Hosted by the Sultanate represented in the Information Technology Authority (ITA), the eighteenth meeting of the GCC eGovernment Executive Committee, started yesterday and it will continue for two days. The meeting is held in Al Bustan Palace Hotel in the presence of some excellences’ heads of the authorities and programs of eGovernment in the GCC countries along with the presence of specialists from the General Secretariat of the Council.
During the meeting, the committee discusses the General Secretariat report on what has been implemented of the decisions that had been decided on in its seventeenth meeting. The Committee also discusses the implementation of joint initiatives between the GCC member countries as are contained in the GCC Guidelines Strategy in eGovernment. In addition to reviewing the report of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to hold the fifth session of the GCC eGovernment Award and conference, which will be hosted by the Kingdom in 2017.
Read more: GCC: Gulf e-gov executive committee meets in Oman
In the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), digitalization strongly influences how consumers spend their time and access products and services. While many companies acknowledge the significant economic impact of digitalization, they don’t know where to start addressing the issue. Only with the right price strategy will they be able to catch up with this mega trend. International counterparts show the way.
Nine out of ten companies (93 percent) consider digitalization relevant for their business. Yet exactly how they can make the most of the digital revolution’s opportunities is a question often met with perplexity. This is a key finding of the Global Pricing Study 2016*, conducted by Simon-Kucher & Partners, in which approximately 2,200 managers from companies in more than 40 countries and a wide variety of industries participated.
Read more: GCC: Prices and digitalization: “Racing a carriage against a car”
Attracting the next generation through e-commerce and online comparison sites.
A wealth of research exists in the public domain in regards to the importance that the millennial generation has on global society. The characteristics of this group have a profound impact on the way that businesses attract and retain the attention of new buyers.
A wealth of research exists in the public domain in regards to the importance that the millennial generation has on global society. The characteristics of this group have a profound impact on the way that businesses attract and retain the attention of new buyers.
According to a study commissioned by the 1Bank of America Merrill Lynch, there are over 2 billion millennials around the world, of which around 86% live in emerging markets. When we look closer to home, this group accounts for over one-third of the entire GCC population.
Read more: Digitisation in the GCC: attracting the next generation through e-commerce
2016 is looking to be a watershed year in the region as policymakers launch and adopt significant policy initiatives to reduce dependence on oil.
From diversifying sources of funding through exploring taxation, to reducing expenditures by trimming energy subsidies, and tapping bond markets to fund deficits. Yet as these measures address the fiscal side of the economy, policymakers are now looking at the underlying fundamental challenge to the structure of regional economies. That of a gradual divergence from public sector-led economies to private sector-led economies. Development of the region’s private sector will play an important role in the transformation of economies in the wider MENA and the GCC.
Read more: Private sector development to play key role in transformation of GCC economies