Saudi Arabia calls for sustainable Gulf digital integration and data sovereignty

Saudi Arabia has called for sustainable digital integration among Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and for enhanced computing capabilities that protect data sovereignty and open global opportunities for regional companies.

The remarks were delivered by Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha during the 30th meeting of the GCC Ministerial Committee for Post and Telecommunications, held in Bahrain.

Al-Swaha said that, under the guidance of King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia is working closely with its Gulf partners to strengthen regional integration. He outlined three main pillars for this effort:

• Transitioning from digital resilience to leadership in artificial intelligence.

• Integrating energy and computing while preserving data sovereignty.

• Building joint entrepreneurial markets to enhance global competitiveness.

International capacity and connectivity proposal

Al-Swaha noted that Saudi Arabia has leveraged its resources and infrastructure to support the continuity of data and telecommunications flows across the GCC, adding more than 8.4 terabits per second of international capacity and increasing overall capacity by about 80 percent to reach 18 terabits per second.

He added that Saudi Arabia has submitted a proposal to the GCC Secretariat and the current presidency to establish sustainable digital connectivity, similar to the region’s power grid, to reinforce digital resilience within a unified and sustainable Gulf framework.

Computing and markets

On energy and computing integration, the minister said Saudi Arabia has made available diverse sites and 14 gigawatts of electrical capacity for data centers serving the Kingdom, the GCC, the wider region, and the world, calling for a sustainable model of cooperation in these centers.

He emphasized the importance of opening markets and harmonizing standards to enable Gulf companies to move from regional to global competitiveness. He noted that the GCC is home to more than 20 unicorn companies and accounts for about 95 percent of venture capital investment in the region, reflecting significant opportunities for entrepreneurship and innovation.

Al-Swaha said the next phase requires the GCC to operate as a unified ecosystem in data, computing, cloud, and artificial intelligence, developing interconnected infrastructure that allows citizens and businesses to efficiently access services across member states. He added that integrating and connecting existing capabilities is key to enhancing the Gulf’s global competitiveness.