IDC forecasts ICT spending in Saudi Arabia to reach $32.9bln in 2022

IDC forecasts ICT spending in Saudi Arabia to reach $32.9bln in 2022

Riyadh: The 8th edition of the ICT Indicators Forum, held on March 29 in Riyadh, revealed that Saudi Arabia is now home to one of the world's fastest growing ICT markets.

The forum, hosted jointly by the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) and International Data Corporation (IDC), featured a series of enlightening presentations and panel discussions that provided valuable insights into the current ICT market and the Kingdom's digital transformation journey. The sessions also highlighted the impact of government initiatives on enabling digital transformation across sectors in the Kingdom.

Speaking at the event, Hamza Naqshbandi, IDC's associate vice president for Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, described the Saudi ICT sector as one of the most rapidly growing markets in the region. "The Kingdom's response to the pandemic was one of the strongest and most robust that any economy had to the pandemic," said Naqshbandi. "IDC research shows that the Kingdom was way ahead of the curve in terms of its preparedness and response to the pandemic, and the pioneering Vision 2030 initiative has been a key facilitator of that success."

The Saudi ICT sector expanded 8% between 2019 and 2021 to reach a value of $32.1 billion. IDC forecasts further year-on-year growth of