Saudi Arabia and UNCTAD ink deal to measure e-commerce and digital economy

14/05/2025 03:53 AST

Saudi Arabia and the UN Trade and Development have signed an agreement aimed at enhancing the formulation of e-commerce and digital economy policies in the Kingdom.

According to the Saudi Press Agency, the agreement will help build a framework in the Kingdom's e-commerce sector by implementing a survey to assess the current situation and disseminating the data in accordance with international best practices.

The agreement was signed by the Kingdom's Vice Minister of Commerce, Eman Al-Mutairi, during the 8th session of the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on E-Commerce and the Digital Economy in Geneva on May 12.

In a separate statement, UNCTAD said that Saudi Arabia has committed $1.4 million to support its work on measuring e-commerce and the digital economy.

UNCTAD has estimated that global e-commerce sales reached over $27 trillion in 2022, based on the latest available data covering businesses in 43 developed and developing economies.

Saudi Arabia's e-commerce sector is also witnessing rapid momentum, with 40,953 businesses registered across the Kingdom by the end of 2024, representing a 10 percent year-on-year rise.

"This partnership with UNCTAD will further solidify the Kingdom's leadership in the digital domain, enabling us to effectively measure and harness the vast economic potential of e-commerce for our businesses, thereby reinforcing our global competitiveness," said Al-Mutairi, who is also the CEO of the Kingdom's National Competitiveness Center.

She further added that the Kingdom is steadfastly advancing its ambitious transformation agenda by positioning itself as a diversified and competitive economy across economic, social and cultural spheres.

UN Trade and Development Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan said that measuring the actual value of e-commerce opportunities remains "a great challenge."

She added: "Under this agreement, we will be able to develop the evidence base needed to understand the current 'state of play' regarding e-commerce in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, but also improve measurement at the global level."

UNCTAD said that the collaboration with Saudi Arabia consists of two tracks - domestic and international.

The domestic track will focus on assessing the degree of digital trade uptake and value of e-commerce transactions in Saudi Arabia - one of the largest economies in the Middle East.

The international track will support the work of a dedicated task group convened by UNCTAD, comprising experts from more than 25 countries and fellow international organizations.

Saudi Arabia's National Competitiveness Center has several partnerships with international organizations to benefit from their practices and experiences in the areas of improving and developing the Kingdom's competitiveness, and UNCTAD is one of its most important partners.

Arab News