Communications Commission suspends some of Mobily's services for failing to meet its regulatory obligations regarding the Saudization rate of executive positions

The Board of Directors of the Communications and Information Technology Commission today, Sunday 27 Muharram 1440H, chaired by His Excellency the Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Chairman of the Board of the Communications and Information Technology Commission, Eng. Abdullah bin Amer Alswaha, issued a decision against Etihad Etisalat Company (Mobily) suspending the provision of some of its services due to the company's failure to meet its regulatory obligations; the decision included suspending the sale of mobile communications services to new customers for postpaid and prepaid packages nationwide, and does not affect existing customers.

His Excellency the Governor of the Communications and Information Technology Commission, Dr. Abdulaziz bin Salem Al-Ruwais, explained that the company did not fulfill the obligations of the license issued to it; accordingly, the Commission's Board of Directors approved, at the end of 2017, a plan to address the company's violation and its failure to meet its obligations regarding the Saudization rate of the first executive tier reporting to the company's CEO, which is part of the requirements of the license issued to it.

His Excellency the Governor explained that the plan to achieve the Saudization rate in the company's executive management was coordinated with the company's board of directors, which was officially notified of the Commission's Board decision in December 2017; however, the company failed to achieve compliance despite repeated follow-up with the company's board. His Excellency the Governor also affirmed that the Commission continues to take the necessary action against violations of the Telecommunications Act and its implementing regulations, and that the Commission is working to follow up with all licensed companies and their obligations toward empowering Saudi talent in leadership positions. This comes within the framework of the Commission's tasks and responsibilities in supervising the communications and information technology sector, and protecting the public interest and the interests of users.