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The country’s growth is expected to accelerate to 2.6% this year from 1.6% in 2018, Kuwait-based banking major NBK said in a recent macroeconomic outlook
Qatar’s non-oil activity has been buoyed by government investment and the country’s growth is expected to accelerate to 2.6% this year from 1.6% in 2018, banking major NBK has said in a macroeconomic outlook.
The country’s growth is driven by a recovery in the hydrocarbon sector output (0.4%) and ongoing gains in non-hydrocarbon activity (4.4%) as the government’s expansive public investments bear fruit, it said.
Over the medium term, as infrastructure projects related to the FIFA World Cup 2022 and work on the broader Qatar National Vision 2030 advances, non-oil growth is expected to moderate to around 4% by 2021, NBK said.
By this time, the private sector should have assumed a greater role in driving diversification through greater-value add — in sectors such as manufacturing, services, transportation and real estate—as per 2018’s Qatar National Development Strategy 2018-2022 (NDS-2), NBK said in its July outlook.
NDS-2 also prioritises raising the average productivity of its local and foreign workers, which partly explains last year’s decision to offer long-term, skilled expats permanent residency and permit 100% foreign ownership across all business sectors.
The hydrocarbon sector, meanwhile, should get a welcome boost in 2020 from the commissioning of the delayed $10bn Barzan gas production facility, NBK noted.
“This should raise gas output by 12% (2 bncf/d) and drive higher condensates and NGLs volumes. The most significant contribution, however, will come over the medium-to-long term when LNG capacity expands by over 40% to 110mn tonnes per year (mn tpy), with the addition of four new LNG trains by 2024,” NBK said.
Qatar’s fiscal position has strengthened since the authorities began the process of fiscal reform and consolidation (merging ministries, liberalising fuel prices etc.) after the oil price downturn and as energy prices began to recover from their 2016 nadir. Qatar recorded a surplus in 2018 (2.2% of GDP); that should improve further to 3.2% by 2021 amid continued spending restraint and stable energy prices, NBK said.
“The improvement in government finances will also have a positive bearing on public debt. While the authorities accessed the debt markets in 2018 and early in 2019 — securing favourable rates amid considerable investor demand—to the tune of $24bn, debt levels are expected to fall from 53% of GDP in 2018 to 41% of GDP by 2021,” NBK’s macroeconomic outlook showed.
The external current account (CA) balance, which moved back into surplus in 2017 and reached an estimated 8.3% of GDP in 2018 should remain in surplus over the forecast period. Notwithstanding a slight deterioration in 2019 to 6.4% of GDP on softer oil and gas prices, the CA will benefit in the medium-to-long term from higher gas exports and returns from the Qatar Investment Authority’s overseas assets.
Qatar’s banking sector, NBK noted, “has overcome the shock” of non-resident capital flight and tighter liquidity associated with the 2017 blockade. Foreign deposits have returned (+29% year-on-year), private sector credit growth is at a near-three year high (+12.6% y-o-y) and overall liquidity has improved.
But, NBK cautioned, volatile energy prices and LNG competition are the main risks Qatar faced.
It said the country faces several challenges including continued sensitivity to volatile global energy prices and capital flows as well as increasing LNG competition (especially from Australia and the US), which could put downward pressure on prices.
source: .gulf-times
The sector is the second largest in terms of market capitalisation on the Dubai and Abu Dhabi stock markets and is the third largest on the Saudi market
A mature telecom sector in the UAE and Saudi Arabia faces different challenges and growth opportunities in both countries.
A slowdown in the UAE markets has weighed on telecoms, but analysts told Zawya that they are optimistic about the second half of 2019, as the government increases spending ahead of Expo 2020.
In the Kingdom, market saturation could dent growth, but government initiatives and a decline in the number of expats leaving the country are positives for the sector.
The sector is the second largest in terms of market capitalisation on the Dubai and Abu Dhabi stock markets and is the third largest on the Saudi market.
Earlier in August, the UAE has been ranked first in the Arab region in Government Electronic and Mobile Services (GEMS) Maturity Index, according to a report issued by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA). (Read more here).
Here we take a look at how the leading telecoms in the UAE and Saudi Arabia performed in the last two quarters and the pointers that could prompt growth for the rest of the year.
UAE
Du and Etisalat are the two listed telecom companies in the UAE. A slowdown in the economy has affected the performance of both the companies.
“The local market has been very challenging due to a slowdown in the economy and a telecom sector that is already matured, seeing population growth and high demand drivers in the last couple of years,” Omar Maher, vice president of equity research at EFG Hermes told Zawya during a phone interview.
“However, in the past 6 months demand has been slowing,” he added.
Dubai’s Du posted a 5.4 percent drop in net profit after Royalty payments for the first half (H1) of 2019.
The company’s revenue fell 5.3 percent during the period.
Abu Dhabi-based Etisalat, the UAE’s biggest telecom operator, posted a 3.1 percent increase in consolidated net profit for H1 2019 and a 1.27 percent drop in revenue.
“Du has been more affected than Etisalat. Etisalat managed to protect its subscriber base better and has been more proactive on the commercial side in the last couple of years,” Maher said.
Etisalat Group’s subscriber base reached 143 million at the end of June 2019, a year-on-year (y-o-y) increase of 2 percent compared to H1 2018.
Du’s mobile subscriber base dropped 8.9 percent to 7.22 million at the end of June 2019, compared to 7.92 million at the end of H1 2018.
The company’s fixed line subscribers reached 773 thousands at the end of H1 2019, a 2.38 percent increase from H1 2018’s subscribers number.
“Etisalat has core operations in the UAE, Morocco, Egypt, Pakistan and KSA.
Performance in Egypt has been better and Maroc Telecom (owned by Etisalat) as a group has done much better in the past six months.
Also Saudi Mobily (owned by Etisalat) is doing much better due to a recovery in demand in Saudi Arabia as well as support from the regulator and the government,” Maher noted.
“We might see an uptick for both UAE telecom players in the second half of 2019 because of the additional spending by the government ahead of the expo 2020,” he ended.
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Telecom Company (STC), Etihad Etisalat Company (Mobily), Mobile Telecommunications Company Saudi Arabia (Zain) and Etihad Atheeb Telecom constitute the telecom sector on Tadawul, with a total market capitalisation of 12.34 percent in the index.
Al Rajhi Capital that tracks telecoms in the kingdom said market saturation and pricing regulations could dent growth going forward.
“Sector growth may be unlikely to revise upwards because of already high penetration and firm regulatory control over prices,” Pritish Devassy, head of equity research at Al Rajhi Capital told Zawya in an email statement
“Impact of reversal of royalty fee, IFRS 16 impact and high top-line y-o-y growth were the key notables in H1 2019 results,” he added.
At the end of 2018, Zain, STC and Mobily reached an agreement with the Kingdom’s ministries of finance, communications and communication and information technology to reduce the annual royalty fee that each company pays to 10 percent, from 15 percent, retrospectively from January 2018.
The trio also reached a deal with the government to settle all old disputes in connection to royalties up to the end of 2017.
“All the companies reported healthy top-line growth rates coming from a low base with STC up 8.4 percent y-o-y as compared to Mobily’s 13.0 percent and Zain’s 24.2 percent,” Devassy said.
“While the new calculation for royalty fees was expected to deliver a negative set of results for Mobily and a positive set for Zain, it was the other way round with better than expected results for Mobily and a lower gross margin for Zain KSA,” he added.
Zain reported a net profit after zakat and tax of 260 million Saudi Riyals for H1 2019, while Mobily recorded a net profit of 105.02 million riyals for the period and STC saw a net profit of 5,598 million riyals for H1 2019.
According to Al Rajhi’s Devassy, the key drivers for the sector continue to be data pricing and promotional offers.
“Pricing is tightly controlled by the regulator and hence a material increase is not easy in our view,” he said.
“On the positive side of things, rate of decline in expats could decline as already a large chunk of expats have left. Lifting of ban on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), being in existence for more than one and half year could also lower the cannibalization on an annual basis especially now as data contributes to a large part of earnings for companies,” Devassy added.
source:zawya
Saudi Arabia plans to introduce Hajj Smart ID instead of passports in 2020 in a move to ease the pilgrimage for millions of Muslims in Makkah, Al Arabiya reported.
The new ID will contain the pilgrim’s information and documentation instead of carrying official documents including passports.
The card, which stores each pilgrim’s health information, was used by 150 pilgrims during Hajj in 2019, and it was powered by a battery that runs for up to two years.
Moreover, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah also developed a smartphone app for smart ID services.
source: mubasher
The worldwide 5G wireless network infrastructure revenue will reach$4.2 billion in 2020, an 89 per cent increase from 2019 revenue of $2.2 billion, said research and advisory firm Gartner in a new report.
Additionally, Gartner forecasts in the report titled “Forecast: Communications Service Provider Operational Technology, Worldwide, 2017-2023, 2Q19 Update” that investments in 5G NRnetwork infrastructure will account for 6 per cent of the total wireless infrastructure revenue of communications service providers (CSPs) in 2019, and that this figure will reach 12 per cent in 2020.
“5G wireless network infrastructure revenue will nearly double between 2019 and 2020,” said Sylvain Fabre, senior research director at Gartner.
“For 5G deployments in 2019, CSPs are using non-stand-alone technology. This enables them to introduce 5G services that run more quickly, as 5G New Radio (NR) equipment can be rolled out alongside existing 4G core network infrastructure.”
In 2020, CSPs will roll out stand-alone5G technology, which will require 5G NR equipment and a 5G core network. This will lower costs for CSPs and improve performance for users.
5G rollout will accelerate through 2020
5G services will launch in many major cities in 2019 and 2020. Services have already begun in the U.S., South Korea and some European countries, including Switzerland, Finland and the U.K. CSPs in Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Spain, Sweden, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have announced plans to accelerate 5G network building through 2020.
As a result, Gartner estimates that7 per cent of CSPs worldwide have already deployed 5G infrastructure in their networks.
CSPs will increasingly aim5G services at enterprises
Although consumers represent the main segment driving 5G development, CSPs will increasingly aim 5G services at enterprises. 5G networks are expected to expand the mobile ecosystem to cover new industries, such as the smart factory, autonomous transportation, remote healthcare, agriculture and retail sectors, as well as enable private networks for industrial users.
Equipment vendors view private networks for industrial users as a market segment with significant potential. “It’s still early days for the 5G private-network opportunity, but vendors, regulators and standards bodies have preparations in place,” said Fabre.
Germany has set aside the 3.7GHz band for private networks, and Japan is reserving the 4.5GHz and 28GHz for the same. Ericsson aims to deliver solutions via CSPs in order to build private networks with high levels of reliability and performance and secure communications. Nokia has developed a portfolio to enable large industrial organizations to invest directly in their own private networks.
“National 5G coverage will not occur as quickly as with past generations of wireless infrastructure,” said Fabre.
“To maintain average performance standards as 5G is built out, CSPs will need to undertake targeted strategic improvements to their 4G legacy layer, by upgrading 4G infrastructure around 5G areas of coverage.
“A less robust 4G legacy layer adjoining 5G cells could lead to real or perceived performance issues as users move from 5G to4G/LTE Advanced Pro. This issue will be most pronounced from 2019 through 2021, a period when 5G coverage will be focused on hot spots and areas of high population density,” he added.
source: zawya
The UAE has ranked first in the Arab region according to the 2019 Government Electronic and Mobile Services, GEMS, Maturity Index.
Issued by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, ESCWA, the indicator is a measuring tool of progress at the national level in achieving transition to digital services. It was carried out across 13 countries including, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Oman, Palestine, Iraq, and Lebanon, amongst others.
The GEMS Maturity Index is measured across three sub-indices - Service Availability and Sophistication, Service Usage and Satisfaction, and Public Outreach.
According to the ESCWA report, the UAE achieved a 90 percent score in the 'Service Availability and Sophistication' category. This category uses various metrics to provide insights on what government services are available online or via mobile applications, and also measures accessibilty of government data via these channels.
Despite scoring 79 percent in the 'Public Outreach' category -- which determines what governments have done to make citizens aware of digital services in vital sectors -- the UAE scored 51 percent in the 'Service Usage and Satisfaction' index. The latter measures how frequestn government digital services are used, as well as end-user satisfaction with the digital service.
The GEMS index is measured across 84 core services. According to ESCWA, these services offer a fair representation of government services and illustrate the potential consequences if they are not provided effectively. Core services range across the health, education, work, transportation, tourism and social welfare sectors, among others.
Out of the 84 core services sectors, the GEMS Index report revealed that the UAE has a total of 70 that provide electronic services. It noted that e-Government services could be improved in the judicial and immigration services mechanisms -- each of which registered only two e-services provided within the country.
Commenting on the results, Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori, Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, TRA, Director-General, said, "Smart and advanced services are the key to customer happiness, therefore, we develop our government services in the UAE, inspired by the directives of our wise leadership, which emphasise on people as the goal and aim of the overall process of digital transformation."
"Achieving the first position in GEMS Maturity Index is the result of the collective efforts of the UAE Government towards full digital transformation," he added.
The Index allows to track the progress in the transition to e-channels for government service provision, by annual comparison of the national performance.
Salem Al Housani, Acting Deputy Director-General for Information an e-Government Sector, said, "This achievement comes one year after announcing the TRA as the entity responsible for smart government and digital transformation of the UAE’s model of digital government maturity."
"The UAE model of digital government maturity is a unified reference for electronic/digital government in the UAE, which guides the work on the various pillars of digital transformation, and measures the capability to create a digitally mature government and maintain its stability. TRA has launched the Digital Government Maturity Model to achieve the National OSI, and to reach the first position globally in OSI," he added.
According to the TRA, the UAE Government provides about 3,730 federal and local online services through its official portal. It also provides more than 270 procedural services at the federal level.
source: wam
The UAE offers international business opportunities across numerous sectors– from tourism to technology
Over the last 40 years, the UAE has successfully diversified its economy to reduce its reliance on the energy industry. As a result, the nation now offers international business opportunities across numerous sectors– from tourism to technology.
The government continues with its positive efforts in this area, including an increasing number of incentives designed to attract professionals and independent business people from all over the world and support smaller enterprises.
These include:
- Allowing 100% foreign-owned businesses
- Offering extended visas for entrepreneurs
- Attracting tech businesses to the UAE
- Providing funding and support for smaller businesses
- Creating a favorable environment for living and working
So, let’s look in detail at these five ways the UAE government encourages entrepreneurs to open a company here.
Allowing 100% foreign-owned businesses
In May 2019, the UAE government announced it would soon be possible for foreign entrepreneurs to be 100% shareholders in a locally incorporated business. Total foreign ownership was previously only permitted in the UAE’s free zones, meaning businesses incorporated ‘onshore’ had to be 51% locally owned.
This change will now give anyone looking to start a business, or already operating businesses in other countries, the opportunity to get easier access to the UAE. As a result, the playing field for international entrepreneurs looks even more attractive, particularly when paired alongside other developments.
Offering extended visas for entrepreneurs
In November 2018, the UAE government began actively issuing five-year visas to entrepreneurs looking to set up in the country.
Eligible candidates for the five-year entrepreneur visa must have a business with a minimum capital of AED 500,000 or the approval of an accredited business incubator in the country (such as Hub 71 – more on that below).
In May 2019 the UAE brought in a new system for five- and ten-year residency visas, enabling outstanding non-UAE investors and specialists to live, work and study here without a national sponsor. The visa can be renewed if the holder’s circumstances remain positive. These five- and ten-year visas require investments of AED 5 million and AED 10 million respectively. There are currently 125 business areas that UAE-based expats can operate in without the requirement of a local sponsor.
With the introduction of the Gold Card visa in May 2019, the next best thing to permanent residency is now available to the top tier of investors, entrepreneurs, chief executives, scientists, and outstanding students. The visa is reviewed every ten years, and, unlike other visa holders, Gold Card residents can live outside the country for a period of more than six consecutive months.
These developments are seen as a way of making it even more attractive for the international business community to work in the UAE. For those looking to get started in the UAE, whether you’re already living and working here or coming from abroad, having a long-term visa offers both stability and opportunity.
Attracting tech businesses to the UAE
In many parts of the world, the terms ‘entrepreneur’ and ‘startup’ are synonymous with technology. While not traditionally a tech hub in the same way as San Francisco, the UAE is making some strategic moves to change this.
The UAE government announced the creation of a new technology space, Hub 71, earlier this year. Based in Abu Dhabi, Hub 71 is a joint partnership with Microsoft. The fact the government has also earmarked AED500 million in investment funds as part of the overall initiative is further evidence of the UAE’s commitment to attracting international tech talent.
Coupled with its ambitious Government Accelerators’ program which includes Ghadan 21, a three-year development plan worth AED50 billon, all of these efforts make it pretty clear that the UAE government wants to create an even more thriving tech scene here.
Providing funding and support for smaller businesses
Given the leaps and bounds being made in providing help and support to entrepreneurs and startups, it’s no surprise that the UAE ranks highly for online access to administrative and government services. To make things easier for businesses, it was recently announced that 5% of government capital projects will be allocated to small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This comes as part of a drive to encourage them to enter into major projects contracts with government agencies and form alliances to compete for government projects.
Currently aimed at Dubai-based SMEs, this move will allow them to receive contracts for projects worth up to AED400 million. Also, in order to provide SMEs with greater liquidity, those working on UAE government projects will now be paid within 30 days, according to recent news. Previously, public sector project payments were paid within a 90 day period. In addition, in the run-up to next year’s Expo 2020, the Dubai government has earmarked 20% of all related contracts to SMEs.
Creating a favorable environment for living and working
Weather aside, there are so many reasons why the UAE is an attractive place for entrepreneurs to live and work. In many cases, it’s due to the tireless efforts of the government here to make it so.
According to an expat study, the UAE ranks 25th in the world for quality of life. It also takes the number nine spot for safety and security– making it an attractive location for entrepreneurs with families. It helps that visas for spouses and offspring are also easy to obtain once the main sponsor is accepted.
From a commercial perspective, the UAE is ranked 11th in the world for overall ease of doing business. Plus, there’s no personal tax, corporation tax, or any requirement to submit returns for the vast majority of businesses. This certainly reduces the operational burden of running a company here.
The UAE has a strong tradition of encouraging talented individuals to come here to live and work. However, looking at these recent developments, it’s increasingly evident that the government is now keen to attract independent entrepreneurs from a range of disciplines.
As a result, those with the drive and tenacity to grow a business from scratch here in the UAE are poised to benefit considerably. Entrepreneurs who are able to tap into these government-led initiatives, programs, and resources will have many options available to them. The growing support network provided by these new initiatives, and the communities they foster, will no doubt strengthen the overall startup ecosystem in the UAE and continue to attract entrepreneurs here for years to come.
Source:Entrepreneurntrepreneur
The pull of self-employment is as strong as ever in the region, according to a recent report by Middle East jobs site Bayt.com and global research firm YouGov.
In Bayt.com’s survey, Entrepreneurship in the Middle East and North Africa 2019, in the UAE some 69 per cent of respondents said they want to quit their current job and be their own boss instead. 54 per cent cited freedom over their work-life balance as the reason behind their thinking, while 42 per cent of them said they aimed to find personal fulfillment.
What’s more, some 73 per cent admitted that they are currently thinking of starting a business, while only 7 per cent say they have never thought of start- ing their own business.
Looking at the wider MENA region, for those who had already made the leap into entrepreneurship, 33 per cent said they left their previous jobs in order to increase their income, while 27 per cent said they wanted to do something they loved, and 25 per cent said they had a great business idea or concept.
The most appealing industries for prospective entrepreneurs were found to be IT / internet / e-commerce (10 per cent), commerce / trade / retail (9 per cent), consumer goods / FMCG (8 per cent), and real estate/ construction/ property development (8 per cent).
The report was published shortly after recruitment firm Robert Walters shared their own new research, which showed 73 per cent of professionals in the Middle East have left a job because they disliked the company’s culture. Some 82 per cent said they have previously worked for a company where they disliked the company culture. Both statistics suggest a further reason the number of would-be entrepreneurs is so high.
Bayt.com’s report also shows that the main concern of respondents while setting up their own business would be procuring finances to start (61 per cent), and the uncertainty of profit or income (41 per cent).
These concerns haven’t stopped increased numbers of people opening businesses – at least in Dubai, where the number of new business licenses in the first four months of 2019 grew by 35 per cent compared to the same period in 2018. The emirate’s Department of Economic Development issued 9,489 new licenses between January and April.
Start-ups and SMEs have long been the backbone of GCC economies, with SMEs making up around 98 per cent of business in the UAE, contributing approximately 53 per cent of gross domestic product (GFP). Under the country’s Vision 2021 plans, the government is seeking to increase this contribution to 60 percent by 2021.
Earlier this year, as part of the UAE’s bid to improve ease of doing business, the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship started issuing five-year residency visas to entrepreneurs – a move that drew more than 6,000 applications. It’s one of a series of moves that aim to improve opportunities for the wider SME community.
Another is Dubai’s recent package of initiatives by the emirate’s Department of Finance, announced in March. These initiatives include paying the dues of SMEs that supply services and goods to government agencies sooner, reducing the value of primary insurance for SMEs, cutting ‘performance insurance’ rates, calling for 5 per cent of government capital projects to be allocated to SMEs, and seeing projects worth Dhs1bn allocated to public-private partnerships.
Saudi Arabia has also striven to lay more accommodating foundations for entrepreneurs, such as 2018’s launch of an entrepreneur licence that allows new companies to benefit from a range of SME services and incentives. At April’s World Economic Forum, the kingdom’s energy minister Khalid Al Falih told delegates that Saudi’s start-up scene is “moving faster than anyone can imagine” and will create hundreds of thousands of jobs in the coming years.
“I predict that by 2030, companies that we don’t know today will be among the top 20 or 30 companies in Saudi Arabia. They will be driven by innovation, they will be driven by young people, they will be driven by women,” he added.
Backed by public sector support, those 69 per cent of people cited by Bayt.com’s survey are surely in as strong a position as ever to realise success should they take the step into the world of entrepreneurship.
source: gulfbusiness
The main objective of the digital transformation process developed in the vision of the Kingdom of 2030 is to move the Saudi economy from the state of economic activity based on oil revenues mainly to the state of economic activity, which is characterized by diversity in sources of income and which ensures sustainable economic development and reduction of leaks in Capital and services abroad The estimated amount of money spent on medical services paid by Saudis abroad is estimated at SR 2 billion (540 million dollars). In the education sector, Saudis spend about 15 billion riyals ($ 4 billion) abroad and in foreign tourism. To about 30.5 billion riyals ($ 8.1 billion), while the leakages in the capital invested is estimated at about 312 billion riyals ($ 84 billion) in the year 2018 only.
The Digital Transformation Plan aims to enable the realization of the vision of 2030 by moving to a digital society based on interaction, exchange of experiences, biographies and a digital economy that creates an environment conducive to entrepreneurship, new functions and a digital government based on data sharing and digital services.
Transformation strategy
The strategy of digital transformation is based on the transformation of the digital world and work in this phase on four axes focused in four sectors, education, health, electronic commerce and smart cities, through the establishment of digital units of the concerned ministries, and highlights the progress in the process of digitization through the achievement of many achievements, the most important is the virtual school experience and the smart classrooms in the education sector, consulting and health services remotely in the health sector, which provides all citizens the ability to get medical consultations for three times a month for free via Smartphone applications. In addition, a number of smart city applications have been activated such as car parking, light signals and intelligent waste management in a number of Saudi cities. In terms of e-commerce, the digital and legal environment is being developed to expand the size of the electronic market in the Kingdom. To provide greater transparency and reliability in e-commerce exchanges. The development and support of the e-commerce environment has played an important role in promoting the growth of this sector. The Kingdom witnessed a remarkable development in the volume of e-commerce, The number of electronic stores registered in the Kingdom reached 25501 electronic stores in 2018, which indicates the growing importance of this sector, which coincides with the rise in the number of Internet users in Saudi Arabia, which reached 88% of the total population The development of the legal and digital environment in Saudi Arabia was reflected in an advanced ranking in the United Nations e-commerce and online shopping index, particularly between companies and consumers, ranking 52 out of the 151 countries surveyed, indicating to some extent the will of the relevant policies to develop this evolution Important and vital sector.
Investing in digital transformation
The process of digital transformation necessitates the necessity of quality equipment and in huge quantities. It also requires large investments in infrastructure projects and pioneering ideas that contribute to the digital transformation process through smart and innovative solutions. This opens the door for entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs to establish their own businesses and make profitable investments by keeping pace with the transformation process. For example, in the field of digital transformation, the Saudi government has contracted a $ 1.6 billion ($ 420 million) smart board supply contract with the Education Technology Development Company to support the education sector and smart classrooms, Stamps for electronic ones in Saudi schools, and we can imagine the electronic equipment needed for all Saudi schools and the size of applications "and later universities" to carry out the process of digital transformation, a process for quite some time and require huge investments. The same applies to Smart City projects and the health sector in the Kingdom.
يكمن الهدف الرئيسي من عملية التحول الرقمي التي تم اعدادها في اطار رؤية المملكة لعام 2030 يكمن في نقل الاقتصاد السعودي من حالة النشاط الاقتصادي القائم على الريوع النفطية بشكل اساسي الى حالة النشاط اقتصادي الذي يتسم بالتنوع في مصادر الدخول و الذي يكفل تحقيق التنمية الاقتصادية المستدامة وتقليص التسربات في حركة رؤوس الأموال والخدمات الى الخارج حيث تقدر الأموال المنفقة على الخدمات الطبية التي يدفعها السعوديين في الخارج بحوالي 2 مليار ريال (540) مليون دولار، وفي قطاع التعليم ينفق السعوديين حوالي 15 مليار ريال (4 مليار دولار) في الخارج وفي السياحة الخارجية تصل الى نحو 30.5 مليار ريال (8.1 مليار دولار) ،اما التسربات في رؤوس الأموال المستثمرة فتقدر بحوالي 312 مليار ريال (84 مليار دولار) وذلك في عام 2018 فقط.
إذن تهدف خطة التحول الرقمي الى تمكين تحقيق رؤية عام 2030 عبر الانتقال الى مجتمع رقمي مبني على التفاعل وتبادلات الخبرات والبيات واقتصاد رقمي يخلق البيئة الملائمة لريادة الاعمال ووظائف جديدة وحكومة رقمية مبنية على مشاركة البيانات وتوفير الخدمات الرقمية الشاملة.
استراتيجية التحول
ان استراتيجية التحول الرقمي بنيت على أساس احداث التحول الرقمي الشامل ويتم العمل في هذه المرحلة على أربعة محاور تتركز في أربعة قطاعات وهي التعليم والصحة والتجارة الالكترونية والمدن الذكية وذلك عبر تأسيس الوحدات الرقمية التابعة للوزارات المعنية وتبرز مظاهر التقدم في عملية التحول الرقمي من خلال تحقيق العديد من الإنجازات لعل أهمها هو تجربة المدرسة الافتراضية والفصول الذكية في قطاع التعليم والاستشارات والخدمات الصحية عن بعد في القطاع الصحي والذي يؤمن لجميع المواطنين القدرة على الحصول على الاستشارات الطبية لثلاث مرات في الشهر مجاناً عبر تطبيقات الهواتف الذكية، كما وتم تفعيل عدد كبير من تطبيقات المدن الذكية كمواقف السيارات والاشارات الضوئية وإدارة النفايات الذكية في عدد من المدن السعودية، اما على صعيد التجارة الالكترونية فيتم العمل تطوير البيئة الرقمية والقانونية اللازمة لتوسيع حجم سوق الالكترونية في المملكة، فصدر مؤخرا قانون ينظم عمل التجارة الالكترونية عبر توفير المزيد من الشفافية والموثوقية في التبادلات التجارية الإلكترونية، ولقد لعب تطوير ودعم بيئة عمل التجارة الالكترونية دوراً مهماً في تعزيز نمو هذا القطاع فشهدت المملكة تطوراً ملحوظاً في حجم التجارة الإلكترونية إذ بلغ حجم التجارة الإلكترونية في عام 2018 حوالي 9 مليار دولاراً كما بلغ عدد المتاجر الإلكترونية المسجلة رسمياً في المملكة 25501 متجر إلكتروني، الامر الذي يشير إلى تعاظم أهمية هذا القطاع، الذي يتزامن صعوده مع ارتفاع عدد مستخدمي الانترنت في سعودية الذي وصل الى معدل 88% من اجمالي عدد السكان، ولقد انعكست تطوير البيئة القانونية والرقمية في سعودية في حصولها على ترتيب متقدم في مؤشر الأمم المتحدة للتجارة الإلكترونية والتسوق عبر الإنترنت لاسيما بين الشركات والمستهلكين اذ حصلت على الترتيب 52 من بين 151 دولة ممن شملهم التقرير وهو ما يدل الى حدى ما على نجاعة السياسات المعنية بتطوير هذا القطاع الحيوي والهام.
الاستثمار في التحول الرقمي
ان عملية التحول الرقمي تستدعي بالضرورة تجهيزات نوعية وبكميات هائلة كما تستلزم استثمارات كبيرة في مشاريع البنية التحتية و أفكار ريادية تساهم في عملية التحول الرقمي عبر الحلول الذكية والمبتكرة ما يفتح الباب واسعاً امام رواد ورجال الاعمال الى تأسيس مشاريعهم الخاصة وتحقيق استثمارات مربحة من خلال مواكبة عملية التحول الرقمي في المملكة، فعلى سبيل المثال تعاقدت الحكومة السعودية، وفي اطار التحول الرقمي، على عقد لتوريد ألواح ذكية مع شركة "تطوير لتقنيات التعليم" بقيمة 1,6 مليار ريال (420 مليون دولار أميركي ) لدعم قطاع التعليم والفصول الذكية، واستبدال الكتب الورقية بأُخرى إلكترونية في المدارس السعودية، ولنا أن نتخيل حجم التجهيزات الإلكترونية والتطبيقات اللازمة لكل المدارس السعودية-ولاحقاً الجامعات- لإجراء عملية التحول الرقمي وهي عملية ليست بقصيرة وتستلزم استثمارات ضخمة، الأمر ذاته ينطبق على مشروعات المدن الذكية وقطاع الصحة في المملكة.
The Royal Decrees promulgating laws on bankruptcy, public-private partnership, privatisation and foreign capital investment will create a favourable regulatory environment for investment, in line with the future vision of the sultanate.
This was communicated by the Government Communication Center (GCC) in a statement issued in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Public Authority for Investment Promotion & Export Development (Ithraa). 'The Royal Decrees are part of the government's efforts to promote competitiveness of the national economy globally. Furthermore, these laws reflect the government's desire for the private sector to play a role in Oman's development and create better job opportunities for the national workforce,' GCC stated.
With world-class infrastructure, such as roads, ports, airports and special economic zones already in place coupled with sultanate's growing reputation as a logistics hub, the new regulatory environment is bound to get the attention of foreign investors, expediting the overall development in the country.
Foreign Capital Investment Law
Some of the objectives of the law, as underlined by GCC, include promoting the sultanate's position as an investment destination capable of attracting
foreign capital, enhance competitiveness in line with international indicators through the legislative system that governs business. Also, the aim is to streamline procedures and issue permits necessary for foreign investment within the country through the Investment Services Centre of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
The law will help offer incentives to attract foreign investment and grant the investor necessary guarantees for the project. 'For example, provide the foreign investment project with all advantages, incentives and guarantees granted to the national project in accordance with the applicable laws in the sultanate. A decision by the Council of Ministers may decide preferential treatment for foreign investors in accordance with the reciprocity principle,' it said.
Land and real estate required for the investment project may be allocated by way of a long-term lease or usufruct over the same, without being subject to the provisions of Royal Decree 5/81 regulating usufruct over Oman's land and the Land Law in accordance with the rules and provisions set out by the regulations after coordination with the relevant authorities.
Public-Private Partnership Law
The law will improve the national economy by encouraging the private sector to invest in infrastructure projects and public services, as well as contribute in the diversification of national income sources.
It will help lay out a regulatory framework to manage the process of public-private partnership in a transparent manner as well as improve the quality of public services and reduce their establishment and operation costs, which contributes to relieving the financial burden on the state's budget.
The law lays down all the parameters for establishing, launching and awarding public-private partnership projects.
Privatisation Law
The law aims to encourage the implementation of government policies relating to expanding the role of the private sector in ownership and management of various economic activities.
The GCC expects that it will also encourage attracting investment, expertise, technology and knowledge as well as raise resource management efficiency, improve services and create high-quality job opportunities.
Bankruptcy Law
The law will create a legislative and legal framework that promotes the business environment by restructuring the procedures that enable business people to overcome the debt stage.
It will also cover foreign companies operating in the sultanate as well as support distressed businesses to revive and resume their economic activity.
It will help set a 'pre-preventive' composition stage called 'Restructuring' through which the concerned parties cooperate with distressed business people aiming to support them to re-structure their business as well as encourage investment and entrepreneurship.
Source: menafn
