Local production of digital goods and services is also insufficient. According to our analysis of Crunchbase analysis data, the share of big data companies per million inhabitants ranges from 0 to 2.5, compared with an average of 4.4 in the OECD. Given the central importance of data in the digital economy, this gap places the region at a major competitive disadvantage in the digital economy.
Should the GCC eliminate these disparities and draw level with the world’s pacesetters, the effect would be transformative. We estimate that if the GCC as a whole were to equal Singapore’s DEI score, the region’s aggregate GDP would grow by almost a fifth, an increase of $255 billion. The greatest impact would be in Saudi Arabia, where GDP would rise by $119 billion.
There would be substantial employment benefits. If Saudi Arabia were to reach Germany’s DEI level, it would enjoy a net gain of around 340,000 jobs. Moreover, increasing local production would reduce the region’s dependence on technology imports, and thereby reinforcing national resilience. Indeed, such reliance on foreign suppliers can impair sovereignty, particularly when the technology involves critical infrastructure and security systems.
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