Under the patronage of Eng. Abdullah Al-Sawaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Communications, Space, and Technology Commission (CST), the CST held the "ICT Indicators Forum 2023" today. The event was attended, by Dr. Mohammed Al-Tamimi, Governor of the CST, along with several officials and local and international experts. During the forum, the CST announced that the value of the ICT market in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia reached SAR154 billion in 2022, the largest and fastest-growing digital economy in the MENA region. Dr. Al-Tamimi revealed that Saudi Arabia's total capital investment in digital infrastructure exceeded SAR93 billion over the past six years leading to a significant improvement in the quality of services. For example, mobile Internet speeds have doubled to 181 Mbps, 11 times the previous speeds and double the global average, making the Kingdom one of the top 10 countries for mobile internet speed. Furthermore, the CST launched high-speed internet service in 21,000 villages and immigration areas in various regions of the Kingdom, ensuring the continuity of communication services for more than 5 million people and confirming the development of the communications and technology system in the Kingdom. Dr. Al-Tamimi also stated that 5G coverage in the Kingdom has increased to 53%, while in Riyadh, it has exceeded 94%. Fibre optics coverage has reached 3.7 million Saudi homes. Dr. Al-Tamimi also stated that Internet service usage has significantly increased in Saudi Arabia, where the subscription rate for mobile communications has reached 172% of the population, and the average daily mobile internet data consumption per individual in the Kingdom has reached over 1200MB, three times the global average. CST has also contributed to strengthening national participatory efforts by collaborating with the Transport General Authority and the National Regulations Committee to issue 12 approvals for 26 brands that provide connected vehicle services. In addition, CST has launched the experimental regulatory environment for emerging technologies to support entrepreneurs and innovators, creating a flexible environment that balances innovation and regulation. The ICT Indicators Forum focused on enhancing the efficiency of digital infrastructure, expanding the scope of digital business to support the aspirations of the digital economy in Saudi Arabia, and exploring the future of communications and technology markets and their most important trends.
