Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Wednesday, Oct 01, 2025

Vision 2030 ‘helped Saudi manage Covid impact’

Vision 2030 ‘helped Saudi manage Covid impact’

Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 gave the Kingdom the resilience it needed to navigate through the Covid-19 global pandemic, according to insights given by two top officials.
Dr. Munir Eldesouki, Assistant Minister and Daniah Orkoubi, Chief Economist, at the Kingdom’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, were speaking in recent interviews with Oxford Business Group’s online broadcasting channel, Global Platform.

Digitally enabled through more than a dozen national transformation programs, Vision 2030 allowed the Kingdom to structure and drive a swift response to the pandemic, aimed at curbing its spread and reducing the impact on the economy.

Dr. Eldesouki noted the knock-on effects of the progress made in the Kingdom’s digital drive, which included increasing network capacity by over 30% well before lockdown.

“This was to ensure that citizens and residents could continue to enjoy their digital tools and services without any interruption,” Dr. Eldesouki noted. “It also allowed for continuous access to more than 3500 e-government services and 94% of government agencies were working remotely.”

To mitigate the socio-economic pressure of the pandemic on businesses and citizens, Orkboubi said the government launched a SR220 billion stimulus package, which included a special financing scheme, a lending programme and deferred payment programme to financial guarantees for small to medium-sized enterprises and exemption.

More important, Orkoubi highlighted, was how the government adapted, redefined, and relaxed some regulations to encourage businesses to adopt virtual workplace practices.

“In fact, the labour market is undergoing a major transformation which is paving the way to the introduction of job globalisation in the global workplace,” she said.

Dr.Eldesouki and Orkoubi underlined the effect of several global trends prompted by the pandemic, ranging from a decline in global trade and greater state intervention as a means of rescuing economies, to the acceleration of technology adoption, especially contactless economic systems.

“The pandemic actually acted as a natural catalyst for digital transformation and turned it into a pressing necessity rather than a long-term aspiration,” Dr. Eldesouki told OBG.

Orkoubi said there were also signs that key adjustments made in Saudi Arabia during the pandemic, such as remote working and online shopping, were expected to become part of the “new norm.”

“Clearly many of the changes developed in response to the pandemic in the areas of work, health, education and entertainment are here to stay,” she said.

Marc-André de Blois, OBG’s Director of PR and Video Content, said reforms and initiatives introduced under Vision 2030 before the arrival of Covid-19 had enabled Saudi Arabia to take quick and effective action to contain the virus and mitigate its impact.

“While the competitive cost of oil production and abundant reserves will undoubtedly help to drive a swift recovery, our interviews show that Saudi Arabia’s efforts to diversify its economy and put digital transformation at the heart of new growth are not only well on track, but will take on added importance as the world emerges from lockdown,” he said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
×