Abu Dhabi

Source: Alittihad Newspaper

The concept of the digital economy, or new economy, has spread since the mid-1990s, and is a combination of digital computing and modern economics. In other words, this general term refers to how traditional economic activities (production, distribution, and trade) are managed through the Internet and World Wide Web technologies. Studies indicate that the digital economy is the focus of the transition from the Third Industrial Revolution, which are the changes that occurred in the late twentieth century with the shift from analogue electronic and mechanical devices to digital technologies, to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which depends on the digital revolution, as technologies today continue to fill… The gap between the physical world and the cyber world.

It is possible to identify three main components of the concept of the digital economy: e-business infrastructure, e-business, and e-commerce in general. According to the World Economic Forum, since 2020, 70% of the global economy has become connected to digital technology, and this trend has grown due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the strong tendency to communicate through the Internet. It is noteworthy that the digital transformation of the economy changes traditional concepts about the structure of companies, and about how consumers obtain goods and services, because the digital economy has the ability to profoundly shape economic interactions between countries, companies, and individuals, which has led to escalating calls for the establishment of national and transnational systems for the economy. Digital. The establishment of the Arab Federation for the Digital Economy was the most prominent translation of these calls.

This union was established under the umbrella of the League of Arab States in 2018, by the Council of Arab Economic Unity, headquartered in the Emirati capital, Abu Dhabi, to bring together the Arab countries and lead them towards the future of the global economy, that is, building advanced and sustainable digital economies in the Arab world that positively affect the quality of life and support… Plans for transformation, financial inclusion, and development of the knowledge, legislative and technological infrastructure… in accordance with the Union’s vision. In this context, the Union is working, with purely personal efforts, to achieve many pioneering initiatives in the digital economic fields, the most prominent of which are the Arab Food Market Initiative, the Arab Education and Training Platform, the One Million Entrepreneurs Initiative, developing and updating Arab digital legislation and laws, and establishing competitive economic blocs. Establishing the “Arab Support Fund”, launching the “Arab Digital Economy” Award, the Arab Artificial Intelligence System Project, the Arab-African Digital Platform, supporting knowledge societies, creating digital platforms to support trade and companies, creating the “Arab Digital Transformation Index”, and establishing partnerships and cooperation with governments. The most notable of which is cooperation with the British Institute of Technology to establish the Arab-Islamic Scientific Research Complex.

Recently, during my personal participation in one of the meetings of the Board of Directors of the Arab Federation for the Digital Economy, I witnessed directly what the Chairman of the Council, Dr. Ali Mohammed Al-Khouri, who is one of the distinguished Emirati competencies, is doing. I sensed the great effort he is making to bring together a group of academics, statesmen and economists. From all Arab countries to achieve the vision of the union. In general, the Arab Federation for the Digital Economy reflects a strong and strategic addition to the efforts and vision of the United Arab Emirates in leading the Arab countries towards a modern and strong economy based on providing a modern digital economic structure that advances Arab societies towards a prosperous and stable future.