Saudi Arabia's ICT Market Size Reaches SAR166 Billion In 2023, CST Reports

The Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST) recently wrapped up the 10th edition of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Indicators Forum 2024, marking a significant milestone in the ICT sector's journey within the Kingdom. The forum, a gathering of esteemed ICT experts and leaders, unveiled that the ICT sector's market size is projected to hit SAR166 billion in 2024, showcasing a robust compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8% from 2018 to 2023.

The event featured four main presentations alongside a panel discussion, shedding light on the current performance and future directions of the ICT sector in Saudi Arabia. Mufarreh Nahari, CST's General Manager of Studies, kicked off the forum with insights into the sector's performance indicators. Notably, Saudi Arabia has achieved the 2nd rank among G20 nations in the ICT Development Index 2023. The forum also highlighted significant achievements such as a mobile services penetration rate of 198%, IoT M2M subscriptions reaching 12.6 million, mobile internet speed hitting 215 Mbit in 2023, an internet penetration rate of 99%, and a roster of 31 cloud computing service providers listed in CST.

Hamza Naqshbandi and Jyoti Lalchandani from IDC presented "Navigating the Innovation Frontier: Technology Market Outlook for Saudi Arabia," forecasting that technology spending in Saudi Arabia will reach $18.4 billion by the end of 2024. Government investments in AI, IoT, Cybersecurity, and Big Data Analytics are expected to surpass $752 billion, illustrating the Kingdom's commitment to advancing its technological infrastructure.

The panel discussion titled "The Future of the Tech Landscape in Saudi Arabia" featured Salman Faqeeh from Cisco, Fahad AlTurief from Oracle, and Othman Alhokail from Merak Capital. They explored future prospects for ICT market experts in the Kingdom.

ICT Sector Financial Performance

Jassem AlJobran delved into the financial performance of the ICT sector during his presentation on "ICT Sector Financial Performance in Argaam". He revealed that assets of listed ICT companies have soared to SAR250 billion, with Saudi Arabia accounting for 37% of total ICT assets in the GCC. Furthermore, the Kingdom represents a significant portion of the GCC's revenue from ICT-listed companies at 41%, with total revenues around SAR119 billion. The market value for these companies has reached SAR379 billion, constituting the largest share in the GCC at 57%.

Saudi Internet 2023 Report

The forum concluded with Sami Aldaham presenting the "Saudi Internet 2023" report. This comprehensive document covers internet usage growth within the Kingdom, including user behavior and preferences, trending applications, and data consumption per person. This report underscores the rapid advancement and adoption of internet technologies among Saudi residents.

The ICT Indicators Forum 2024 not only highlighted the remarkable growth and potential of Saudi Arabia's ICT sector but also set a positive outlook for its future development. With substantial investments flowing into technology and digital infrastructure, Saudi Arabia is poised to strengthen its position as a leading digital economy in the region.

With inputs from SPA