The event, held at Jeddah University, was attended by Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Jalawi, Governor of Jeddah, along with senior representatives from universities, research centers, and professional statistical associations across the Kingdom.

The forum highlighted how the effective use of data and statistics plays a transformative role in achieving the goals of Saudi Vision 2030, fostering transparency, sustainability, and innovation in national development.

Data at the Heart of National Transformation

In his keynote address, Fahad Al-Dossari, President of the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), underscored the importance of building a robust national statistical ecosystem to support decision-making across sectors.

He emphasized that data and statistics form the foundation of strategic development, enabling government bodies and institutions to design efficient, evidence-based policies.

“Statistics are no longer just numbers — they are the language of development, innovation, and transformation,” Al-Dossari said. “Saudi Arabia’s investment in statistical infrastructure strengthens our ability to shape sustainable economic and social growth.”

He added that GASTAT’s initiatives align with Vision 2030’s commitment to digital transformation, smart governance, and capacity building, ensuring that the Kingdom remains at the forefront of global data innovation.

Strengthening Academic and Professional Collaboration

The forum served as a bridge between academia and professional statistical institutions, providing a platform to share knowledge, enhance research quality, and promote collaboration in data science.

Experts, statisticians, and scholars participated in panel discussions exploring advanced statistical products, modern methodologies, and innovative programs aimed at developing qualified national talents.

These discussions highlighted the growing role of universities in shaping a new generation of data professionals equipped with the analytical skills needed for the future economy.

The collaboration between universities and GASTAT is expected to foster a culture of precision, innovation, and global competitiveness in the Kingdom’s research community.

Road to Riyadh: UN World Data Forum 2026

During the event, Al-Dossari announced the launch of the “Road to Riyadh” program — an initiative preparing for the Sixth UN World Data Forum, which Saudi Arabia will host in Riyadh in November 2026.

The program aims to showcase the Kingdom’s global leadership in the field of data, statistics, and digital innovation. Hosting the forum marks a milestone achievement for Saudi Arabia, positioning it as a key player in shaping the international data landscape and advancing the global dialogue on sustainable development.

“The Road to Riyadh program will strengthen global partnerships and highlight the Kingdom’s innovative approach to data governance and knowledge sharing,” Al-Dossari said.

Strategic Partnerships for Future Growth

Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Jalawi witnessed the signing of six cooperation agreements between GASTAT and leading Saudi universities, including King Abdulaziz University, Taif University, King Khalid University, Imam Mohammed bin Saud Islamic University, the Islamic University of Madinah, and the Saudi Society for Statistical Sciences.

These partnerships aim to enhance research collaboration, support statistical education, and promote the development of cutting-edge data systems.

They will also help expand the Kingdom’s pool of skilled statisticians, ensuring sustainable growth and innovation in line with global standards.

The Jeddah forum reaffirmed the Kingdom’s commitment to a knowledge-based economy, where data serves as a powerful tool for innovation and progress.

By integrating academic research, professional expertise, and government strategy, Saudi Arabia is paving the way for a future driven by accurate insights, smart technologies, and informed policymaking.

As the nation prepares for the UN World Data Forum in 2026, Saudi Arabia continues to strengthen its position as a regional and global leader in statistical excellence — ensuring that data remains at the core of its journey toward national transformation and sustainable development.

This pioneering program demonstrates Saudi Arabia’s strong commitment to digital innovation, human capital development, and leadership in advanced technologies, perfectly aligned with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030 and the National Strategy for Data and Artificial Intelligence.

The announcement was made during the prestigious LEARN event in Jeddah, highlighting the Kingdom’s dedication to fostering a skilled national workforce ready to drive digital transformation.

Fully accredited by the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation and the Colleges of Excellence, and supported by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, this diploma ensures that participants receive world-class training that combines rigorous academic knowledge with practical, industry-driven experience.

One of the program’s standout features is its emphasis on accessibility and inclusivity. Trainees can benefit from financial support covering up to 75 percent of training fees through the Human Resources Development Fund, making this transformative opportunity available to a wide range of aspiring professionals.

The curriculum is carefully designed to merge theoretical learning with hands-on projects, allowing participants to develop real-world AI solutions alongside experienced industry partners. This approach ensures that graduates are not only well-versed in technical knowledge but also fully prepared to contribute to major national projects from the very first day.

Each trainee begins the diploma journey with an employment contract, enabling immediate involvement in practical projects and fostering career-ready skills that are highly valued in the rapidly evolving digital landscape. This model exemplifies the Academy’s commitment to producing professionals who are capable, confident, and ready to lead in the fields of AI and digital transformation.

Tariq Al-Shamrani, CEO of the Energy & Water Academy, emphasized the significance of the program: “The launch of this diploma represents the Academy’s pioneering role in equipping the next generation of national talent with cutting-edge skills in AI, data science, and advanced digital technologies.

We are proud to partner with DataVolt and Innovatics to create a program that allows graduates to actively contribute to Saudi Arabia’s most ambitious digital projects from day one.”

Rajit Nanda, CEO of DataVolt, also highlighted the impact of the collaboration: “Our partnership with the Energy & Water Academy and Innovatics combines a strong academic foundation with hands-on business experience, providing Saudi youth with real career pathways in technology. Graduates of this diploma will be instrumental in building AI-powered data centers and advancing the Kingdom’s digital transformation journey.”

The launch of the diploma is timely, reflecting the global trend of accelerated investment in AI, which is projected to contribute over $320 billion to the Middle East economy by 2030.

Saudi Arabia is strategically positioned to capture the largest share of this growth through its vision of a fully integrated digital economy based on knowledge, innovation, and sustainability.

The Energy & Water Academy plans to attract additional industry partners to support the first cohort of 100 trainees, with equal representation of men and women, and training is set to begin in November.

By providing world-class education, financial support, and hands-on experience, this diploma stands as a shining example of Saudi Arabia’s commitment to nurturing talent, advancing technology, and empowering its national workforce to lead the future of digital innovation.

This initiative further strengthens Riyadh and Jeddah as key hubs for technological education and AI-driven development, reinforcing the Kingdom’s position as a global leader in the digital economy while creating exciting career opportunities for Saudi youth in data science, AI, and advanced technology sectors.

Experts fear that in the coming years the need for IT services in India will significantly decrease due to the rise in RPA and Artificial Intelligence.

Over 3 million IT jobs in India will be completely replaced by the Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Automation processes by 2022, which will help IT firms save $100 billion mostly in salaries, according to a report published by Hindustan Times on Wednesday.

One of the most important part of the Indian IT sector is Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO). India provides inexpensive IT services which have driven multiple companies from all across the world to outsource their needs to India. In the recent years, India has seen a phenomenal growth in BPOs, increasing its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product from 1.2% to 5.4%, and its current rate of growth being 28%. With AI, the BPOs are rapidly replaced by Robot Process Automation (RPA) and this is an upcoming challenge to the Indian economy.

RPA is a software technology that can identify the users need and automatically fulfill them without any human involvement. In simpler words, consider RPA as a manager of automated online bots, whose job is to align bots to fulfill the need of the users emulating the human involvement and accelerating the process.

“RPA is a type of software that mimics the activity of a human being in carrying out a task within a process. It can do repetitive stuff more quickly, accurately, and tirelessly than humans, freeing them to do other tasks requiring human strengths such as emotional intelligence, reasoning, judgment, and interaction with the customer’’, said Leslie Willcocks a professor and researcher of Information systems and RPO.

Experts fear that in the coming years the need for IT services in India will significantly decrease due to the rise in RPA and Artificial Intelligence.

According to the World Economic Forum’s survey 2020, it is expected that by 2025 redundant roles will decline from 15.4% of the workforce to 9%. But that’s not it, there’s another side of the emerging professions that will grow from 7.8% to 13.5%. The survey later discovered that by 2025 around 85 million jobs may be displaced and there’s going to be a massive division of labor between humans and machines.

This shift in working trends is going to heavily effect countries like India in the manufacturing and computing department.

An Oxford Economics research suggests that the global stock of robots will multiply and reach up to 20 million just by 2030. The big question is how India will tackle this shift in the market trends?

Further to bring this into perspective, let’s refer to 2020 where 85% of customer service interactions were responded by Chatbots with minimum need of human involvement and majority of the E-commerce platforms have already started to implement Artificial Intelligence to enhance personalization and provide a better user experience. 

India has already started to adopt Artificial Intelligence. Back in January 2021 the Ministry of Statistics took measures to implement AI in order to monitor the economy better by signing up for a $60 million program with World Bank. But the question still remains, how will India continue attracting foreign investments in the world of robots and the loss of 3 million jobs?

Jaafar Siddiqui earned Bachelors in Journalism from the University of Hertfordshire — United Kingdom. He writes for The Milli Chronicle on Business, Politics, and Culture.