Oman is ranked 49th in the world and fifth in the Middle East and North Africa in the Government AI Readiness Index 2021.
Produced by Oxford Insights, this is the fourth edition of the index and has the same ‘exam question’ as in previous editions: how ready is a given government to implement AI in the delivery of public services to their citizens?
To answer that question, the index draws on 42 indicators across ten dimensions. The index is divided into three broader categories of Government, Technology Sector, and Data and Infrastructure.
The USA tops the global ranking, in large part thanks to the unrivalled size and maturity of its technology sector. Singapore ranks second as a result of its institutional strength and government digital capacity. The other countries in the top five are the UK, Finland and the Netherlands.
The MENA region is one of the most diverse in the world in its Government AI Readiness scores, states the index report. ‘In fact, it has the largest range of scores, with the lowest being 17.93 out of 100 (Yemen) and the highest being 71.60 (UAE).’
In the GCC, UAE leads with an overall rank of 19th, followed by Qatar (26th), Saudi Arabia (34th), Oman (49th), Bahrain (55th) and Kuwait (63rd).
The index also puts a spotlight on Oman and praises its government AI readiness. ‘In October 2021, Oman unveiled its Digital Economy Programme. As part of this, the sultanate is also in the process of developing its very own National AI Strategy,’ it stated.
This strategy will revolve around the four main pillars of enhancing productivity and economic diversification of sectors via AI; developing human capabilities in AI; accelerating AI adoption by service sectors such as Defence, Healthcare, and Education; and governance of AI and advanced technologies to ensure fair and ethical use of these technologies.
‘The development of such a strategy will mark a significant positive step for Oman’s capabilities to adopt AI,’ the index report stated.
‘The upcoming AI strategy will complement current strengths and is likely to significantly improve Oman’s ranking in the Vision dimension and the Government pillar overall.’
Source: https://www.muscatdaily.com/2022/02/12/oman-5th-in-government-ai-readiness-index-in-mena/