CAIRO — Vice Minister of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) of Saudi Arabia Eng. Haitham bin Abdulrahman Al-Ohali has held discussions with Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) Dr. Amr Talaat on ways of activating the partnership between the two countries in the field of economy and digital transformation, it was reported on Friday.

The meeting, which took place on Thursday on the sidelines of the 14th ISESCO conference hosted by Egypt, discussed Saudi Arabia's efforts to accelerate the digital transformation process, develop the digital economy, as well as programs dedicated to stimulating technical entrepreneurship and developing human capabilities.

The Saudi official highlighted the importance of Egypt as a distinguished partner to achieve aspirations and economic growth in the Middle East, stressing that Egyptian talents have made many achievements around the world, citing the digital economy, as well as Egypt's thriving ecosystem that contributed to Egypt achieving second place in the region in 2020 in the number of start-ups of venture capital investment deals.

"We believe in joint work at the level of the region and the Arab world, and the existence of the opportunity for Arab entrepreneurship in the field of digital economy, as it is the new equation for economic growth. According to some studies, the digital economy is expected to contribute to 60% of the GDP in some countries", Al-Ohali said, calling for action to launch joint programs.

He also called for enhancing investment opportunities in the fields of technology, innovation and digital entrepreneurship, to achieve growth and prosperity for both sectors in a manner that serves common visions and directions.

He discussed with Eng. Amr Mahfouz, assistant minister for growth and development at MCIT and CEO of Egypt’s Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), ways to activate cooperation and strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries in the digital economy.

Al-Ohali visited the National Telecommunication Institute (NTI) as well as the Information Technology Institute (ITI), followed by a meeting with Egyptian entrepreneurs at the Saudi consulate. — SPA