UAE and Saudi Firms Plan to Outspend Global Average on Digital Transformation, GSMA Finds

UAE enterprises expect to spend 10.9% of revenue on digital transformation through 2032 and Saudi enterprises 10.7%, against a global average of 9.6%. Across the Middle East and North Africa the average is 9.3%, and companies expect a return of 197% on that spending, compared with 207% globally. AI and 5G together are expected to take 32% of the money.

The survey covered 885 enterprises in ten MENA countries, 423 of them in five GCC states. It forms part of a global study of 6,342 enterprises across 50 countries and ten sectors, carried out between May and July 2026.

The findings suggest that appetite is not the main constraint. Cost of implementation and integration with existing systems were each cited by 41% of MENA respondents as challenges, and only 3% said they faced no implementation problems at all. Over the past two years, 11% postponed some investment and 8% cancelled projects because of regulation, while 15% changed their technology choices and 13% lowered expected returns because of regulatory restrictions. In all, 27% reported a negative effect from their regulatory environment, against 24% globally.

Views of telecoms policy were split. Some 61% of MENA enterprises said current policy supports their transformation, matching the global figure and rising to 70% in the GCC, while 28% said current frameworks hinder them. Among those that see regulation as a challenge, half named licensing and authorisation regimes as a barrier, 43% pointed to data protection, privacy and digital identity compliance, and 42% to sector-specific rules.

Asked what regulators should prioritise over the next three years, 57% named AI and 57% cybersecurity, followed by connectivity networks at 56%. UAE and Qatari firms put regulatory agility first, while Saudi and Moroccan firms favoured faster infrastructure deployment. Some 69% ranked 5G as their most important connectivity network, and 44% said they already use AI in advanced ways, of whom 60% reported a clear positive impact.

The headline figures are not directly comparable with GSMA Intelligence's previous MENA study, launched at MWC25 Doha in November 2025. That study surveyed more than 850 enterprises in eight countries and put average spending at 9.8% of revenue for 2025 to 2030. The full 2026 report is available to registered users.