The total government spending on information and communications technologies in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) will cross $15 billion by 2023, reports have confirmed.
This report was compiled by the International Data Corporation and informed that there has been a renewed interest in the fields of technology, with blockchain and artificial intelligence.
In 2018, MEA spent a total of $12.8 billion on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), the report added. This figure will see a rise due to the rising interest in ICT “at a compound annual growth rate of 4.8 percent.”
Blockchain made a huge breakthrough in the last decade, which has become one of the primary reasons why countries are looking to invest in this field despite their reservations. MEA views blockchain as a powerful tool for boosting security, reducing fraud and fostering new and better relationships with the citizens.
The report states:
In 2019, government expenditure on blockchain stood at $21 million, but this figure will grow five-fold in the next four years to hit $105 million. This represents an eye-catching CAGR of 49.2 percent.
The Vice Present for MEA region at IDC claimed that convincing the authorities to invest in blockchain has been a huge challenge as they are not ready nor equipped to understand the importance.
Governments across the region are under mounting pressure to become both more efficient and more effective. However, this is proving to be a troublesome task as many government organizations are simply not prepared for digital redesign. Whether it’s finding ways to integrate 5G, AI, and blockchain or protect against intrusions on digital trust, government agencies have a whole new set of IT skills to learn.
It is worth mentioning that UAE has remains one of the countries which made massive stride when it came to the idea of promoting blockchain. The country introduced Emirates Blockchain Strategy back in 2018, which aims to transform half of the government transactions to the blockchain by the year 2021.
Dubai has also revamped its interest in the field of blockchain and has several projects. One of the recent projects started is named ‘Smart Dubai’, which is first government-endorsed blockchain platform as-a-service in the UAE. This project is government’s initiative along with IBM corporation.
