Page 110 - SAMENA Trends - February-March 2021

ARTICLE SAMENA TRENDS
While some Gulf countries
lead the world in indicators
such as mobile penetration
and Internet speeds, the
region lags far behind, with
most traffic being sent far
outside the region. These
detours generally increase
costs for the network oper-
ator and, more importantly,
the additional distance
travelled unnecessarily
increases the risk of
disruptions.
The report is published in English and Arabic, and can be downloaded at:
https://labs.ripe.net/country-reports/ripe-ncc-internet-country-report-gulf-region-arabic-version/view
https://labs.ripe.net/country-reports/ripe-ncc-internet-country-report-gulf-region/view
While some Gulf countries lead the world in The report calls mobile operators and
Internet service providers to certify their
indicators such as mobile penetration and Internet number resources and share
Internet speeds, the region lags far behind,
with most traffic being sent far outside the best current operational practices around
region. Providers in the Gulf region prefer routing security in general. This is in order
to better safeguard the Internet and reduce
International IXPs such as in Amsterdam
and Frankfurt, with traffic being sent across the risk of a hack. There is a need for open
distant locations rather than making use diverse markets that allow for greater
connectivity, multiple access points, and
of regional IXPs. These detours generally
increase costs for the network operator increased choice in service providers.
and, more importantly, the additional
distance travelled unnecessarily increases Some of the key findings include the
the risk of disruptions.
following:
The report reaches a number of
Protecting data and networks: Routing conclusions about what is needed in the
region from a technical and regulatory
security could be greatly improved in the
region by adopting the Resource Public Key standpoint in order to facilitate Internet
Infrastructure (RPKI), a digital certificate development and future growth:
• IPv4 scarcity may pose less of a
that helps network operators make more
secure routing decisions. challenge than in other parts of the
world, given the region’s high mobile
penetration, but further IPv6 deployment
is still needed to support future growth
• Domestic connectivity within the
countries shows bottlenecks and
potential single points of failure
• International connectivity in many of
the Gulf countries is not very diverse,
with the majority dependent on a small
number of providers
• Regional connectivity is far from
optimised in the region as a whole,
with traffic being sent across distant
locations rather than making use of
local exchange points
• Routing security could be greatly
improved in the region
• Governments need to adapt to the
changing environment through open
and flexible regulation that supports
growth.
110 FEB-MAR 2021