Huawei Day KSA 2021 was held in Riyadh on Nov. 30, bringing together industry leaders, ICT experts, ecosystem partners and consultants to delve into the experience and implementation of digital transformation.

Participants, comprising high-level customers and government officials, also discussed how to solve customers’ core business difficulties and seize digital economy opportunities.

Saudi Arabia is driving government and industry digitalization through robust government policies. Guided by Vision 2030, the country is rolling out ambitious plans and initiatives such as smart government, cloud-first, new energy, and Industry 4.0. ICT, as the key enabler of industry digitalization is accelerating these efforts. Technologies such as 5G, AI, cloud, and optical are vital technologies for digitalization in government, energy, education, and healthcare industries.

Eric Yang, CEO of Huawei in Saudi Arabia, delivered the keynote speech titled “Innovating Nonstop for Faster Digitalization.” He said that Huawei’s commitment is to support Saudi public and private organizations with innovative technologies to enable new business models and deliver superior customer experiences. Huawei’s technologies such as 5G, cloud and digital energy are helping businesses in various verticals such as energy, finance, and the public sector by digitizing their operations, securing their data and, more broadly, promoting national economic development.

Speaking at the event, Dr. Ahmed Hamdan Altheneyan, deputy minister for Future Jobs and Digital Entrepreneurship, Saudi Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, said: “Huawei is a long-term strategic partner for MCIT, for which we are grateful. The company’s support in talent development through Seeds for the Future, the annual ICT Competition and other initiatives have inspired thousands of Saudi youth to pursue careers in the digital field and contributed to the continued digital transformation of our industries.”

Altheneyan and Yang later presented awards to the six winners of the Huawei ICT Competition finals in Saudi Arabia.

Organizations can only embrace digitization if they have the required digital talent. Partnerships with universities and governments to cultivate talents for the future is therefore crucial.