Overall spending on information and communications technology (ICT) across the Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa (META) will top $233.8 billion this year, an increase of 3.9% over 2022. That’s according to the latest predictions presented today by International Data Corporation (IDC) as more than 400 senior executives from the region’s most influential technology vendors, telecommunications operators, and IT service providers gathered at The Ritz-Carlton, Dubai International Financial Centre for the 2023 edition of IDC Directions Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa.
IDC
Announcing its regional forecasts for the year ahead, IDC revealed that it expects telecommunications services spending to increase 3.6% year on year (YoY) in 2023 to reach $133.9 billion, with IT spending set to grow 4.3% YoY to $99.9 billion. As the region’s digital economy increasingly takes shape, IDC forecasts that digital transformation spending in the META region will top $48.8 billion in 2023 and accelerate at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16% over the coming years to cross the $74 billion mark in 2026.
IDC sees the drive in these markets to be coming from the digital transformation taking place in the region and that is against a backdrop of drops in spending in other areas. The world’s a big place, and not everywhere is going to experience the proverbial macro-economy in the same way. Depending on where you are sitting, export business opportunities can help businesses stay even while the Americas and Europe face their own challenges.
