CITC Governor Supports the Importance of Strengthening Communication Between Telecommunications and IT Regulators and Application Providers

His Excellency the Governor of the Communications and Information Technology Commission, Dr. Abdulaziz bin Salem Al-Ruwais, affirmed the development witnessed by the communications and information technology sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, supported by the wise leadership. This came during His Excellency's participation in a meeting of the UN Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, currently held in New York City. The meeting was chaired by the President of the Republic of Rwanda and businessman Carlos Slim, with more than 60 leading figures from the communications and information technology sector and application-providing companies, including Microsoft, Facebook, and others, participating.

The meeting discussed the role of governments in deploying communications and information technology services and delivering them to rural areas. In this regard, His Excellency the Governor noted that while the committee celebrates covering half the world with the internet, the Kingdom, thanks be to God and with continuous support and follow-up from the wise leadership, is witnessing tangible progress in this regard; the number of internet users in the Kingdom has exceeded 82%, 98% of populated areas have been covered with internet, and 4G coverage has exceeded 90%. His Excellency added that the Kingdom is working on a number of initiatives aimed at increasing local content, and the spread of communications and information technology services has contributed to enabling many fields, making the Kingdom a leader in some of them, including e-commerce, whose market size in the Kingdom exceeds SAR 30 billion, making the Kingdom's market the largest in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Regarding the impact of technological development on the work of communications and IT regulators, His Excellency noted that the regulator in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been classified among the highest maturity category compared to regulators around the world, and His Excellency supported the view raised in the committee about the importance of communications and IT application providers strengthening communication with regulators, and meeting any requirements they may have, noting that this would contribute to enhancing the spread of services and meeting user requirements. A number of officials in the committee pointed to the importance of using the International Telecommunication Union as a platform for enhancing communication, especially since the Union has a working group concerned with international internet-related policies, which the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has chaired since 2008. The committee also discussed a number of reports from its working groups, including the report of the group concerned with digital entrepreneurship, which highlighted ways to enhance the capabilities of online entrepreneurs and harness communications and information technology, particularly broadband, to ensure entrepreneurs' development. In addition to the digital health report, which highlighted digital solutions in the health field and achieving health sustainability.

During his presence in New York, His Excellency the Governor met with His Excellency the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Kingdom to the United Nations in New York, Abdallah Al-Mouallimi, and during the meeting, topics related to the communications and information technology sector were discussed, especially those being discussed within the halls of the United Nations. It is worth noting that the Kingdom is an active member of the UN Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, having been selected as a member since the committee's establishment 8 years ago, and the Kingdom actively participates in the committee's working groups, including the group concerned with digital entrepreneurship, and the group concerned with digital health, and participates in drafting recommendations in a manner consistent with and serving the Kingdom's interests.