The Arab States are taking decisive steps to shift technological ambitions into tangible, country-level action.

Leading this charge, the High-Level Digital & AI Policy Leaders Forum recently convened in Doha to accelerate the rollout of comprehensive digital public infrastructure and equitable policy across the region.

Held on 1–2 September 2026, the summit was orchestrated by Ooredoo Group and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in partnership with the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. Organised alongside the GSMA and Women in AI, the forum gathered senior officials and experts to transition the region's technological aspirations into actionable governance.

This gathering marks the next operational phase of the Digital Policy Framework (DPF) for the Arab States. Launched at MWC Doha in November 2025 by the UNDP, Qatar's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, and Ooredoo, this evidence-based framework was designed to help governments construct policies that drive economic growth and social inclusion.

Transitioning from Framework to Implementation

A primary objective of the Doha forum was to equip nations with the tools to assess their digital maturity using the DPF. Over two days, national leaders identified priority reforms and commenced drafting bespoke Digital Policy Roadmaps tailored to their unique contexts.

Discussions tackled vital subjects such as digital public infrastructure, data governance, financial inclusion, and the safe deployment of artificial intelligence.

Hilal Mohammed Al-Khulaifi, Group Chief Legal and Regulatory Officer at Ooredoo, underscored the importance of moving beyond mere technological adoption:

“Digital transformation can create enormous economic and social value for our region, but technology alone is not enough. It requires the right policies, regulatory environment and collaboration between the public and private sectors. The priority now is to move from framework to implementation – understanding where individual markets stand, what needs to change and how we turn policy into tangible progress.”

Biplove Chaudhary, UNDP Technical Representative and Head of the UNDP Qatar Office, explained the mechanics of this regional evolution:

“Digital transformation delivers its greatest impact when connectivity, digital public infrastructure and emerging technologies advance together within an inclusive policy environment. The Digital Policy Framework helps countries identify gaps and prioritise action according to their national contexts. This Forum takes the next step, translating regional ambition into practical country-level implementation, while benefiting from Qatar's leadership in innovation and digital infrastructure.”

Pillars of a Competitive Digital Economy

To navigate modern technological integration, the DPF concentrates on three interconnected structural pillars deemed critical for constructing robust digital economies:

• Networks and connectivity: Ensuring reliable, high-speed access to bridge the digital divide.
• Data and digital public infrastructure: Establishing secure frameworks for data sharing and public service delivery.
• Intelligent systems and applications: Promoting the responsible use of artificial intelligence across crucial sectors like healthcare, education, agriculture, and public services.

The Economic Stakes

The financial implications of digital integration are substantial. Evidence referenced within the DPF highlights massive potential gains for developing nations:

• A 10% increase in fixed broadband penetration can boost Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by up to 1.5% in developing countries.
• Artificial intelligence could contribute an estimated US$21–35 billion annually to GCC GDP when deployed under inclusive, accountable frameworks.

Governing these immense economic opportunities requires collaboration. Dr. Abdelwahab El-Affendi, President of the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, contextualised the forum's necessity:

“This Forum brings knowledge and practice together to address one of our region's defining challenges: harnessing digital technology to strengthen economies, advance human progress and serve society. Success requires balanced governance that enables innovation while managing risk, particularly as AI creates unprecedented opportunities. Through serious collaboration across government, industry and academia, we can turn these opportunities into meaningful, responsible progress.”

By aligning telecommunications leaders like Ooredoo with developmental bodies such as the UNDP, the Arab States are positioning themselves at the forefront of responsible digital acceleration. The journey towards a fully integrated, AI-ready economy is now underway.

The evolution of sustainable infrastructure has reached a defining milestone, proving that mega-scale developments can operate entirely independently of conventional national grids.

The world’s largest integrated off-grid utilities system has entered commercial operation at The Red Sea destination in Saudi Arabia. The milestone follows the signing of the Project Commercial Operation Date (PCOD) between Marafiq Red Sea for Energy Company – an Acwa-led consortium with SPIC Huanghe Hydropower and Saudi Tabreed – and The Red Sea Utilities Company, a subsidiary of Red Sea Global.

Marking the official commencement of a 25-year concession, the agreement confirms that all primary utility networks across the luxury destination are in active commercial service. This represents the first time a giga-project in the Kingdom has brought its entire utilities infrastructure online powered exclusively by renewable energy, without reliance on or support from the national grid. The system now supplies operational hotels, community facilities, the staff village, logistics networks, an electric fleet, and the Red Sea International Airport.

World-Record Solar and Storage Capacity

Continuous energy delivery across the coastal destination is underpinned by a massive standalone generation and storage network. The setup pairs a 340 MWac solar photovoltaic plant with a 1,227 MWh battery energy storage system – the largest off-grid battery installation constructed anywhere in the world. Delivering up to 760,000 MWh of clean electricity annually, the system prevents roughly 600,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year at full capacity. Furthermore, the infrastructure is designed to scale dynamically alongside the destination as future hospitality phases open.

Highlighting the importance of this milestone, Mohammad Abunayyan, Founder and Chairman of Acwa, stated: “The Red Sea project embodies the ambition of Saudi Vision 2030 and the vision of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to deliver pioneering projects that redefine modern infrastructure and reinforce the Kingdom’s position as a global leader. As the world’s largest integrated off-grid utilities system, and the first of its kind at this scale, the project sets a new global benchmark for sustainable development.”

Comprehensive Multi-Utility Network

The concession spans five interconnected utility sectors delivered as a single cohesive platform:

• Potable water production across three seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination plants.
• A municipal sewage treatment plant treating 16,000 cubic metres of wastewater daily to create wetland habitats and irrigate the RSG nursery and Shura Links golf course.
• A centralised waste management centre dedicated to resource recovery and responsible material processing.
• An energy-efficient district cooling infrastructure delivering 32,500 refrigeration tons (RT) to hospitality venues and airport facilities.
• Full charging and support networks for land- and sea-based electric vehicle logistics fleets.

Funded through approximately USD 1.33 billion in senior debt within a total investment of c. USD 1.84 billion, the development demonstrates landmark bankability for pioneer off-grid infrastructure. Engineering, procurement, and construction were completed by EPC contractor SEPCO III (the Shandong Tiejun consortium), achieving 30 million lost-time-injury-free hours in a complex coastal setting. Acwa Operations will manage operations and maintenance over the 25-year concession.

Ecological Protection and Local Industry

Developing utility infrastructure within pristine coastal and marine ecosystems required strict environmental safeguards. All utility packages underwent comprehensive Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) processes, securing permits from the National Center for Environmental Compliance (NCEC), with Marafiq executing ongoing monitoring to protect terrestrial and reef habitats.

Emphasising the environmental philosophy of the project, John Pagano, Group CEO at Red Sea Global, said: “This milestone brings our vision for a new model of regenerative tourism to life at full scale. By operating without a connection to the national grid and powering the destination entirely through renewable energy, we are demonstrating how sustainable infrastructure can support tourism that gives back to the natural environment and communities on which it depends.”

Local content was prioritised throughout construction and continues in operations. Materials were sourced from domestic suppliers wherever viable, with Saudi engineers working across all technical packages. Over the 25-year concession, the partnership will expand domestic expertise and build a resilient local supply chain aligned with Saudi Vision 2030.

The Middle Eastern e-commerce landscape is undergoing a significant transformation.

No longer confined to static product catalogues and traditional online storefronts, retail in the region is rapidly pivoting towards social commerce and interactive live shopping. Capitalising on this behavioural shift, Jeddah-based startup Rwaj has recently raised US$1.2mn (SAR 4.5 million) in a pre-seed funding round. The investment aims to scale the company's live social shopping and auction marketplace across the region, reflecting a broader trend of formalising the social retail economy.

Across Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), independent sellers, boutique brands, and local merchants have already embraced live selling. However, this burgeoning sector has historically operated through highly fragmented channels. Until recently, sellers would showcase their merchandise via social media livestreams, collect orders through direct messages or scattered comment threads, and manually coordinate payments and logistics on separate platforms.

While this grassroots approach to social commerce demonstrates clear consumer demand and high engagement, it introduces substantial friction. The lack of integrated infrastructure often results in security risks for buyers and heavy administrative burdens for sellers. Managing inventory, tracking payments, and dispatching couriers manually is not scalable. The digital retail space has urgently required a robust solution to standardise these interactions, bringing reliability and trust to a sector that heavily relies on real-time product demonstration.

Standardising social commerce

Rwaj, founded in 2024 by Taher Alblowe, was established specifically to build secure, reliable infrastructure around this existing consumer behaviour. By consolidating livestream selling, auction mechanics, digital payments, and shipping into a single application, the platform aims to eliminate the logistical headaches associated with independent social retail.

The start-up is utilising its $1.2 million capital injection to accelerate product development and regional growth, focusing heavily on delivering an Arabic-first bilingual experience tailored to the local demographic. Rather than restricting its marketplace to a specific category of goods, the platform accommodates any product that benefits from live demonstration, from electronics to fashion and collectables.

Rwaj’s integrated system provides several key operational features designed to streamline the sales pipeline:

• Flexible Sales Formats: Sellers can stream live and choose to offer their inventory at fixed prices or run timed auctions where buyers submit bids in real time.

• Secure Payment Escrow: To eliminate the transaction risks associated with informal social commerce, funds are held securely in escrow until the buyer confirms the successful delivery of their item.

• Diverse Payment Integration: The platform supports seamless, immediate checkouts using Mada, Apple Pay, and standard debit or credit cards.

• Automated Logistics: Shipping is handled directly through integrated carriers, completely removing the need for sellers to manually book external couriers or manage tracking numbers.

This deep consolidation of services ensures that neither the buyer nor the seller needs to migrate to a third-party application to finalise a sale.

“We built Rwaj so a seller can go live, sell at a fixed price or by auction, get paid, and ship without leaving the app, and a buyer can purchase or bid knowing their money is protected until the item is in their hands,” said Taher Alblowe, Founder and CEO of Rwaj.

Building a retail community

The ambition behind formalising livestream retail extends beyond simply providing a transactional utility. Rwaj is strategically positioning itself as a social marketplace. The digital ecosystem is designed to foster ongoing, long-term relationships between merchants and consumers. Buyers are actively encouraged to follow their favourite sellers, discover new retail entrepreneurs through the wider community, and consistently return for future scheduled livestreams. This infrastructure gives independent retailers a measurable way to build a loyal audience that persists well beyond any individual broadcast.

The next critical phase of growth for the digital economy in the Middle East will depend on whether these existing social selling behaviours can be permanently migrated onto dedicated, structured platforms. For Rwaj, this means leveraging its GCC-wide seller network as a foundation for broader regional expansion. Furthermore, the platform’s structured payment and shipping integrations provide local sellers with a viable, risk-free pathway to reach an international buyer base, effectively opening up global markets from a smartphone camera.

This pre-seed funding round signals a rapidly maturing market. As interactive shopping transitions from informal social media streams to dedicated, escrow-protected environments, the standard for online retail in the Middle East is being redefined.