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 at The Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh.
The decision to name Riyadh as 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.
As a result, the ICT sector is contributing 4% of the country’s GDP.
In addition, the Kingdom also climbed 16 places in 2019’s World Economic Forum’s Global Competitive Index for ICT adoption.
The Arab Digital Capital initiative seeks to encourage the creation of a stimulating ecosystem for investment in Information and Communications Technology, 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.
The award is a recognition of Saudi Arabia’s achievements in the ICT sector and is set to provide a greater impetus to the country’s busy regional and international agenda in the coming year.
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