Technology news and insights in the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa
Technology News and insights in the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa
Technology news and insights in the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa
Technology News and insights in the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa
Saudi Arabia’s government ICT contracts grew 18.75% to SR38 billion in 2024, driven by health, military, and infrastructure sectors. Investments focus on AI, cloud, and emerging tech, supporting Vision 2030. The Kingdom leads globally in digital government rankings and ICT spending share.
Pakistan’s IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja spotlighted satellite internet’s role in bridging the digital divide, praised key organizations expanding connectivity, and called for unified investor strategies and digital literacy to advance Pakistan’s digital future.
Mobile phone imports in Pakistan declined by 16.31% in July-May 2024-25, with a sharp 35.83% drop in May 2025 compared to last year. Despite this, overall merchandise exports rose by 5.15%, while total imports increased by 7.50% in the same period.
COMEX 2025, Oman’s flagship tech exhibition, returns with a focus on eGovernment, enterprise ICT, startups, gaming, and fintech. The event offers global pavilions, hackathons, and awards, drawing leaders and investors to explore opportunities in Oman and the GCC.
Oman’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning launched a digital platform for instant property title deed issuance, cutting service time and reducing in-person visits significantly. The initiative supports Oman’s digital transformation and Vision 2040 goals, with plans to expand accessibility nationwide through kiosks and service halls.
Brookfield Asset Management is close to acquiring a stake in an Omani telecom operator, marking its first investment in Oman’s telecom market. The deal highlights increasing foreign interest amid Oman’s telecom liberalization and digital growth initiatives.
TikTok’s Family Academy in Morocco provided parents with digital literacy tools and insights to support teens’ healthy social media use. Experts emphasized dialogue over control and highlighted culturally relevant resources to foster better parent-teen communication about digital habits.
Maroc Telecom and Inwi have created joint ventures to accelerate Morocco’s FTTH and 5G expansion, investing $486 million initially. Uni Fiber targets millions of fiber connections, while Uni Tower aims to build thousands of telecom towers, fostering open infrastructure access and national digital growth.
Google Pay has expanded to Lebanon and Oman, providing secure contactless payments on Android and Wear OS devices. The service integrates with Google Wallet, offering enhanced payment security via tokenization and dynamic codes.
Superintelligent AI could arrive soon, offering the Middle East transformative opportunities in governance, education, science, and new industries. Saudi Arabia’s ambitious AI initiatives, including the Humain project and strategic partnerships, position the region to lead both in innovation and ethical governance amid this technological revolution.