Riyadh – Mubasher: Riyadh is set to become the Arab world's first Digital Capital, as decided by the Council of Arab Ministers of Communications and Information Technology.
Naming the capital of Saudi Arabia as the the Arab Digital Capital in 2020 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, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
Recently, Saudi Arabia advanced 16 places in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitive Index for 2019 in terms of ICT adoption, topping 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 the information and communications technology (ICT) sector and enhance tech entrepreneurship and startups in the Arab world.
Meetings of the Arab telecommunications and information council of ministers discussed joint cooperation among member countries of the Arab League, as well as plans for developing cybersecurity and Internet Governance in Arab countries.
