Saudi Minister of Communications: VC investments in Kingdom ‎doubles to SR3.33 bln…IT market jumps 14.6%‎

Engineer Abdullah bin Amer Al-Sawaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, revealed that the unlimited support and empowerment by the leadership contributed to the growth of the communications market by more than 7%, until the end of October of the year 2022, while the size of the information technology sector market jumped by 14.6%. % for the same period, and the volume of venture capital investments in the Kingdom doubled to reach 3.33 billion riyals, an increase of more than 62% compared to the whole of 2021, and the number of technology companies listed in the stock market grew from 3 companies in the year 2021 to 9 listed companies. In the stock market in the year 2022, indicating that these achievements were accompanied by an increase in the number of jobs with the arrival of the technical manpower in the Kingdom to 340 thousand, which enhances the Kingdom’s position as the largest point for attracting digital talents in the region with a high rate of localization in the field of communications and information technology to 60.3% in 2022.

In his name and on behalf of the employees of the system of technology, the digital economy, innovation and space, Al-Sawahah congratulated the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and Prince Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister – may God protect them – on the occasion of announcing the state’s general budget for the fiscal year 1444 / 1445 AH (2023 AD).

Al-Sawaha stressed that the Kingdom’s budget for the year 2023 came to demonstrate the keenness of the leadership – may God support it – in harnessing the precious and precious things to build an innovative present and future that the country and the citizen can be proud of through programs and projects aimed at supporting economic growth and diversification, and improving services provided to citizens and residents, praising what is achieved. The communications and information technology sector, the innovation sector and space have been supported and empowered by the wise government, may God support them, pointing to the number of developments and qualitative leaps achieved by the digital economy within one year, which came to consolidate the Kingdom’s position as the largest digital economy in the region, and as a point for attracting investments and talents. digital.

Al-Sawaha indicated that women’s participation in the sector increased from what it was in 2021, by reaching 30.5%, and the ministry also succeeded, in participatory work with the private and non-profit sectors, in reaching 15 million beneficiaries of digital knowledge programs, stressing that the Kingdom today occupies a leading position. At the global level, as it ranks second among the G20 countries in digital competitiveness as the fastest growing digital economy. It also recently achieved the third rank in the world in digital government, according to the World Bank report list of the top ten in a number of sub-indicators of innovation.