• ‘Arab Digital Capital’ initiative
inaugurated at the 23rd session of the Council of Arab Ministers of
Communications and Information Technology
• Riyadh leads the
region in the promotion of technology as a catalyst for increased
economic and social well-being
RIYADH, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia-Thursday 19 December 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]
Riyadh is set to become the Arab world’s first ever digital capital city. The announcement was revealed at the 23rd
session of the Council of Arab Ministers of Communications and
Information Technology, which took place on December 18 at The
Ritz-Carlton hotel in Saudi Arabia’s capital.
The decision to name Riyadh the Arab Digital Capital
follows the city’s prominent role in adopting and promoting the use of
digital technologies to enhance socio-economic development, advance
healthcare, improve education, and to ultimately increase community
welfare, which helped to elevate the ICT sector's contribution to GDP to
4%. The Kingdom also climbed 16 places in World Economic Forum’s Global
Competitive Index 2019 in terms of ICT adoption, and topped in
the ease of doing business ranking according to the World Bank’s 2020
report.
The ‘Arab
Digital Capital’ initiative seeks to encourage the creation of a
stimulating ecosystem for investment in Information and Communications
Technology (ICT), activate initiatives that develop knowledge within the
ICT industry across Arab countries, and to adopt new initiatives that
facilitate and enhance tech entrepreneurship in the Arab region.
Minister of
Communications and Information Technology His Excellency Eng. Abdullah
Al-Swaha extended congratulations to the Custodian of the Two Holy
Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and to His Royal Highness
Prince Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Deputy Prime
Minister and Minister of Defense. He hailed the great and unlimited
support to the sector by the Kingdom’s good government, which
highlighted it regionally and internationally. He also emphasized the
acknowledgment as an addition added to the record of the Saudi ICT
sector’s march, which has advanced the country’s digital infrastructure
making it eligible for obtaining this title and precedence. This came in
a keynote speech at the announcement ceremony attended by the
Secretary-General of International Telecommunication Union, relevant
Ministers, Arab Ambassadors to Riyadh and a number of interested ICT professionals and specialists.
Saudi Arabia is the region’s largest ICT market and ranks 13th
globally, with a value of $28.7 billion in 2019 and strong growth in
both the consumer and enterprise segments. Supported by a young and
tech-savvy population, Saudi Arabia is a market of early technology
adopters, with one of the highest social media penetrations in the
world. Mobile subscribers stood at 43.8 million in 2019, representing a
129% penetration of the total population.
Following the
launch of Vision 2030, the last few years have seen a significant
acceleration in the proliferation of digital transformation initiatives.
In 2019, Saudi Arabia was second among G20 countries for radio spectrum
liberalization, with a subsequent positive impact on the quality of
digital services provided by local operators experienced.
Supported by a
93% internet user penetration versus the global average of 53%, Saudi
Arabia also became the first adopter of commercial 5G technology in the
Middle East and North Africa, and the third largest globally – an
achievement that is set to boost the adoption of other digitalization
trends characterizing the Fourth Industrial Revolution. In parallel, the
Kingdom is the 5th G20 country in internet speed, and jumped
91 places from 105th to 14th in the relevant global rankings, with a
51.8Mbps average speed.
Earlier this
year, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT)
launched a five-year strategy aimed at accelerating the sector’s growth
by 50% and elevating its contribution to GDP by $13.3 billion. Despite
the global trend towards job disruption as a consequence of
digitalization, the MCIT’s technology localization initiatives have
significantly increased the ICT sector’s employment capacity in 2019.
The “Arab
Digital Capital” award is a recognition of Saudi Arabia’s achievements
in the ICT sector and is set to provide an even greater impetus to the
country’s already busy regional and international agenda in the coming
year. As the only Arab nation represented in the G20, Saudi Arabia will
be hosting the G20 meetings throughout 2020, under the theme “Realizing
Opportunities of the 21st Century for All.” The G20 Leaders
Summit will take place on November 20-21, 2020 in Riyadh, the newly
nominated Digital Capital of the Arab World.
Editor’s Note: new website for Riyadh Arab Digital Capital 2020 is at www.adcapitals.org
Contacts
The Communications and Information Technology Commission
Saeed H. AlGhamdi,
Office: +966 11 4618244
Email: Shghamdi@citc.gov.sa | www.citc.gov.sa
Twitter: @CITC_SA
