry has established strict criteria to ensure the seriousness of reports, primarily requiring that the submitted report leads to the discovery and substantiation of a genuine violation. To guarantee the quality of monitoring, the ministry mandates that those wishing to join the initiative complete the "certified training" specifically designed for whistleblowers. This essential requirement aims to educate whistleblowers on municipal regulations and bylaws, thereby reducing false reports and increasing the efficiency of oversight efforts.

Prohibiting conflicts of interest and ensuring integrity

In a move aimed at enhancing transparency and preventing any conflict of interest, the new regulations have prohibited the payment of bonuses to any of the following categories:

• Employees of the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing.
• Employees of the secretariats and sub-municipalities.
• Employees of monitoring and inspection companies contracted with the ministry.
• Relatives of the aforementioned employees up to the first degree.

This ban is intended to ensure that rewards are actually directed to independent community members, and to maintain the integrity of monitoring and evaluation processes.

Report acceptance criteria and disbursement mechanism

The regulations emphasized the requirement that the reporter's record be free of any previous malicious or fabricated reports, and stressed that the reported violation must not have been fabricated for financial gain. Furthermore, the ministry stipulated that the violation must not have been previously detected by other entities or monitors, in order to prevent duplicate reports of the same case.

Regarding the mechanism for disbursing the reward, the ministry explained that it requires submitting an official request within a specific time period, after the violation has acquired its final status and the legal period available to the violator to object has expired, which ensures the legality of the financial and administrative procedures.

Expected impact on the urban landscape

These new regulations are expected to improve the quality of reports received through the "Baladi" app, enabling municipalities and local authorities to address visual pollution more quickly and effectively. Transforming citizens into qualified and trained "certified observers" not only reduces the burden on official inspectors but also fosters public awareness of the importance of preserving public property and adhering to regulations, which will positively impact the aesthetics of Saudi cities and their investment and tourism appeal.