Page 46 - SAMENA Trends - December 2023
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REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES  SAMENA TRENDS

        Saudi Arabia Ranks 2nd

        Among the G20 in the
        ITU’s ICT Development

        Index 2023


        Saudi Arabia jumped 10 ranks to achieve 2nd
        place among the  G20  countries according
        to ITU’s  ICT Development  Index  (IDI)  2023,
        which monitors the economies of 169 coun-
        tries to measure their progress in ICT services
        through  two  main  pillars  ‘universal  connec-
        tivity’ and ‘meaningful connectivity’, and eval-
        uate some factors such as providing a high
        quality infrastructure, as well as maintaining a
        safe and secure internet for everyone. The IDI
        reflects Saudi Arabia’s strong ICT infrastruc-
        ture and the affordable and reliable services,
        which directly contribute in the development
        of the  national  digital  economy,  attract  in-
        vestment and increase the size of Saudi ICT
        market. Moreover, the index highlights Saudi
        Arabia’s  commitment to develop  its  ICT  in-
        frastructure and services to boost economic
        growth and create opportunities, which plac-
        es the Saudi ICT market as the largest and the
        fastest growing in the MENA region. It reflects
        the  robust  and  developed  digital  infrastruc-
        ture, with an increase of %99 of Internet pen-
        etration rate in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, con-
        tribute to the goals of Vision 2030, to achieve
        international  leadership  in  digital  growth, by
        investing more than 93B SAR as total capital
        investments in the digital infrastructure over
        the past six years, which placed Saudi Arabia
        among the leading positions in international
        indicators. The ICT Development Index (IDI) is
        published by the ITU to monitor the progress
        of the ICT sector since 2009, while providing
        inclusive and transparent data and methodol-
        ogy submitted by Member States and experts
        in the field.




        Private Wireless Network Services for the Offshore Energy Sector


        Ooredoo  Qatar  and  Nokia  have  launched   duce interruptions  from  onshore connec-  Fi  and  WiMAX  technologies,  the  partners
        private  wireless  network services for  the   tivity.  The  integration  equally  enables  the   say their new dedicated network solutions
        offshore  energy sector, with  an  initial  ca-  efficient  handling  of  interoperability  and   ‘will empower customers to digitalise and
        pacity of 20,000  connections  for  the  off-  interservice  handovers,  making  commu-  automate operations.’ Elsewhere, Ooredoo
        shore grid. The solution offers a native off-  nication  between  offshore  and  onshore   Qatar  and  Qatar  National  Broadband  Net-
        shore system designed to deliver services   locations smoother and more reliable than   work (QNBN) are partnering on a Doha Port
        seamlessly  integrating  with  the  existing   ever before, while managing latency issues   project which involves implementing smart
        commercial  core,  enabling  customers to   through localised data services to improve   connectivity solutions in line with the aims
        improve  operational  efficiency  and  re-  process  efficiency.  Replacing  legacy  Wi-  of the state’s ‘Qatar National Vision 2030’.

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