Kuwait city: Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Jasem Albudaiwi affirmed that the GCC countries have worked to keep pace with the rapid developments in the fields of post, communications, and space technologies, amid the successive transformations these sectors are witnessing. "These efforts by the GCC states have resulted in distinguished accomplishments and pioneering successes that reflect their excellence in this field," he said.
According to Saudi Press Agency, these remarks came during Albudaiwi's speech at the 29th Ministerial Committee for Post and Communications meeting, held today in the State of Kuwait. He reviewed the most prominent achievements of the GCC countries in this vital field. "The UAE achieved first place globally in population coverage for 3G and 4G mobile networks, as well as first place globally in the indices for mobile phone usage by individuals and household internet access, according to reports from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The UAE also successfully hosted the 28th Universal Postal Union (UPU) Congress in September of this year, with the participation of 192 countries, an accomplishment reflecting its leading position in this field," he stated.
He added, "Furthermore, the Kingdom of Bahrain ranked fifth globally and third among Arab nations in the 2024 ICT Development Index issued by the ITU, affirming its continuous development in this vital sector. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia achieved first place globally in the 2025 ICT Development Index, in addition to winning membership in the UPU Council of Administration and Investment Council for the 2026-2029 period-an achievement that embodies its effective international presence and pioneering role in developing the postal sector at both regional and global levels."
The Sultanate of Oman secured first place among Arab nations in the 2025 Postal Development Index and also won membership in the UPU Investment Council for the 2026-2029 period. Oman continued to make remarkable progress in international indices, climbing to 22nd globally in the Telecommunication Infrastructure Index-a 26-place jump in just two years. It also ranked 10th globally in the 2024 Open Data Index. The State of Qatar was also classified among the top-performing countries in the 2025 ICT Development Index, achieving a score of 98.4 out of 100, which embodies its continuous development in digital infrastructure.
Furthermore, Qatar Post received prestigious international awards from the UPU during the Dubai 2025 Congress, including the Gold Level award for performance in recognition of its excellence in express mail services, and the Customer Care Award for its distinction in customer service. Additionally, the State of Kuwait achieved fourth place globally in the 2025 ICT Development Index, and its population coverage for 5G and LTE networks reached 100%. This is an accomplishment that confirms the continuous development of the country's telecommunications and technology sector and represents an extension of its efforts to build and strengthen an advanced digital sector that keeps pace with global transformations.
Albudaiwi concluded his speech by stating that today's meeting is filled with important topics that will contribute to achieving greater convergence among the GCC countries. Foremost among these are the conclusions reached by the specialized committees and teams in the fields of post, telecommunications, and space. This is in addition to the efforts being made to develop the regulatory legislation for applications and services provided via the internet, cooperation in the space sector, the GCC-European partnership initiative in the digital economy and innovation, and the latest developments in cooperation with the Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO), which represents a step to solidify the bridges of cooperation with our international partners.