Top Arab Cities 2010
By Trends • Jun 1st, 2010While Cairo and Alexandria registered the highest ratio of road accidents among Arab countries, the Reporters Without Borders Report listed Damascus and Aleppo as the two Arab cities that put the highest restrictions on freedom of the press. The war risk was highest in Khartoum.
In order to select the best city in the sector of telecommunications, we included indicators that measure the spread of mobile telephones, Internet and landlines, the availability of the most advanced technologies, traffic, road infrastructure, and air telecommunications infrastructure, based on figures from World Internet Stats Web site and the Tourism Competitiveness Report.
Gulf countries are very well positioned in this sector in view of the substantial development of the communication and technology sectors in this region. It is the fastest growing market in this sector as the volume of spending on information technology in Gulf countries is 50 percent higher than the world average according to Booz & Company.
It seems that the future of Gulf countries in this sector is promising, as governments are keen on pumping billions of dollars into related infrastructure projects. The most recent study from Proleads for research projects expects Arab Gulf countries’ expenditure to reach $5.4 billion in providing goods and services related to IT infrastructure for civil projects currently being executed until 2011.
Dubai ranked first in the telecommunications sector as the Internet dissemination ratio in the U.A.E. reached 60.9 percent and the number of Internet users in the U.A.E. reached 2,922,000 according to World Internet Stats Web site.
In the telecommunications sector’s sub-categories, Dubai and Abu Dhabi shared the first position with best road and air transport infrastructure. They also ranked fourth worldwide in terms of airport equipment and adherence to international standards.
By hosting a number of sports and cultural events, specialized conferences and world exhibitions, Dubai ranked first in the sector of entertainment & culture. It has also positioned itself as an important location on the world tourism map; in addition it has advanced infrastructure, high standard tourism facilities, and entertainment festivals such as the Dubai Shopping Festival and the Dubai Summer Surprises.
