RIYADH: There is a positive correlation between digitalization and enhanced macroeconomic favorability in Gulf Cooperation Council economies, according to a report by the International Monetary Fund’s Middle East and Central Asia department.

During a roundtable discussion in Riyadh on Thursday, Zeine Zeidan, the department’s deputy director, spoke about the rapid digital development that has taken place within the GCC region in recent years and the significant support this provides for both the public and private sectors.

“The region is going through a very interesting economic transformation,” he said.

The IMF has explored the ways in which digitalization is now a key pillar in the national visions of GCC countries, he continued, and has become a crucial factor in efforts to grow gross domestic product, streamline government operations, improve living standards and accelerate nationwide connectivity.

Zeidan highlighted in particular the accelerated process of digitalization in the region since the COVID-19 pandemic, which he said is reflected by developments in areas such as telehealth, digital banking, e-commerce and virtual courts.

“Between 2020 and now, we see rapid progress in this region in general, which is not the case for other parts of the world,” he said. “And on average, this is a region that is even well ahead of the aggregate by a considerable amount.”

That said, the IMF made recommendations for the further enhancement of digitalization efforts in the region’s public and private sectors. In the former, for instance, there needs to be a greater push for digital engagement with citizens and the digitalization of core government systems. Moreover, data-privacy laws and cybersecurity guidelines must be reviewed and updated to reduce risks and encourage trust. Regulations that can complement an evolving digital industry must also be put in place uniformly across the region.

In the financial sector, the benefits of digital payments and e-commerce should be promoted, in addition to industry-led developments in financial technology that can drive competition. To scale up markets, cross-border cooperation and payments are also recommended.

As for the corporate sector and labor market, the IMF recommended that small and medium-size financial enterprises should learn to adopt new technologies and constantly update their skills. It also advised targeted investments in digital infrastructure, industry and innovation.

In addition, a major emphasis in the corporate and labor market should be placed on education and training to enhance digital skills, especially considering the potential shifts expected in the job market as a result of advances in artificial intelligence.

“The history of technology over the past few decades has shown that there has always been that job creation,” Zeidan said. “So, you lose jobs somewhere, you create a lot of jobs somewhere else.”

Asked by Arab News whether there were concerns about loss of educational and career diversity, or that creativity and critical-thinking skills might be pushed to the back burner by the focus on digital education, he said that AI does not replace human thinking.

The idea, he explained, is to use AI “to foster creativity,” not “replace your thinking.” The biggest challenge, he predicted, will be to build digital skills within the education system while preserving that human creativity and thinking.

Saudi Arabia’s GovTech Maturity Index rating grew from a little over 0.7 to just below 1.0 between 2020 and 2022, ranking it the highest among GCC countries, followed by the UAE and Qatar. The index, which measures the maturity of nations in terms of digital government transformation, has a regional average of 0.85.

Although the GCC region ranks among the best globally in terms of digital connectivity, some individual countries might benefit from improvements to advanced information and communications technology skills, Zeidan said. Many individuals have basic skills but advanced knowledge is still lacking, he added. However the advanced infrastructure in the region gives GCC countries the scope to improve digital skills and industry integration.

Despite the positives, the region does have some catching up to do in certain aspects.

“The contribution of the digital economy to the GDP in general … is still much slower in Saudi Arabia, which is the most advanced in the region, compared to the United States,” Zeidan said.

Digital access efforts, on the other hand, are performing well, with the GCC region closing the gap on advanced economies globally, as evidenced by the IMF’s newly developed Enhanced Digital Access Index, which measures various aspects of a country’s digital infrastructure and inclusivity.

Saudi Arabia jumped 2.9 percent in terms of contributions from the digital economy between 2017 to 2020. During this time, SR73 billion ($19.5 billion) of GDP was provided by the digital economy through leveraging of digital infrastructure, according to the index.

Zeidan also recommended additional efforts in the fields of digital innovation and regulation to further enhance the preparedness of GCC countries for advances in AI.

WASHINGTON: A federal judge ordered the White House on Tuesday to restore The Associated Press’ full access to cover presidential events, ruling on a case that touched at the heart of the First Amendment and affirming that the government cannot punish the news organization for the content of its speech.
US. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled that the government can’t retaliate against the AP’s decision not to follow Trump’s executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico. The decision handed the AP a major victory at a time the White House has been challenging the press on several levels.
“Under the First Amendment, if the Government opens its doors to some journalists — be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewher — it cannot then shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints,” McFadden wrote. “The Constitution requires no less.”
It was unclear whether the White House would move immediately to put McFadden’s ruling into effect. McFadden held off on implementing his order for a week, giving the government time to respond or appeal.
The AP has been blocked since Feb. 11 from being among the small group of journalists to cover Trump in the Oval Office or aboard Air Force One, with sporadic ability to cover him at events in East Room.
The organization had asked McFadden to rule that Trump had violated AP’s constitutional right to free speech by taking the action because he disagreed with the words that its journalists use. He had earlier declined AP’s request to reverse the changes through an injunction.
Trump came out and said why he made the move

While there was little dispute in a March 27 court hearing about why Trump struck back at the AP – the president said as much – the administration said it was up to its own discretion, and not White House correspondents or longstanding tradition, to determine who gets to question the president and when.
Since the dispute with AP began, the White House has taken steps to control who gets to cover the president at smaller events and even where journalists sit during press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s briefings, saying both need to better reflect changes in how people get information.
The AP’s decisions on what terminology to use are followed by journalists and other writers around the world through its influential stylebook. The outlet said it would continue to use Gulf of Mexico, as the body of water has been known for hundreds of years, while also noting Trump’s decision to rename it the Gulf of America. Different outlets have used different approaches, some skirting it by calling it the “Gulf.”
“For anyone who thinks The Associated Press’ lawsuit against President Trump’s White House is about the name of a body of water, think bigger,” Julie Pace, the AP’s executive editor, wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed. “It’s really about whether the government can control what you say.”
Trump has dismissed the AP, which was established in 1846, as a group of “radical left lunatics” and said that “we’re going to keep them out until such time as they agree it’s the Gulf of America.”
Testimony revealed AP’s coverage has been impeded
For a news organization that relies on speed as a major selling point, the AP brought its chief White House correspondent and photographer to testify before McFadden about how its absence from covering certain events has delayed its transmission of words and images. Its lawyer, Charles Tobin, said AP has already lost a $150,000 advertising contract from a client concerned about the ban.
The government’s lawyer, Brian Hudak, showed how AP has been able to use livestreams or photos from other agencies to get news out, and pointed out that AP regularly attends Leavitt’s daily briefings.
As a service whose product is delivered to thousands of newspapers, websites and broadcasters across the nation and world, the AP has been part of small text and photo “pools” that have covered presidents of both parties for decades. The administration has sought to give more prominence to new – and in many cases, Trump-friendly – outlets.
In its action filed on Feb. 21, the AP sued Leavitt, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich.
Trump has moved aggressively against the media on several fronts since taking office again. The Federal Communications Commission has open lawsuits against ABC, CBS and NBC News. The administration has sought to cut off funding for government-run news services like Voice of America and is threatening public funding for public broadcasters PBS and NPR for allegedly being too liberal in news coverage.