Riyadh, September 1, 2022, SPA -- Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Eng. Abdullah Al-Swaha stressed that the sustainable and comprehensive recovery paths and forming new horizons for the world rely on technology and innovation, referring to what the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has adopted of bold and proactive steps to support future and innovation economics, which can be seen in the announcement of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense, and Chairman of the Higher Committee for Research, Development and Innovation, of the National Aspirations and Priorities for Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI), as these aspirations and priorities are: Health and Wellness; Sustainable Environment and Supply of Essential Needs; Energy and Industrial Leadership; and Economies of the Future, and will enhance the Kingdom’s global competitiveness and leadership, in line with the directions of Saudi Vision 2030, and strengthening the Kingdom's position as the largest economy in the region. Al-Swaha’s remarks came during his participation today in the meeting of digital economy ministers under Indonesia’s presidency of the G20 in Bali, with the participation of ICT ministers and experts in group member states. The minister said: The support received by the sectors of technology, innovation and entrepreneurship from the wise leadership has contributed to the pioneering status of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to become a regional hub for technology and innovation in the region, noting that the qualitative growth in the bold capital investments last year by 270%, which exceeds what has been achieved in 2020 and 2019 combined. As for women’s participation, Al-Swaha pointed out that the Saudi Vision 2030 is keen on supporting the Saudi woman as one of the important elements for the development of the homeland, indicating that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has improved in the women empowerment field from 7% in 2017 to over 30% in 2022, revealing that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as being a regional hub for technology and innovation, seeks to train more than 600 women in the Middle East and North Africa, as part of its cooperation with Apple Developer Academy. As for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s efforts in bridging the digital gap, the minister referred to innovative efforts in bridging the digital gap and enhancing green energy projects in NEOM, praising, upon finishing his speech, the outcomes of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s presidency for the G20, which resulted in changing G20 Digital Economy Task Force (DETF) into the Digital Economy Work Group (DEWG), which played an appreciated role in seizing opportunities provided by the digital economy age and increasing development rates and economic growth for G20 countries. --SPA 14:32 LOCAL TIME 11:32 GMT 0011 www.spa.gov.sa/w1779743