In recent news from Saudi Arabia, Riyadh Municipality partnered with
In recent news from Saudi Arabia, Riyadh Municipality partnered with IBM in order to fortify the government with blockchain. This new partnership aims to work out a plan so that the government services and blockchain transactions can be streamlined. The foundations of this partnership lie in the decision made by the Saudi Arabian government to enhance the overall quality of municipal services provided to the customers. The government has also laid out strategies to integrate the new and leading technologies into these Municipal services keeping in mind the program of Saudi Vision 2030.
The program of Saudi Vision 2030 is an agenda that has been laid out for the diversification and economic development of the economy of the country away from oil. It is no secret that oil makes up for almost 30-40 percent of Saudi’s GDP. This agenda was first introduced by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman in 2016. The underlying motive of this agenda is also to develop education, infrastructure, tourism and healthcare in addition to military manufacturing and spending.
IBM, Riyadh Municipality and the tech firm of Elm Company has the support of all the major departments. These three forces together plan to arrange several workshops in order to ascertain which of the services can receive an upgrade from
the use of blockchain. Tarek Zarg El Aioun, who is the Country General Manager of IBM Saudi Arabia shared his belief in the blockchain technology and commented that this technology “has the ability to change the world in the same way [as] the Internet while redefining how business and transactions happen.” He further added “Through the collaboration between Riyadh Municipality, Elm and IBM, we will be able to help the Saudi government reimagine and transform the way in which services are provided to citizens, residents, businesses, and visitors. It is a strategic step towards supporting the objectives of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.”
This initiative on the part of the Saudi Arabian government to integrate the blockchain technology into all its governmental administrative aspects certainly lends a more streamlined vision of the future services availed by customers.