Page 120 - SAMENA Trends - Jan-Mar 2024

REGULATORY & POLICY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

data subscriptions and data-only subscriptions – also increased Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA) granted it a
by six million from 71.74 million to 77.93 million subscriptions license valid for 15 years to support the country’s digitalization
in the same time frame, representing an 8.6 per cent increase. ambitions. Telecom Egypt stated 5G “will ultimately benefit the
In recent years, Egypt has experienced a significant rise in entire economy and improve Egypt’s international ranking in
mobile internet usage, a trend experts attributed at the time to the ICT sector”. It added the network technology would enable
the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent implementation domestic enterprises to better analyze large volumes of data and
of social distancing measures. Between 2019 and 2022, the scale up their operations. CEO and MD Mohamed Nasr identified
country saw a staggering 77.9 percent increase in mobile internet 5G as “the backbone of future technology development”, offering
subscriptions, surging from 39 million to 69.4 million. In January the potential to revolutionize businesses and everyday life
2024, the Egyptian population reached 105.8 million, while the when used in conjunction with technologies including fiber. He
current population census is 106.1 according to the Central said being the first operator to receive the license solidifies its
Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS). infrastructure and ability to provide mobile services. The Egyptian
(March 14, 2024) www.english.ahram.org.eg government reportedly first readied plans to issue 5G licenses in
October 2023. In May 2023, the state sold a 9.5 per cent stake in
Telecom Egypt secured a 5G license from the country’s telecoms Telecom Egypt under a wider privatization push.
regulator for $150 million, putting it on course to launch services (January 18, 2024) www.mobileworldlive.com
powered by the technology. The operator stated the National

Iran

The World Bank announced that Iran is ranked 73rd among 217 of electronic government than Iran. The scores of some other
countries and autonomous regions in terms of the electronic- countries that are ranked higher than Iran are France, Germany,
government index. The World Bank has reviewed the state of Japan, Kuwait, China, Qatar, Turkey, and the US. According to
digital development in the world, ranking 217 countries and this report, 79 percent of Iranian people use the Internet which
autonomous regions in the world in terms of the e-government is much higher than the global average. 66% of people use the
index. The electronic government development in Iran has been Internet on average globally. The amount of Internet usage in Iran
more than 144 governments and less than 72 governments. is also higher than West Asia's average which is 76%.
Algeria, Egypt, Cuba, India, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, and (March 13, 2024) www.en.mehrnews.com
Pakistan are among the countries that are less developed in terms

Jordan

Fixed voice communication services subscriptions totaled about position out of 181 countries for the year 2022. Jordan secured
493,000 until the last quarter of 2023, with the home and trade the fifth position among Arab countries, surpassing Bahrain,
sectors accounting for 67% and 33%, respectively. Published Egypt, Kuwait, and Tunisia, according to the report prepared by
on its website, the statistical report of Telecommunications Oxford Insights. The Government AI Readiness Index is based on
Regulatory Commission (TRC) addresses Jordan's telecom measuring three key pillars: Government, Technology Sector, and
sector indicators for the last quarter of the year 2023 for fixed and Infrastructure. It relies on 39 sub-indicators and 10 dimensions,
mobile phone services, broadband Internet packages and leased including innovation capability, size, adaptability, digital capacity,
line provision. Volume of fixed telephone traffic was about 11 governance, vision, data availability, infrastructure, human
million call minutes recorded during the last quarter last year, with capital, and data representation. With this achievement, Jordan
local traffic at 88% and 12% for international destinations. On the has reached the first target of its strategic plan for Artificial
other hand, the report indicated that the technology-based fixed Intelligence and its executive plan (2023 and 2027), approved by
Internet broadband subscriptions amounted to 805k until the end the Cabinet in October 2022. Jordan has succeeded in achieving an
of the last quarter of the year 2023. (March 29, 2024) www.menafn.com improvement of over 20 percent in the global index of government
readiness for artificial intelligence. This aligns with Jordan's
Jordan has progressed by eight positions in the Government vision to become a leading and competitive country in the field
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Readiness Index compared to the year of artificial intelligence by creating a stimulating environment to
2022. According to a statement from the Ministry of Digital attract AI companies and promote investment in this field.
Economy and Entrepreneurship on Tuesday, Jordan ranked 55th (January 10, 2024) www.techpoint.africa.com
out of 193 countries for the current year, compared to the 63rd
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