ictQATAR's 2011 Qatar's ICT Landscape Report

Qatar’s ICT Landscape
Table of Contents
Introduction 2
Executive Summary 3
Chapter I: Households and Individuals 9
Chapter II: Business 19
Chapter III: Government 27
Chapter IV: Education 33
Chapter V: Healthcare 41
Chapter VI: Tourism and Sports 47
Chapter VII: ICT Workforce 53
Appendix 57
Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Introduction
Over the past several years, the Supreme Council of Information and Communication
Technology (ictQATAR) has been monitoring the overall progress of information and
communication technology (ICT) penetration and utilization among key sectors crucial
to the growth of a knowledge-based economy. A first-ever country-wide, survey-based
ICT study was conducted in 2008 and released in early 2009. Two years later, ictQATAR
commissioned International Data Corporation (IDC) to conduct an in-depth review of the
same key sectors-households and individuals, the government, businesses, healthcare,
education, and tourism and sports, as well as of the ICT job market. This report is a
summary of IDC’s findings on the penetration and usage of ICT.
Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011 outlines numerous areas of progress in ICT penetration and
usage across various sectors in Qatar. Today, the country is better connected than ever,
with ICT providing new means of delivering learning, enhancing business efficiencies,
helping to improve healthcare and government services, and allowing households and
travelers to socialize, access information, and seek entertainment.
This report is based on 16 surveys and 6,455 interviews, which were conducted by IDC
between April and October 2010. In addition, fact-finding activities were also conducted
as part of a secondary research effort to benchmark Qatar’s current performance
against a group of countries across a wide-range of ICT indicators. The countries
selected for international benchmarking are Australia, Bahrain, China, Estonia, India,
Ireland, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia (KSA), Singapore, the UAE, and the United
Kingdom. The rationale for the selection of these countries is outlined in the report
appendix.
2 Measuring the penetration and usage of ICT across varied sectors helps track
progress within the country as well as comparing it with regional and global peers. This
comparative data plays a crucial role in understanding where Qatar stands at present
and how it is progressing toward its goal of transforming itself into a highly connected,
knowledge-driven economy.
This study not only point to the significant progress Qatar has made over a short period
of time, it also outlines the challenges the country faces in realizing its vision of a
diverse economy and a bright future for its people.

Executive Summary
Background It should be noted that improved rates of ownership and
connectivity do not necessarily translate to effective
Qatar has been making significant progress in terms of ICT utilization of ICT. Thus, in spite of the progress made in both
access and use, with digital technology touching the lives penetration and usage, Qatar’s challenge will be to continue
of an increasing number of people within the country. With its momentum in fostering the effective deployment of ICT
a national vision to transform itself into a knowledge-based throughout the country in order to meet its goal of becoming
economy by 2030, Qatar has continued to make significant a knowledge-based economy.
investments in ramping up its national infrastructure as
well as the capacity of its human capital. Analysis of the ICT landscape among Qatar’s major
stakeholders and other key findings from the research
Overall, Qatar’s ICT penetration rates have shown strong conducted in 2010 are summarized below. A more
growth since the previous assessment conducted in 2008. A
detailed analysis is also available in the individual
growing number of the country’s households are embracing
chapters of this report.
the Internet-in 2010, 84 percent had access to the Internet,
compared with 63 percent in 2008. Furthermore, broadband
connectivity in households increased from 41 percent in Households and Individuals
2008 to 70 percent in 2010. The business sector also saw a
strong increase in overall PC penetration, growing from 67 • In 2010, ICT penetration rates among Qatari households
percent in 2008 to 76 percent in 2010. increased across all basic ICT infrastructure areas,
including fixed telephone lines, personal computers,
Beyond households and businesses, there is also high the Internet, and broadband connectivity. Qatar is also
penetration of PCs, mobile phones, the Internet, and seeing positive momentum among individuals in the
broadband connectivity among government organizations, ownership of mobile phones and personal computers,
schools, universities, and tourism facilities in the country. and in Internet access.
Qatar’s growing ICT penetration rates have contributed to • Broadband penetration is enabling many individuals
the country’s favorable placement in various comparative within Qatar to access emerging Internet technologies
international indices. Qatar ranks 17th out of 139 nations such as video conferencing, video streaming, and large-
in the Global Competitiveness Index produced by the file-sharing solutions. However, as these technologies
World Economic Forum (WEF), and 30th out of 133 national
require higher Internet throughput levels, judicious
economies within the Networked Readiness Index, which 5
evaluation and monitoring of available bandwidth will
is produced by the WEF in cooperation with the INSEAD,
the international business school. Also, the country ranks be necessary in order to evaluate requirements for
in the upper third of the UN E-Government Development additional investment in infrastructure. For example,
Index and the Ease of Doing Business Index, which not at a broadband speed of 256 Kbps, downloading a
only evaluate the spread and use of ICT, but also explicitly DVD-quality movie of 4 GB would take nearly 35 hours
consider the roles played by major stakeholders, such as to complete, compared with a download time of
individuals, businesses, and governments. slightly over five minutes with a broadband connection
speed of 100 Mbps.
Table 1: Qatar’s Ranking on Global ICT-Related Indices
Arab
Index Reference World Rank
Rank
The Networked Readiness Index 2009–2010 WEF and INSEAD, Global Information Technology Report 2009–2010 30 (out of 133) 3
Global Competitiveness Index 2010–2011 WEF, Global Competitiveness Report 2010–2011 17 (out of 139) 1
E-Government Development Index 2010 United Nations, E-Government Survey 2010 62 (out of 183) 6
Knowledge Economy Index 2009 World Bank, Knowledge for Development program 44 (out of 146) 1
Ease of Doing Business Index 2010 IFC and World Bank 2010, Doing Business report 50 (out of 183) 4
Global Innovation Index 2009–2010 INSEAD and Confederation of Indian Industry, Global Innovation 35 (out of 132) 3
Index Report 2009–2010
ITU ICT Development Index 2008 International Telecommunication Union, Measuring the Information 45 (out 159) 3
Society 2010
Sources: World Economic Forum (WEF), INSEAD Business School, United Nations (UN), World Bank (WB), International Telecommunication Union (ITU), International Data Corporation
(IDC).

• While households and individuals in Qatar are making Education
greater and more diverse use of ICT, the transient labor
population, females, and the elderly appear to have • Access to PCs within K–12 schools in Qatar continues to
relatively lower levels of access to PCs and the Internet increase, with the average number of PCs installed per
than the mainstream population. hundred students rising from 12.8 in 2008 to 15.5 in 2010.
Nonetheless, schools in Qatar rank within the bottom half
Business among countries identified for benchmarking, ahead only
of its regional peers Oman and Jordan.
• The increased pervasiveness of ICT is visible in the
business sector. Whether motivated to gain a competitive • Internet penetration is also growing; as of 2010, 98
edge or reacting to competitive forces, the business percent of K–12 schools were connected to the Internet,
sector in Qatar witnessed increased penetration of PCs, up from 73 percent in 2008. In addition, 93 percent of
Internet, broadband connectivity, local area networks, schools were equipped with a broadband connection in
intranets, extranets, and corporate websites in 2010. 2010, significantly higher than the 59 percent recorded
Notwithstanding this growth, business entities in Qatar in 2008. This growth has positively impacted Qatar’s
still trail regional and international benchmark countries relative standing amongst its peers. At present, Qatar
and thus need to further ramp up ICT penetration rates. ranks within the upper half of countries identified for
benchmarking.
• Moving forward, any further increase in ICT penetration
levels for the business sector can only be achieved • There is a disparity between schools’ ownership of
by improving utilization among small businesses (i.e. various interactive learning devices and teachers’ use of
companies with fewer than 10 employees). These entities these tools for educational purposes. The current usage-
have fallen behind their larger-sized counterparts in to-ownership ratios for interactive learning devices
integrating ICT into their activities. The sheer number such as data projectors (0.65), interactive white boards
of small businesses in Qatar (i.e., 72 percent of all (0.64), video players (0.41), audio/video conferencing
private sector companies) has a strong impact on ICT (0.26), digital still cameras (0.26), digital video cameras
penetration rates within the private sector. (0.22), and mobile phones/PDAs (0.20) indicate there is
an opportunity to further improve the utilization of digital
6 Government tools for learning in Qatar.
• The government sector is leading the way compared • Within higher education institutions, nearly 100 percent
to other sectors in Qatar, with strong penetration of educators and students have access to PCs for
levels in terms of PC, Internet connectivity, broadband educational or personal purposes. In addition, almost
connectivity, LAN connectivity, and organizational all university educators and 95 percent of students also
web presence. In 2010, all core government ministries, have access to the Internet within their universities.
councils, and authorities in the country were utilizing
PCs, broadband Internet, and LAN network connectivity, Healthcare
as well as maintaining dedicated websites.
• Access to basic ICT infrastructure such as PCs and
• Skills development is another area that is witnessing the Internet within the healthcare sector in Qatar
progress. As of 2010, 61 percent of government is widespread. Nearly 98 percent of healthcare
employees have received ICT training, with nearly one- professionals access PCs and 97 percent utilize the
quarter of those employees having received relevant Internet within the home or workplace.
training within the past 12 months.
• While individual ICT penetration rates in the healthcare
• Current awareness and usage levels of Qatar’s sector are high, institutional ownership of electronic
e-Government portal-Hukoomi-indicate that it has not yet medical record systems is just beginning to grow. As
been fully embraced by residents. At present, two-thirds of 2010, the electronic storage of patient data is used
of the mainstream population is aware of government in 49 percent of health organizations. By comparison,
services available online, but only one-quarter of indicators from the European Commission show that
residents have ever used them. Opportunities exist to countries such as Norway (98 percent), Estonia (98
further ramp up awareness and usage of the Hukoomi percent), the United Kingdom (95 percent), and Slovenia
portal through enhanced marketing efforts. (86 percent) are leading the way in terms of the
electronic recording and storage of individual patient
data.

• Individuals in Qatar have increased access to various specialized ICT skills. As of 2010, approximately 90
e-Health services, as the penetration of Internet- percent of private sector enterprises in Qatar maintained
connected PCs among individuals in the mainstream at least one permanent ICT employee within their
population rose by 19 percentage points to reach 82 organizations. While a typical private sector company
percent in 2010. Thirty-six percent of the mainstream employs 6.7 ICT staff, on the whole, IT departments are
population actively searched for healthcare-related noticeably understaffed with an average of 7.9 ICT-
information online in 2010. related positions remaining vacant.
Tourism and Sports • More than 5 percent of private companies are

currently looking to recruit ICT staff with general skills
• Nearly all tourism and sports establishments in Qatar in application development or software engineering,
currently maintain at least one PC, while 98 percent Internet and networking, databases, operating systems,
have broadband Internet connectivity within their email/groupware, enterprise resource management
organizations. However, in spite of the fact that a large (ERP), and customer relationship management (CRM).
number of visitors are business travelers and thus highly
dependent on the Internet, only two-thirds of tourism Looking Ahead
and sports establishments in the country currently offer
Internet access to their guests or customers. While there are numerous areas of progress in terms of
overall ICT penetration and usage in Qatar, the country must
• A web presence is now commonplace for establishments further accelerate its efforts in order to truly integrate the
in Qatar’s tourism sector. In 2010, approximately 80 use of ICT among individuals and institutions in the country.
percent of organizations in the sector maintained a This is becoming more crucial, as Qatar is expected to see
website and 70 percent provided customers with the further growth in its total population over the coming years
option to make online queries. Still, only 15 percent of due to urban development, large-scale investment projects,
those websites currently allow customers to make online and rising government expenditure.
transactions.
Qatar has the ability to leverage the three fundamental
ICT Workforce characteristics of ICT: its pervasiveness or ability to spread
across all economic sectors; its continuous evolution or
7
• By 2009, an estimated 20,000 ICT staff were employed ability to constantly improve over time; and its linkage
by Qatar’s private sector, representing 1.6 percent of the with innovation or ability to facilitate new approaches and
entire workforce in the country. This number is expected solutions.
to increase to approximately 24,000 individuals by the end
of 2011. Along with the cooperation and support of other public- and
private-sector entities, ictQATAR will spearhead the efforts
• As the ICT readiness among those actively employed to build a world-class ICT market and society to support
in Qatar grows and evolves, so does the need for Qatar’s social, cultural, and economic goals.

Households and
Individuals
Background Key Findings
Qatar has witnessed a strong rate of population growth • In 2010, ICT penetration rates among Qatari
over recent years. According to the Qatar Statistics households increased across all basic ICT
Authority (QSA) census results, Qatar’s total population has infrastructure areas, including fixed telephone lines,
increased more than two-fold since 2004 to an estimated personal computers, the Internet, and broadband
1.7 million in 2010. connectivity. Qatar is also seeing positive momentum
among individuals in the ownership of mobile phones
Figure 1: Total Population of Qatar (2004–2010) and personal computers, and in Internet access.
Percentage of the Population • Broadband penetration is enabling many individuals

1.6 M 1.7 M within Qatar to access emerging Internet
Males Females 1.5 M
23% 24% technologies such as video conferencing, video
1.2 M
1.0 M
1.1 M
25%
23% streaming, and large-file-sharing solutions. However,
0.74 M
30%
28% as these technologies require higher Internet
33%
74%
77% 77% 76%
throughput levels, judicious evaluation and monitoring
70% 72%
67% of available bandwidth will be necessary in order to
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
evaluate requirements for additional investment in
infrastructure. For example, at a broadband speed of
256 Kbps, downloading a DVD-quality movie of 4 GB
Sources: QSA mid-year population estimate (2009) and census results (2010).
would take nearly 35 hours to complete, compared
A demographic characteristic that Qatar shares with other with a download time of slightly over five minutes
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, such as the with a broadband connection speed of 100 Mbps.
United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, and Kuwait, is its • While households and individuals in Qatar are making
large base of transient workers, who are mainly laborers greater and more diverse use of ICT, the transient
working in the construction sector. Their number increases labor population, females, and the elderly appear to
or decreases from year to year depending on construction have relatively lower levels of access to PCs and the
booms and slumps, and, accordingly, they affect Qatar’s Internet than the mainstream population.
total population figures. 11
Because of the complex and fluctuating nature of the

population, two values are presented for major ICT Digital Devices in Households
indicators: one using the total population figure, which
is standard global practice; and the other excluding the Mobile phones, televisions, satellite antennae, and radios
transient labor population (referred to in this document are widespread among households in Qatar. On average,
as the “mainstream population”). It is important to note each household in Qatar owns 3.9 mobile phones, 1.7
that figures based on households are not impacted by television sets, 1.3 satellite antennae, and 0.7 radios.
the presence of transient laborers, who live in temporary
housing. Increased appreciation of these devices is positively
impacting ownership rates among the country’s households.
In order to assess ICT penetration and usage levels among For instance, mobile phone penetration within Qatar’s
households and individuals1, interviews were conducted households increased in 2010, with 99 percent of Qatar’s
with 1,400 Qatari nationals and expatriates as well as 300 households now equipped with at least one mobile phone,
individuals from the transient labor force. up from 98 percent in 2008. In addition, almost 95 percent of
households now have at least one television, up from about
90 percent in 2008.
1 This corresponds to individuals 18+ years of age who have resided in Qatar for a period of at least six months.

Figure 2: Household Penetration Rates for Various Devices Figure 4: Personal Computer Penetration among Households-
International Benchmark
Percentage of Households
99% 95% Percentage of Households
87%
48%
89%
Devices Mobile Phone Television Satellite Antenna Radio 81% 80%
75% 74% 74%
Average Number of 71% 73%
Devices in a 3.9 1.7 1.3 0.7
Household
48%
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1,400. 39% 39%
35% 32%
Fixed Telephones in Households

Qatar’s fixed line penetration rate bucked the global 4%
trend by further expanding in 2010. Penetration among
households increased from 83 percent in 2008 to 85 percent
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdom
Singapore
Australia
EU-15
UAE
Ireland
KSA
Jordan
Oman
Kuwait
China
India
in 2010. This comes partly as a result of the country’s
rapid population growth. Recently published figures from
the QSA census indicate that household units among the
mainstream population have grown by 44 percent since
2004 to reach nearly 147,000.
Figure 3: Household Fixed Phone Penetration Rates Sources: Qatar: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008),
n=1,400 (2010).
All other countries: ITU, World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database 2009; Estonia,
Percentage of Households Ireland, United Kingdom, and EU-15, data as of 2009; other data as of 2008.
12
83% 85% Internet and Broadband Connectivity in
Households
A growing number of households in Qatar are embracing
2008 2010 the Internet. In 2010, 84 percent of households had access
to the Internet, compared to 63 percent in 2008. This places
Qatar in the first quartile of the regional and worldwide
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008), n=1,400 countries used for benchmarking based on the latest
(2010). available data.
Access to Computers in Households

Household-level PC2 penetration continues to increase in
Qatar, from 71 percent in 2008 to 89 percent in 2010. This
places Qatar in the first quartile among countries selected
for benchmarking.
2 Includes both desktop and laptop computers.

Figure 5: Household Internet Penetration-International Figure 6: Household Broadband Penetration-International
Benchmark Benchmark
Percentage of Households Percentage of Households
100% 100%
84% 94%
77%
75%
68% 67% 74%
63% 63% 70% 71%
68%
48%
41%
41%
29% 29%
22%
18%
13%
14%
3% 4%
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
Singapore
UAE
Bahrain
United Kingdom
Estonia
Australia
China
KSA
Jordan
India
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdom
UAE
EU-15
Ireland
Estonia
Bahrain
KSA
Oman
China
Jordan
India
Sources: Qatar: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008), Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar. 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008), n=1,400
n=1,400 (2010). (2010).
All other countries: ITU, World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database 2009; Estonia, All other countries: Saïd Business School, Oxford University, Cisco Third Annual Broadband
Ireland, United Kingdom, and EU-15, data as of 2009; other data as of 2008. Study 2010.
13
Furthermore, broadband connections3 in Qatar have also The current broadband Internet threshold level of 256
increased, from 41 percent of households in 2008 to 70 Kbps is likely to become increasingly insufficient to
percent in 2010. This ranks Qatar in the middle of the cater to the bandwidth requirements for emerging
countries selected for benchmarking purposes. Internet technologies, such as video conferencing, video
streaming, and large-file-sharing. For example, at 256 Kbps,
downloading a DVD-quality movie of 4 GB would take
nearly 35 hours to complete, compared to a download time
of slightly over 5 minutes at a broadband connection speed
of 100 Mbps. In Qatar, service providers are continuously
upgrading their broadband Internet service portfolio to
account for increasing demand for higher connectivity
speeds.
Table 1: Time Needed to Download Content at Different Download Speeds
Connection Speed 256 Kbps broadband 2 Mbps broadband 10 Mbps broadband 100 Mbps broadband
Content Type
Google home page (160 KB) 00:00:05 00:00:01 00:00:00 00:00:00
Music track (5 MB) 00:02:36 00:00:20 00:00:04 00:00:00
Video clip (20 MB) 00:10:25 00:01:20 00:00:16 00:00:02
CD/low-quality movie (700 MB) 06:04:35 00:46:40 00:09:20 00:00:56
DVD/high-quality movie (4 GB) 34:43:20 04:26:40 00:53:20 00:05:20
Source: ITU calculation, speeds are rounded values in hours, minutes, and seconds and represent time required to download listed types of digital content.
3 Internet connections with minimum speeds of 256 Kbps as per ITU definition.

Mobile Phones among Individuals Figure 9: Mobile Phone Penetration Rates by Age Group
Mobile phone ownership continued to grow in Qatar in

Percentage of Individuals
2010, with overall penetration increasing 6 percentage
points from 2008 to reach almost full saturation, or 99 99% 99% 98% 99% 97%
percent of individuals.
The use of prepaid mobile services continues to
significantly outstrip that of postpaid services in Qatar.
This is because nearly all members of the transient labor
Less than 20 20–29 years 30–39 years 40–49 years More than 50
force choose to use prepaid mobile services. Data from years years
national telecommunication operators confirms this: As of
September 2010, the total number of prepaid mobile phone
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1400.
subscriptions in the country stood at 2.4 million, while
postpaid mobile phone subscriptions totaled nearly 306,000.
As such, prepaid accounts make up nearly 89 percent of all Personal Computer Penetration among
subscriptions in the country. Individuals
Figure 7: Mobile Phone Penetration Rates A vital indicator on the state of ICT is the number of
computers available for use by individuals. In Qatar, the PC
Percentage of Individuals penetration rates across the mainstream population stood
at 85 percent in 2010, up from 54 percent in 2008.
97% 99% 94% 99%
2008 However, when considering the overall individual

2010
population (including the transient labor force), computer
penetration in 2010 stood at 72 percent, a substantial
increase from 32 percent in 2008. The gap between
Mainstream Population Overall Population
(Excluding Transient Labor Force) (Including Transient Labor Force)
penetration rates of the overall and mainstream populations
is due to the significantly lower rates of PC access among
the transient labor force. Only 12 percent of laborers
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008), n=1,700 (2010).
reported having access to PCs in 2010.
14
In terms of mobile phone penetration among the
mainstream population, almost all males (99 percent) and Figure 10: Personal Computer Penetration Rates
females (97 percent) have mobile phones. In addition,
ownership consistently ranges in the high 90 percent rates Percentage of Individuals
across various age groups.
85%
Figure 8: Mobile Phone Penetration Rates by Gender 72% 2008
54%
32% 2010
99% 99% Mainstream Population Overall Population

(Excluding Transient Labor Force) (Including Transient Labor Force)
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008), n=1,700
(2010).
Male Female
Nonetheless, in relation to the latest available data from
other countries, Qatar’s PC penetration figures rank in
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1400. the upper third of the regional and international nations
selected for benchmarking.

Figure 11: Personal Computer Penetration among the Total Figure 13: Personal Computer Penetration Rates by Age Group
Population-International Benchmark
97%
87% 85% 83%
66%
77%
74%
72%
68%
58% years years
32% Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1,400.

33%
26%
Internet Connectivity among Individuals
17%
Internet access4 is becoming increasingly commonplace,
7% 6% with penetration of the overall population increasing from
3%
38 percent in 2008 to 69 percent in 2010. When viewed
exclusively through the lens of the mainstream population,
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdom
Bahrain
KSA
Ireland
UAE
Estonia
Oman
Jordan
China
India
Internet penetration rates increased 19 percentage points
since 2008 to reach 82 percent in 2010. Again, the disparity
between the overall and mainstream penetration rates can
be attributed to lower rates within the transient labor force,
with only 8 percent of that segment of the population having
access to the Internet in 2010.
Sources: Qatar: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008),
n=1,700 (2010). Figure 14: Internet Penetration Rates
All other countries: World Economic Forum, Global Information Technology Report 2009-
2010; Ireland, China, UAE, and United Kingdom, data as of 2006; India and Oman, data as
of 2007; Estonia, Bahrain, KSA, and Jordan, data as of 2009. Percentage of Individuals
15
Within the mainstream population, the PC penetration rate 82% 2008
69%
is slightly higher for males (86 percent) than it is for females 63%
2010
(81 percent). It is also clear that PC penetration in Qatar 38%
progressively decreases among older age groups.

Mainstream Population Overall Population
Figure 12: Personal Computer Penetration Rates by Gender (Excluding Transient Labor Force) (Including Transient Labor Force)
Percentage of Individuals Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008), n=1,700
(2010).
86% 81%
From a regional and international perspective, the situation
in Qatar remains positive, with the country ranking in the
upper half of the benchmark countries identified.
Male Female
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1,400.
4 Connectivity through either fixed line or mobile device.

Figure 15: Internet Penetration among Individuals-International Figure 17: Internet Penetration Rates by Age Group
Benchmark
96%
83% 82% 82%
64%
84% 82% 82%

72%
69% years years
67%

43%
38% 38%
29% 28%
Location of Internet Use and Online Activities
Performed by Individuals
5%
Individuals in Qatar predominantly access the Internet from
their homes (94 percent), followed by the workplace (62
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdon
Bahrain
UAE
Estonia
Ireland
Oman
KSA
China
Jordan
India percent). More than half connect via mobile telephones (57
percent), or via another person’s home or workplace (54
percent).
Table 2: Location of Internet Use among Individuals
Sources: Qatar: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=800 (2008),
Percentage
n=1,700 (2010). Access Point of
All other countries: ITU, World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database 2009, data as Individuals
of 2008.
Home 94%
16
Within the mainstream population, females have lower Workplace 62%
Internet penetration rates than males and older age groups
have lower Internet penetration than younger age groups. Mobile phone 57%
As of 2010, Internet penetration rates stood at 78 percent Another person’s home or workplace 54%
for females, compared with 84 percent for males. The rates Commercial Internet access facility (such
also steadily decrease among older age groups, ranging as Internet cafés) 43%
from 96 percent for those under 20 years of age to 64
percent for those over 50 years of age. Community Internet access facility (such
as iParks) 42%
Figure 16: Internet Penetration Rates by Gender Other mobile devices (such as smart-
phones and PDAs) 30%
Place of education 25%
84% 78% Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1,400.
The Internet has become a critical tool in the digital

economy for carrying out various day-to-day activities.
Male Female It facilitates new ways of socializing, accessing
information, performing financial transactions, and seeking
entertainment. Over the past 12 months, the most common
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1400. tasks performed by individuals in Qatar on the Internet
included sending and receiving emails (93 percent of
individuals); downloading movies/images/music or watching

television or video (65 percent); obtaining information about
goods and services (51 percent); finding and installing
software (41 percent); and reading online newspapers or
magazines (42 percent).
While a lower percentage of individuals sought information

from government websites (24 percent) and utilized online
banking services (22 percent) in 2010, these figures have
nonetheless increased considerably from the 18 percent
and 7 percent, respectively, reported in 2008.
Figure 18: Tasks Performed on the Internet by Individuals in

Qatar
Sending and receiving emails 93%
Downloading movies, images, music, watching TV or video 65%
Getting information about goods or services 51%
Finding, downloading, and installing software 42%
Reading or downloading online newspapers or magazines 41%
Playing or downloading video games or computer games 36%
Education and learning activities 30%
Getting information from governmen organizations 24%
Online banking 22%
Interacting with government organizations 16%
Purchase or place orders for goods and services 15% 17
Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1,143 (individuals with Internet
connection).

Business
Background
There are more than 24,000 private businesses operating Key Findings
in Qatar, employing nearly 760,000 people as stated by the
national statistics authority. • Qatar’s business sector witnessed increased
penetration of PCs, Internet, broadband connectivity,
Figure 1: Distribution of Private Establishments and Employees local area networks, intranets, extranets, and
by Size corporate websites in 2010. Notwithstanding this
growth, business entities in Qatar still trail regional
72% and international benchmark countries and thus need
Establishments 52% to further ramp up ICT penetration rates.
Employees 24% 20% 19%
8% 3% 1% • Moving forward, increase in ICT penetration levels for
Small Medium Large Very Large
the business sector can be achieved by significantly
(1-9 employees) (10–99 employees) (100–499 employees) (500+employees) improving utilization rates among small businesses
Total number of 17,351 5,724 742 220
(i.e., companies with fewer than 10 employees).
establishments These entities have fallen behind their larger-sized
Total number of 63,126 155,374 146,441 394,786 counterparts in integrating ICT into their activities.
employees
The sheer number of small businesses in Qatar (i.e.,
72 percent of all private sector companies) has a
Source: QSA, Bulletin of Establishments Census (2008). strong impact on ICT penetration rates within the
private sector.
Small businesses currently represent 72 percent of the
total number of private entities in Qatar, but only employ 8
percent of the entire private sector workforce. At the other Figure 2: PC Penetration Rate
end of the scale, very large businesses employ 52 percent
of the private sector workforce, but represent less than 1 Percentage of Businesses
percent of the number of companies operating in the private
sector. 76%
67%
21
Because small businesses account for such a large
percentage of the total number of private sector entities in
the country, the data on ICT penetration and use presented 2008 2010
in this chapter relies heavily on the relative rates of ICT
uptake among these businesses.
Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594 (2010).
In order to provide a picture of the current state of ICT in
the business sector, interviews were conducted with senior However, small businesses clearly do not have the same
IT decision makers at 594 organizations registered and capacity and maturity as larger businesses to embrace ICT
running operations in Qatar. for competitive advantage and differentiation. For instance,
PC penetration within the small business segment stood
Access to Computers at 65 percent in 2010, while each of the larger business
segments had almost full penetration.
In order to provide a business environment that attracts
talent and allows investors to establish operations in the It is important to note that the sheer number of small
country, Qatar needs to ensure the availability of requisite businesses has a strong impact on overall penetration
ICT infrastructure, foster a forward-looking business rates. As such, further growth in Qatar’s PC penetration
culture, and provide conditions for existing talent to in the future can only be realized by further increasing
effectively leverage technology. ownership levels among the country’s small businesses.
To this extent, a key highlight within the business sector in

Qatar is the strong increase in the overall PC penetration,
which grew from 67 percent in 2008 to 76 percent in 2010.
At the individual level, 36 percent of employees within
businesses in Qatar have access to computers.

Figure 3: PC Penetration Rate by Business Size Internet and Broadband Connectivity in
Businesses
Percentage of Businesses
Qatar is fully committed to developing its broadband
100% 100% 100%
Internet capacity to enable businesses to compete on a
65% global scale. Internet penetration rates among business
establishments in 2010 provide encouraging signs of
improvement. Currently, 60 percent of all businesses in
Small Medium-sized Large Very Large Qatar are connected to the Internet, up from 50 percent in
(1-9 employees) (10-99 employees) (100-499 employees) (500+employees)
2008. On an individual level, one-third of people employed
within businesses have access to the Internet at the
Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=594. workplace.
Despite the strong rise recorded in PC penetration, Qatar Figure 5: Internet Penetration
still trails the regional and international benchmark
countries, and thus needs to further ramp up its efforts in Percentage of Businesses
order to catch up with its GCC peers, Saudi Arabia and the
UAE, as well as countries such as Ireland, Estonia, and the
United Kingdom. 60%
50%
Figure 4: PC Penetration-International Benchmark

2008 2010
98% 97% 97% Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594 (2010).
95% 95%
As with the uptake of PCs, there is a wide disparity in

78%
76% Internet penetration across segments within the wider
22 67% business sector. As of 2010, small businesses have a
substantially lower Internet penetration rate (46 percent)
than medium-sized businesses (89 percent), large
businesses (97 percent), and very large businesses (100
percent).
Figure 6: Internet Penetration Rate by Business Size
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
Ireland
Estonia
UAE
EU-15
United Kingdom
Saudi Arabia
97% 100%
89%
46%
Small Medium-sized Large Very Large

Sources: Qatar: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594
(2010).
All other countries: ITU, World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database 2009; Ireland, Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=594.
Estonia, United Kingdom, and EU-15, data as of 2009; UAE and Saudi Arabia, data as of
2008.
Internet penetration rates in the business sector
currently lag behind those of most benchmark countries.
Decreasing the wide disparity in Internet access between
small businesses and other companies will be critical to
maintaining growth over the coming years.

Figure 7: Internet Penetration-International Benchmark However, growth has been uneven, with broadband
penetration of the small business segment standing at just
Percentage of Businesses with Internet
45 percent in 2010 compared with rates of more than 85
percent for large and very large businesses.
96% 96% 95% 94%

Figure 9: Broadband Penetration Rate by Business Size
92%
60% 97% 97%
59% 85%
50%
45%

Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=594.

EU-15
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
Ireland
Estonia
United Kingdom
UAE
Saudi Arabia
When compared with regional and international benchmark

countries, Qatar’s business sector appears to have further
room to grow in terms of broadband access. At present,
businesses in the country rank in the lowest quartile of the
benchmark countries.
Sources: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594 (2010). Figure 10: Broadband Penetration-International Benchmark
All other countries: ITU, World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database 2009; Ireland,
Estonia, United Kingdom, and EU-15, data as of 2009; UAE and Saudi Arabia, data as of
2008. Percentage of Businesses
There is a clear move away from older Internet technology 23

in Qatar. In 2010, only 4 percent of businesses were still 94%
using dial-up connections, down from 10 percent in 2008. 88% 87% 86% 83%
This is further supported by the continued increase in 79%
ADSL subscriptions among all businesses in Qatar, with

penetration rates up from 39 percent in 2008 to 52 percent in 58%
2010.
38%
The same trend previously observed in terms of PCs and
Internet connectivity is also visible in the penetration
of broadband Internet in Qatar. In 2010, 58 percent of
9%
businesses were equipped with a broadband connection,
up from 38 percent in 2008.
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
Australia
Estonia
United Kingdom
EU-15
Ireland
UAE
Jordan
Figure 8: Broadband Internet Penetration
58%
38% Sources: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594 (2010).
All other countries: ITU, World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database 2009; Ireland,
Estonia, Jordan, United Kingdom, and EU-15, data as of 2009; UAE data as of 2008;
Australia data as of 2007.
2008 2010
Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594 (2010).

Broadband Internet penetration among Qatari businesses Figure 12: Network Connectivity Penetration Rates
can only truly reach the same rates achieved by its peers
internationally by further driving connectivity among small Percentage of Businesses
businesses in the country. Efforts to encourage Internet
usage among these entities should directly address
their specific concerns, including perceived high cost of 2008 2010
services, lack of understanding of the potential benefits of 46%
23%
broadband connectivity, and lack of technical resources. 8%
15%
5% 7%
Service quality and pricing levels are expected to further LAN Intranet Extranet
improve within Qatar in the future, with the anticipated
entry of an alternative broadband service provider into the
market. Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594 (2010).
Internet Activities Performed by Businesses Network connectivity in Qatar is currently heavily skewed
toward larger enterprises, with rates typically increasing
More than half of businesses currently access the Internet with company size. At present, the small business segment
for email. At 40 percent, searching for business-related trails larger business entities in the implementation of LAN,
information is the second most popular Internet activity intranet, and extranet technologies.
undertaken by businesses. Overall, the use of the Internet
to interact with government organizations ranks as the third Figure 13: Network Connectivity Penetration Rate by Business
most popular activity, cited by 19 percent of businesses. Size
In addition, 15 percent of companies currently conduct

business transactions with other organizations online; 13
percent use the Internet to provide customer support; and 94%
11 percent perform online banking or receive orders for

goods and services.
LAN
69%
Figure 11: Use of the Internet for Various Business Activities Intranet 66%
24 60%
Extranet
38%
33%
Sending or receiving emails 55%
27% 28%
Searching for business-related information 40%
13% 15%
Interacting with government organizations 19%
Placing orders/making purchases online 15% 0% 0%
Providing customer service and support 13% Small Medium Large Very Large
(1-9 employees) (10-99 employees) (100-499 employees) (500+ employees)
Performing online/Internet banking 11%
Receiving orders for goods and services 11%
Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=594. Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=358.
Qatar’s current network connectivity rates in the business

Network Connectivity sector are consistently lower than the average in most of
Ubiquitous access to information has driven businesses to the regional and international benchmark countries.
adopt local area networks (LANs), intranets, and extranets.
The percentage of businesses connected to a LAN, an
intranet, or an extranet has increased since 2008 to 46
percent, 15 percent, and 7 percent, respectively, as of 2010.

Figure 14: Network Connectivity Penetration-International Figure 15: Business Web Presence
Benchmark
1%
8% Website available in Arabic
only
LAN 10%
80% Website available in Arabic and
Intranet at least one other language
67% 65% Website available in a language

Extranet
other than Arabic
81%
49% 50% Do not have a website

46%
43%
24% 25% 25% 25%

23%
15% 14% 14% Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=594.
8%
7%
5%
Similarly, business sector penetration of websites is highly
Qatar 2010 Qatar 2008 Ireland Estonia UAE UK
skewed toward larger enterprises. Ownership stands at 6
percent for small businesses, 40 percent for medium-sized
businesses, 68 percent for large businesses, and 95 percent
for very large businesses.
Sources: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=532 (2008), n=594 (2010). Figure 16: Website Penetration by Business Size
All other countries: UNCTAD ICT Indicators Database 2009; data as of 2008.
Online Presence among Businesses Percentage of Businesses

5%
Establishing an online presence can help businesses
32%
innovate and stand out from the competition. Being online Do not have a website 25
43%
not only provides greater visibility with clients, it also 60%
enables companies to better interact and transact with Website available in a
language other than 26%
94%
suppliers and partners. Arabic
Website available in
In 2010, 19 percent of businesses in Qatar had a web Arabic only and at least 17%
52%
one other language
presence: 10 percent had a foreign-language (non- 21%
39%
Arabic) website, 8 percent had a website in more than one Website available in
Arabic only 6% 2% 3%
language besides Arabic, and approximately 1 percent had
a website in Arabic only. (1-9 employees) (10-99 employees) (100-499 employees) (500+employees)
Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=358.

Government
Qatar has made significant investments in its public • The government sector is leading the way compared
sector in order to enhance government services for users, to other sectors in Qatar, with strong penetration
improve internal efficiencies, and increase governance levels in terms of PC, Internet connectivity,
and transparency. For the 2010–2011 fiscal year, the broadband connectivity, LAN connectivity, and
Qatari government announced a general budget of $32.4 organizational web presence. In 2010, all core
billion (QAR 117.9 billion), with 30 percent allocated for government ministries, councils, and authorities in
infrastructure-focused expenditure, inclusive of ICT-related the country were utilizing PCs, broadband Internet,
spending. and LAN network connectivity, as well as maintaining
dedicated websites.
Under Qatar’s i-Gov Master Plan, various ICT initiatives are
being deployed to enhance the provision of government • Skills development is another area that is witnessing
services in the country. Among these are Hukoomi, Qatar’s progress. As of 2010, 61 percent of government
online government portal, which provides seamless access employees have received ICT training, with nearly
to close to 70 transactional services; the Government one-quarter of those employees having received such
Network, which directly links Qatar’s government agencies training within the past 12 months.
over a secure communications platform; and a common
payment platform for all government entities that will allow • Current awareness and usage levels of Qatar’s
users to pay for services using a variety of e-payment e-Government portal-Hukoomi-indicate that it has
methods. not yet been fully embraced by residents. At present,
two-thirds of the mainstream population is aware
As part of this primary research effort, interviews were of government services available online, but only
conducted with 380 employees in government ministries, one-quarter of residents have ever used them.
councils, and authorities, as well as with IT executives Opportunities exist to further ramp up awareness
from 45 core government organizations5. As for-profit state and usage of the Hukoomi portal through enhanced
enterprises have been covered in the survey of businesses marketing efforts.
in Qatar, these entities are excluded from the government
sector study.
Personal Computer, Internet, and Broadband
Performance on the UN e-Government Penetration 29
Development Index The use of PCs and the Internet in Qatar’s public sector
The 2010 UN e-Government Development Index shows that is widespread. Consistent with 2008 figures, government
Qatar ranks 62nd out of 183 countries globally. In terms of authorities in the country have full penetration of PCs
the selected benchmark countries, Qatar’s performance as well as broadband Internet connectivity. In terms of
lies slightly below the average index value: 0.49 out of 1.0. connectivity, the majority of government entities have
The index assesses how governments are utilizing ICT to broadband speeds in excess of 4 Mbps.
improve access to information, products, and services
among residents and businesses.
5 Core ministries, councils, authorities, and institutions of a regulatory nature involved in setting standards or having a key role in national strategies and policies.

Figure 1: Performance on UN e-Government Development Figure 3: PC and Internet Penetration Among Government
Index - International Benchmark Employees
Percentage of Government Employees
0.81 0.79
0.75 0.74 56% 51%
0.70 0.69
0.53 0.53 0.53 0.53 0.51 PC Penetration Internet Penetration

0.49
0.47 0.46
0.36
Sources: Government IT Executives Survey and Government Employees Survey (Qatar,
2010), n=44 (IT executives), n=380 (government employees).
Network Connectivity across the Government

Sector
The ability to share accurate and current information with
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdom
Australia
Singapore
Bahrain
Estonia
Ireland
Jordan
Kuwait
UAE
Saudi Arabia
China
Oman
India
other public and private sector organizations is critical to
efficient public sector operations. As such, governments
are increasingly employing network connectivity; almost all
Qatar 2010 Rank:62 (out of 183) Index Value (Maximum: 1.0) government entities in Qatar maintained LAN connectivity
in 2010. However, there appears to be lower organizational
penetration of intranet and extranet connectivity at present,
Source: UN E-Government Survey 2010.
with rates of 64 percent and 55 percent, respectively.
Connectivity on an individual level is understandably lower, Figure 4: Network Connectivity in Government Entities
as not all public sector employees require access to PCs
30
and the Internet in order to fulfill their work responsibilities.
At the government employee level, 56 percent of persons Percentage of Government Entities
employed in public sector institutions use computers, while 100%
51 percent have access to broadband connectivity in the 64%
workplace. 55%
Figure 2: Internet Connectivity Speeds in Government Entities

LAN Intranet Extranet
Percentage of Government Entities
Source: Government IT Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=44.
23%
256-512 Kbps 20% Progress is also being made in terms of connectivity to the
1-4Mbps Government Network6 among Qatari public sector entities.
18% In 2010, approximately 82 percent of surveyed entities
4-10Mbps
39%
believed they were connected to the Government Network,
> 10Mbps an increase from the self-reported connectivity rate of 54
percent in 2008.
6 The Government Network is a highly secure network communications platform in Qatar that connects a range of government agencies with the aim of improving communic -
tion and data sharing between them and supporting the delivery of e-services.

Figure 5: Connectivity to the Government Network (2008 and Figure 7: Awareness of Government e-Services among
2010) Mainstream Population
Percentage of Government Entities Percentage of Individuals
Not aware of any government e-services 24%

82%
provided online 34%
54%
Aware of government e-services but have
never used any of them
Aware of government e-services and have

2008 2010
used them in the past 12 months
42%
Source: Government IT Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=28 (2008), n=44 (2010).

Web Presence and the Use of Government
e-Services Most popular government e-services used by the
mainstream population include settling traffic violations,
As of 2010, all government entities had a website, thus paying utility bills, applying for or renewing visas, and
enabling the general public to easily access information applying for or renewing health cards. It is important to
and obtain relevant government services. In total, 91 note that these figures do not correspond to a ranking
percent of public sector organizations have a bilingual of importance among e-Government services, but rather
or multilingual website, while 9 percent have Arabic-only indicate the specific services that are most often used.
websites.
Table 1: e-Government Services Used in the Past 12 Months for
Figure 6: Web Presence of Government Entities in Qatar Non-Work-Related Purposes by Individuals in Qatar
Percentage of Government Entities % of

9% Individuals
31
Services using
Website available in Arabic only e-Government
Website available in Arabic and at least one
Services
other language 91% Settling traffic violations 68%
Paying utility bills online 49%
Applying for or renewing visas 27%
Applying for or renewing a health card 25%
Applying for a new residence permit, or renew-
ing or cancelling an existing residence permit 17%
As of 2010, two-thirds of the mainstream population
indicated an awareness of government e-services Applying for a driver’s license and viewing ap-
available online via the Hukoomi portal. However, only 24 plication status 10%
percent have ever used these services. Furthermore, one- Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=336.
third are currently unaware of any government services
provided online, indicating an opportunity to further In 2010, 83 percent of those accessing government
improve awareness levels of the wide range of functions e-services indicated overall satisfaction with the
available through the portal. experience, while 4 percent were dissatisfied.

ICT Professionals in Government Benefits Derived from ICT within the
As of 2010, government employees specializing in ICT made
Government
up 3.6 percent of the total public sector workforce in Qatar, Overall, 61 percent of IT executives within government
an increase from 3.2 percent in 2008. entities feel that ICT has been helpful in enhancing internal
workflows, while an almost equivalent group (57 percent)
In the absence of a multi-country study that can provide
feel that ICT has helped improve corporate communications
comparative benchmarks, this indicator cannot be
and facilitate knowledge management. In addition, 55
compared with global leaders. Nonetheless, the increasing
percent of executives also feel ICT was useful in enhancing
ratio of ICT workers in Qatar’s public sector reflects the
relationships.
important role played by digital technologies within the
government. Table 2: Benefits Derived from ICT by Government Entities
Figure 8: Government Employees Specializing in ICT in the
Percentage of
Public Sector.
Key areas where benefits were identified Government
Entities
Enhancement of internal workflows 61%
Improved corporate communication (inter-
nal and external) 57%
3.2%
3.6% Facilitation of knowledge management 57%
Enhancement of relationships 55%
2008 2010
Improved logistics 39%
Increased availability of and accessibility
Source: Government IT Executive Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=28 (2008), n=44 (2010). to business information 34%
Provision of product/service support 32%
ICT Training among Government Employees Improved coordination with customers/
32 suppliers 32%
In 2010, the percentage of government employees having
ever received ICT training stood at 61 percent. Nearly Facilitation of scientific research and de-
one-quarter received training in the past 12 months, while velopment (e.g., product development) 32%
a further 28 percent obtained training more than one year Establishment of connections with other
ago. As of 2010, 39 percent of government employees in companies 2%
Qatar have never undergone any ICT training.
Figure 9: Last Occurrence of ICT Training among Government

Employees
23%
Training received in the past 12
months 39%
Training received over

12months ago
Never received ICT training

38%
Source: Government Employees Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=380.

Education
Qatar has continued to invest significantly in its education • Access to PCs within K–12 schools in Qatar continues
sector. For the 2010–2011 fiscal year, about 15 percent of to increase, with the average number of PCs
the country’s budget, or $4.75 billion (QAR 17.3 billion) has installed per 100 students rising from 12.8 in 2008
been allocated to the sector, of which $2.06 billion (QAR 7.5 to 15.5 in 2010. Nonetheless, schools in Qatar rank
billion) has been set aside exclusively for the creation of in the bottom half among countries identified for
new educational facilities. benchmarking, ahead only of its regional peers Oman
and Jordan.
At the K–12 level, the latest figures indicate that Qatar
has nearly 15,200 teachers and nearly 150,000 students, • Internet penetration is also growing; as of 2010, 98
resulting in a ratio of one teacher per approximately percent of K–12 schools were connected to the
9.9 students, similar to the ratio of one teacher per 10.0 Internet, up from 73 percent in 2008. In addition, 93
students in 2008. percent of schools were equipped with a broadband
connection in 2010, significantly higher than the 59
More than one-third of K–12 institutions were public percent recorded in 2008. This growth has positively
schools, known as independent schools, under the impacted Qatar’s relative standing among its peers.
aegis of the Supreme Education Council (SEC); nearly 20 At present, Qatar ranks in the upper half of countries
percent were public/semi-independent schools under identified for benchmarking.
the supervision of the Ministry of Education (MoE); the
• There is a disparity between schools’ ownership of
remainder were private international schools, private
various interactive learning devices and teachers’
Arabic schools, and community schools. The country
use of these tools for educational purposes. The
has continued to restructure its education system. As of
current usage-to-ownership ratios for interactive
September 2010, the country had converted all MoE schools
learning devices such as data projectors (0.65),
into independent schools under the management of the
interactive white boards (0.64), video players (0.41),
SEC.
audio/video conferencing (0.26), digital still cameras
At the post-secondary level, Qatar University is (0.26), digital video cameras (0.22), and mobile
complemented by 10 private universities and a community phones/PDAs (0.20) indicate there is an opportunity
35
college established in September 2010. Qatar plans to to further improve the utilization of digital tools for
establish additional higher education institutions in the learning in Qatar.
country.
• Within higher education institutions, nearly 100
As part of the primary research effort, 1,816 respondents percent of educators and students have access to
(students, executives, and teachers/educators) across PCs for educational or personal purposes. In addition,
both schools and higher education institutions provided almost all university educators and 95 percent of
feedback to better assess ICT penetration and usage levels students also have access to the Internet within their
in the Qatari education sector. universities.
Table 1: Distribution of K–12 Schools, Students, and Teachers
Number of K–12 Number of Number of Student to Teacher

School Type
Schools Teachers Students Ratio
Public/Independent Schools (Supreme
127 4,506 49,900 11.1
Education Council)
Public/Semi-Independent Schools (Ministry of
71 4,975 30,493 6.1
Education)
International Schools (Private) 69 2,757 25,227 9.2
Private Schools (Arabic) 53 790 8,987 11.4
Community Schools 38 2,147 35,241 16.4
Total 358 15,175 149,848 9.9
Sources: Ministry of Education, Schools and Schooling in Qatar 2008–09 Report, Supreme Education Council schools list (2009).

Access to Computers Qatar’s K–12 schools rank in the bottom half among
countries identified for benchmarking in terms of PCs per
As was also the case in 2008, nearly 100 percent of K–12 100 school students, ahead only of its regional peers Oman
and higher education institutions in Qatar have at least one and Jordan.
PC, whether it is used for administrative or educational
purposes. On an individual level, nearly 100 percent of Distribution of PCs
school teachers, university educators, and university
students, and 96 percent of school students have access to Efforts to further integrate PCs into the educational
PCs for educational or personal purposes. process are also progressing. Personal computers are
now increasingly being made available beyond computer
In addition, the country has also effectively increased laboratories, and are being placed within school libraries
the availability of PCs to support teaching, learning, and and classrooms in K–12 institutions. In 2010, distribution
management in K–12 schools, with the mean number of PCs grew across all three locations, with PC penetration across
per 100 students increasing from 12.8 in 2008 to 15.5 in 2010. K–12 school libraries and classrooms seeing the highest
rates of increase since 2008.
Figure 1: Computers per 100 K–12 School Students
Figure 3: Location of PCs Dedicated to Learning in K–12
Schools
15.5
12.8 Percentage of Schools

2008 2010
92% 98%
66%
2008 2010 45%
31%
20% 19% 11%
Source: School Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=214 (2008), n=309 (2010).
Computer LabsSchool LibraryClassroom Other Locations
Figure 2: Computers per 100 K–12 School Students-
International Benchmark
36
Internet and Broadband Connectivity
20.0 20.0 20.0 Improved Internet access allows students to expand their
learning activities beyond classic teacher-led education.
16.7 16.7 In 2010, 98 percent of K–12 schools were connected to
15.5 the Internet, which compares favorably with 73 percent of
12.8
schools in 2008. In addition, 100 percent of post-secondary
institutions had Internet access as of 2010.
Figure 4: Internet Penetration in K–12 Schools

5.3 5.0
Percentage of Schools
98%
73%
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdom
Australia
Singapore
Bahrain
Estonia
Oman
Jordan
2008 2010
The surge in Internet penetration within K–12 schools has

Sources: School Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=214 (2008), n=309 (2010). positively impacted Qatar’s relative standing among its
All other countries: ITU,World Telecommunication/ICT Development Report 2010; Jordan,
Singapore, and United Kingdom, data as of 2009; Oman, Estonia, and Bahrain, data as of
regional and international peers. At present, Qatar ranks
2008; Australia, data as of 2007. in the upper half of countries identified for benchmarking,
behind only the United Kingdom, Singapore, and Bahrain.

Figure 5: Internet Connectivity in K–12 Schools-International In relation to the latest available data on broadband
Benchmark connectivity within K–12 schools, Qatar’s penetration
figures rank among the upper half of regional and
international nations selected for benchmarking.
Figure 7: Broadband Connectivity in K–12 Schools-International

98% 100% 100% 100%
97% Benchmark
83%
80% 80%
73%
62%
100% 100% 100%
93%
86%
73%
59%
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdom
Singapore
Bahrain
Estonia
UAE
Jordan
Saudi Arabia
Oman
23%
Qatar 2010
Qatar 2008
United Kingdom
Singapore
Bahrain
Estonia
Jordan
Oman
Sources: School Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=214 (2008), n=309 (2010).
UAE: Telecommunications Regulatory Authority 2008 data; all other countries: ITU,
World Telecommunication/ICT Development Report 2010; Jordan, Singapore, and United
Kingdom, data as of 2009; Oman, Estonia, and Bahrain, data as of 2008; Saudi Arabia, data
as of 2007.
37
Sources: School Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=214 (2008), n=309 (2010).
Within K–12 schools, 86 percent of teachers and 82 percent All other countries: ITU, World Telecommunication/ICT Development Report 2010; Jordan,
of students have accessed the Internet. Among higher Singapore, and United Kingdom, data as of 2009; Oman, Estonia, and Bahrain, data as of
education institutions, nearly all university educators and 95 2008.
percent of university students have accessed the Internet.
Across all locations, 96 percent of teachers and students Network Connectivity
have access to the Internet, along with 100 percent of
university educators and 99 percent of university students. In total, 61 percent of K–12 schools in Qatar indicated that
they utilize a LAN as of 2010, up from 53 percent in 2008. Like
There has been a strong increase in broadband connectivity the Internet itself, a LAN can be used to share information
across K–12 schools in Qatar. In 2010, 93 percent of schools within the school and thus act as an effective means of
information exchange.
were equipped with a broadband connection, which marks
a significant improvement over the 59 percent penetration Figure 8: LAN Penetration in K–12 Schools
rate observed in 2008.
Figure 6: Broadband Internet Penetration in K–12 Schools Percentage of Schools
53% 61%
93%
59% 2008 2010
2008 2010

Interactive Learning Devices Figure 9: K–12 School Ownership vs. Teachers’ Use of
Interactive Learning Devices for Teaching Purposes
Overall, 98 percent of K–12 schools own one or more
interactive learning devices, such as a data projector, video
player, interactive white board (IWB), or digital camera,
for teaching purposes. Among these, the most commonly Technology Owned
owned devices across all school levels were data projectors 83%
78%
for Teaching/Learning
(83 percent), video players (78 percent), and IWBs (68

percent). In terms of usage ratios, data projectors, IWBs, 68% Technology Used while
Teaching
and video players are the most utilized teaching tools.
54%
51%
48%
However, beyond merely looking at interactive learning 44%
device ownership and usage individually, a combined

32%
view of these indicators results in a value that provides an 29% 27%
indication of technology integration within schools.

13%
11% 8%
For instance, data projectors and IWBs have markedly 5%
2%
higher use-to-ownership ratios (0.65 and 0.64 respectively)
versus other interactive learning devices, such as video
Data projectors, visualizers
Video players
Interactive White Board
Digital still cameras
Digital video cameras
Audio/Video conferencing
Mobile phones or PDAs
None of the above

players (0.41), audio/video conferencing (0.26), digital
cameras (0.26), video cameras (0.22), and mobile phones/
PDAs (0.20). Nonetheless, current usage-to-ownership
ratios for all interactive learning devices indicate an
opportunity to further improve the utilization of these
devices.
Presence of ICT Support Staff Sources: School Executives and School Teachers Surveys (Qatar, 2010), n=309 (executives),
n=400 (teachers).
Staff specifically trained on ICT can provide students and

38 teachers with the necessary support and motivation to help Confidence in Performing Various PC Activities
overcome roadblocks to usage. Among K–12 schools with Text processing is performed with greatest confidence
ICT departments, there was an average of 2.8 permanent among students, with 64 percent of K–12 school students and
full-time equivalent (FTE) ICT support staff per school in 89 percent of university students confident in performing this
2010. task. The other confidently performed activities include the
use of email (73 percent of school students and 88 percent of
Figure 10: Permanent FTE ICT Support Staff in K–12 Schools university students are confident) and creating presentations
(61 percent of school students and 86 percent of university
Percentage of Schools students, respectively).
12% 6%
Lowest levels of confidence among both K–12 school and
No permanent FTE ICT Support Staff university students are seen in tasks including software
Between 1 -2 permanent FTE ICT Support Staff programming (20 percent of school students and 28 percent
28%
Between 3 -5 permanent FTE ICT Support Staff of university students are confident); troubleshooting (27
54%
6 or more permanent FTE ICT Support Staff percent of school students and 50 percent of university
students are confident); and creating web pages (32 percent
of school students and 35 percent of university students are
confident).
Source: School Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=202.

Figure 11: K–12 School and University Students’ Confidence in ICT Training among Teachers
Performing Various PC Activities
The percentage of K–12 school teachers in Qatar who
Percentage of Students
received ICT training has risen from 44 percent in 2008 to
89% 88%
71 percent in 2010. More than one-third of K–12 school
86%
School Students University Students teachers (36 percent) have obtained such training during
73% 71%
the past 12 months.
67%
64% 64%
61% 61% Figure 12: K–12 School Teachers Having Received ICT Training
54% 55%
50%
48%
44%
Percentage of School Teachers
35%
32% 71%
27% 28%
44%
20%
2008 2010
Text Processing
Using Email
Creating Presentations
Using Spreadsheet Software
Online Chat
Installing Hardware/ Software
Creating Webpages
Software Programming
Downloading Software
Troubleshooting
Source: School Teachers Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=403 (2008), n=400 (2010).
Within higher education institutions in Qatar, the

percentage of educators who received ICT training totaled
28 percent, with approximately 13 percent of them having
taken such training during the past year.
Sources: School Students and University Students Surveys (Qatar, 2010), n=418 (school
students), n=380 (university students).
39

Healthcare
Qatar’s vision to build and maintain a world-class • Access to basic ICT infrastructure such as PCs
healthcare system has resulted in significant investment and the Internet in the healthcare sector in Qatar
in the sector. For the 2010–2011 fiscal year, approximately is widespread. Nearly 98 percent of healthcare
7 percent of the country’s budget, or $2.3 billion (QAR 8.6 professionals access PCs and 97 percent utilize the
billion), has been allocated for the healthcare sector. Internet within the home or workplace.
Data from the Supreme Council of Health indicates • While individual ICT penetration rates in the healthcare
that Qatar’s public and private healthcare sectors sector are high, institutional ownership of electronic
include approximately 223 hospitals, health centers, and medical record systems is just beginning to grow. As
emergency centers (excluding dental clinics); 74 percent of 2010, the electronic storage of patient data is used
of all healthcare sector workers are employed within in 49 percent of health organizations. By comparison,
government-sponsored healthcare organizations, with indicators from the European Commission show
the remaining 26 percent employed by private healthcare that countries such as Norway (98 percent), Estonia
organizations. (98 percent), the United Kingdom (95 percent), and
Slovenia (86 percent) are leading the way in terms
Table 1: Healthcare Providers in Qatar of the electronic recording and storage of individual
patient data.
Number of
Number of • Individuals in Qatar have increased access to various
Healthcare Providers in Qatar Professionals
Facilities
Employed e-Health services, as the penetration of Internet-
Government hospitals, health connected PCs among individuals in the mainstream
42 13,060 population reached 82 percent in 2010. Thirty-six
centers, and emergency centers
percent of the mainstream population actively
Private hospitals and private
181 4,595 searched for healthcare-related information online in
sector clinics
2010.
Source: Supreme Council of Health, Annual Health Report, (Qatar, 2008).
Primary research for this study included conducting Internet Connectivity 43

501 face-to-face interviews with general practitioners, Internet penetration at home and work stands at 97 percent
specialist physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, among healthcare professionals in Qatar. Nearly 100
and other ancillary staff in the healthcare sector in Qatar. percent of general practitioners, specialist physicians,
ancillary staff, and allied health professionals have Internet
Access to Computers access, along with 91 percent of nurses.
In 2010, 98 percent of healthcare professionals accessed Figure 2: Internet Penetration by Healthcare Professional Type
PCs from their home or workplace. Nearly 100 percent of
general practitioners, specialist physicians, ancillary staff,
and allied health professionals, as well as 94 percent of Percentage of Professionals
nurses in Qatar currently have access to PCs. 100% 100% 100% 100% 91% 97%
Figure 1: PC Penetration by Healthcare Professional Type
Percentage of Professionals
General Specialist Other Ancillary Allied Health Nurses Overall
100% 100% 100% 100% 94% 98% Practitioners Physicians Staff Professionals
Source: Healthcare Professionals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=501.
General Specialist Other Ancillary Allied Health Nurses Overall

Practitioners Physicians Staff Professionals
Source: Healthcare Professionals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=501.

Internet Activities Performed by Healthcare Eighteen percent of healthcare professionals in Qatar
were connected to an online healthcare network in 2010.
Professionals Connectivity was highest among specialist physicians (26
High-frequency tasks performed by healthcare percent), followed by ancillary staff (24 percent), general
professionals on the Internet in 2010 include sending work- practitioners and allied health professionals (20 percent
related emails (83 percent), followed by communicating each), and nurses (10 percent).
with colleagues or other health professionals (70 percent),
Figure 3: Connection to Online Networks among Health
and searching for work-related information (68 percent).
Professionals by Profession
By comparison, in 2008, a significantly higher proportion
of healthcare professionals indicated using the Internet Percentage of Professionals
to search for work-related information (88 percent), and
staying up to date with new healthcare treatments (79
percent). This has decreased to 68 percent and 58 percent,
respectively, in 2010. 26% 24% 20% 20% 18%
10%
Table 2: Internet Tasks Performed by Healthcare Professionals Specialist Other ancillary General Allied Health Nurses Overall
Physicians staff Practitioners Professionals
Percentage of Percentage of
Internet Tasks Performed Professionals Professionals Source: Healthcare Professionals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=501.
in 2008 in 2010
Sending work-related emails 79% 83% Electronic Storage of Patient Data
Communicating with
colleagues or other health Electronic medical record systems are a crucial component
professionals 68% 70% of any computerized health information system. Without
them, technologies such as decision support systems
Searching for work-related
information 88% 68%
cannot be effectively integrated into the clinical workflow.
44 Searching for information on Nearly half of all healthcare professionals reported utilizing
general medical issues 70% 60% electronic storage of patient data within their organizations
Staying up-to-date with new in 2010. By comparison, the latest available figures reveal
treatments, techniques, and that Qatar has a wide gap in penetration levels compared
drugs 79% 58% with countries such as Norway, Estonia, the United
Scheduling business Kingdom, and Slovenia.
appointments 22% 45%
Searching for information on
clinical trials and research
papers 53% 42%
Communicating with patients 20% 30%
Placing orders for equipment/
supplies 14% 12%
Source: Healthcare Professionals Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=258 (2008), n=331
(2010).
Access to Online Healthcare Networks

Improved connectivity to online healthcare networks can
facilitate access to patient information, current clinical
trends, and evidence-based medicine, and promote global
collaboration among healthcare professionals.

Figure 4: Electronic Recording and Storage of Individual Patient Figure 5: ICT Training Received by Healthcare Professionals
Data-International Benchmark
98% 98%
95% 40%
24% 24% 24% 26% 30%
86%
General Other Ancillary Specialist Allied Health Nurses Overall

64% Practitioners Staff Physicians Professionals
49% Source: Healthcare Professionals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=501.
e-Health among Individuals in Qatar

Qatar continues to take strides forward in terms of
acquiring the requisite infrastructure to access e-Health
services. The percentage of individuals accessing an
Internet-connected PC rose from 63 percent in 2008 to 82
Norway
Estonia
United Kingdom
Slovenia
Ireland
Qatar
percent in 2010, increasing their ability to utilize various

e-Health services.
Overall, 36 percent of the mainstream population actively

searched for health-related information on the Internet
Sources: Healthcare Professionals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=501. within the past 12 months. Searching for information related
Other countries: European Commission, Information Society and Media Directorate to their own personal health had the greatest response
General; empirica, Pilot on e-Health Indicators (2007). (73 percent), followed by information queries regarding
the health of somebody else (52 percent). The search for a
specific healthcare product or service ranked third and was 45
ICT Training performed by 38 percent of individuals.
Nearly one-third of healthcare professionals received ICT
training in 2010. Forty percent of nurses have received
ICT training, followed by roughly one-quarter of general
practitioners, ancillary staff, specialist physicians, and
allied health professionals.

Tourism and Sports
As a major part of Qatar’s strategy to diversify its economy, • Nearly all tourism and sports establishments in Qatar
the tourism sector is set for a major boost over the coming currently have at least one PC, while 98 percent
years. According to the Qatar Tourism Authority, the have broadband Internet connectivity within their
government has earmarked more than $20.0 billion (QAR organizations. However, in spite of the fact that a
72.8 billion) in funds through 2013 to develop the country’s large number of visitors are business travelers and
tourism facilities and infrastructure. thus highly dependent on the Internet, only two-thirds
of tourism and sports establishments in the country
A number of investments with significant bearing on the currently offer Internet access to their guests or
country’s tourism industry are already underway or are customers.
currently being planned: these include the New Doha
International Airport, the causeway and rail line to Bahrain, • A web presence is now commonplace for
a new deepwater port, and additional accommodation establishments in Qatar’s tourism sector. In 2010,
facilities. Hotel rooms are expected to number 15,000 units approximately 80 percent of organizations in the
by early 2011 and are projected to add up to 30,000 units by sector maintained a website and 70 percent provided
the end of 2013. customers with the option to make online queries.
Still, only 15 percent of those websites currently allow
Investments in the tourism sector are set to continue customers to make online transactions.
over the mid-to-long term, particularly in light of Qatar’s
successful bid to host the 2022 FIFA Football World Cup.
This global event will entice a greater number of people to Figure 1: Level of Access to the Internet-International
visit for tourism, as well as cultural and sporting events, not Benchmark
just for business.
Percentage of hotels and restaurants using the Internet
Due to these investments, the World Travel & Tourism
Council estimates the travel and tourism sector’s
98%
contribution to Qatar’s GDP will rise from 8.4 percent or 92%
90%
$9.35 billion (QAR 34.0 billion) in 2010 to 9.4 percent or $29.04
billion (QAR 105.8 billion) by 2020. Accordingly, the sector’s 49
contribution to employment is also expected to increase
from 67,000 jobs in 2009 to 105,000 jobs by 2020.
As part of the research into this sector, interviews were

conducted with 50 tourism and sports executives from
hotels, conference centers, travel agencies, tour operators,
and sports and recreation centers, as well as with 380
visitors to Qatar.
Qatar*
United Kingdom
Estonia
Access to Computers and the Internet

Tourism is highly information-intensive. Information must
be able to flow quickly and accurately at every stage in the
sales cycle of a tourism product such as an airline ticket,
a hotel room booking, or a car rental. Travelers too are
becoming more dependent on travel-related information as Sources: Tourism and Sports Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=50.
they prepare for their trips and while they are away. As a UK and Estonia: UNCTAD45, Information Economy Report 2009, data as of 2007.
result, ICT has become a necessity for the tourism industry. *Qatar data excludes restaurants..
Nearly all tourism and sports establishments in Qatar However, a lower percentage of tourism and sports
maintain at least one PC. At present, the sector has an establishments currently offer Internet access to their
average of 3.4 dedicated or shared PCs per 100 employees. guests or customers. In 2010, 66 percent of tourism-sector
facilities provided connectivity to customers, an increase
In 2010, 98 percent of tourism and sports facilities had from 41 percent in 2008.
corporate access to the Internet. This compares favorably
with the most recent international benchmarks for the
United Kingdom and Estonia.

Figure 2: Tourism and Sports Facilities Providing Internet Figure 4: Primary Internet Access Locations Among Visitors
Access to Customers
Percentage of Visitors
Percentage of Facilities
Hotel 66%
66% Work 63%

41%
Airport 35%
2008 2010
Another Person's home 21%
Source: Tourism and Sports Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=51 (2008),
n=50(2010). Community Internet Facility 11%
In 2010, the primary means of Internet access provided to Commercial Internet facility 8%
guests was via wireless networks, supported by 97 percent
of Internet-connected tourism establishments. This was
followed by connectivity using a wired Internet terminal for
guests (85 percent of establishments). In 2010, fewer than
half (48 percent) of Internet-connected establishments in Source: Visitors Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=380.
Qatar provided access through centrally located kiosks.
Internet Activities Performed by Visitors
Whether Internet access is being provided via distributed
or centrally located points, all connected tourism and sports Consistent with findings from 2008, the two most widely
entities are utilizing broadband Internet, with more than performed types of Internet activity in 2010 were personal
86 percent of establishments providing speeds of above 1 and professional access to email, search, or web browsing.
Mbps to their customers. Overall, 87 percent of visitors to Qatar access the
50 Internet for personal purposes, while 81 percent do so for
Figure 3: Internet Connectivity Speeds at Tourism and Sports professional reasons.
Facilities
Searching for business-related information is the third
Percentage of Facilities most popular Internet activity undertaken by visitors at 26
percent, showing a marked increase from 2008. Other tasks,
13% such as searching for government-related information,
65%
online banking, searching for information on tourist
From Central Locations activities, and accessing e-government services, have also
9% 512 Kbps–1
Mbps seen an increase in usage levels since 2008.
13%
1–4 Mbps
Table 1: Reasons for Internet Access among Visitors (2008
4–10 Mbps
12% vs. 2010)
>10 Mbps
63%
From Distributed Access Points Reasons for Internet Access 2010
9%
2008
15%
Personal (private email, search, etc.) 90% 87%
Professional (office email, VoIP calls, etc.) 69% 81%
Search for information on businesses in Qatar 5% 26%
Search for information about government
2% 14%
Source: Tourism and Sports Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=50. organizations in Qatar
Online banking 3% 14%
In 2010, 88 percent of visitors accessed the Internet during
Search for information about tourist activities or
their stay in Qatar, a decline from 94 percent in 2008. The 3% 13%
leisure
majority connected to the Internet from hotels (66 percent),
the workplace (63 percent), and the airport (35 percent), Access e-government services 2% 9%
signifying the importance of having good Internet coverage Source: Visitors Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=405 (2008), n=380 (2010).
in these primary locations.

Mobile Phone Usage by Visitors Figure 7: Transactional Capabilities of Tourism and Sport
Facilities’ Websites
Mobile services are widely utilized by travelers in Qatar,
with 86 percent using their wireless handsets while in the Percentage of Facilities
country. Of these travelers, 41 percent exclusively use 6%
roaming services, while 22 percent utilize only local SIM 15%
17%
cards, and 24 percent utilize both.
Figure 5: Mobile Phone Usage of Visitors 70%

77%
Percentage of Visitors
15%
14% 2010 2008

Use a local SIM card 22%
Have websites that do not allow filling in forms or paying online
Have websites that allow only filling in forms (e.g., for enquiries)
Use roaming 24% Have fully transactional websites that allow filling in forms and paying online
Use both
Source: Tourism and Sports Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010), n=35 (2008), n=40
Do not use a mobile handset 41% (2010).
ICT Training among Tourism and Sports

Source: Visitors Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=380.
Organizations Staff
In 2010, approximately 5 percent of the staff within tourism
Web Presence among Tourism and Sports and sports organizations in Qatar had received ICT training
Facilities over the previous 12 months, down from the 2008 figure of
24 percent.
Web presence is now commonplace for the tourism sector
in Qatar. In 2010, 80 percent of establishments maintained Figure 8: Tourism and Sports Organization Staff Receiving ICT
a website, with more than half having a web presence 51
Training Over the Previous Year
available in both Arabic and English.
Figure 6: Language of Tourism and Sport Facilities’ Websites
24%
20%
5%
Do not have a website

2008 2010
Have a website in a language other 53%
than Arabic only
27%
Have a website in Arabic and at least Source: Tourism and Sports Executives Survey (Qatar, 2008 and 2010) n=51 (2008), n=50
one other language (2010).
Source: Tourism and Sports Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=50.
Among organizations that have an online presence, 15

percent have a website that enables customers to transact
online. This figure has increased since 2008, when only
6 percent of websites were transactional. In addition, 70
percent of tourism and sport facilities’ websites now allow
customers to make online queries, up from 17 percent in
2008.

ICT Workforce
Qatar’s ability to recruit and retain ICT- skilled • By 2009, an estimated 20,000 ICT staff were employed
personnel7 is essential to fostering greater innovation by Qatar’s private sector, representing 1.6 percent
of the entire workforce in the country. This number
and development across all its economic sectors. is expected to increase to approximately 24,000
To profile the ICT workforce in Qatar, face-to-face individuals by the end of 2011.
interviews were conducted with 312 HR executives
• As the ICT readiness among those actively employed
in companies with 50 or more employees to measure
in Qatar grows and evolves, so does the need for
the perceived demand for ICT-qualified employees. In
specialized ICT skills. As of 2010, approximately
addition, interviews were conducted with 45 managers in
90 percent of private sector enterprises in Qatar
recruitment agencies in order to obtain expert opinion on
maintained at least one permanent ICT employee
the supply of ICT-skilled employees in Qatar and the rest of
within their organizations. While a typical private
the GCC countries.
sector company employs 6.7 ICT staff, on the whole,
IT departments are noticeably understaffed with an
ICT Workforce Forecast average of 7.9 ICT-related positions remaining vacant.
As of 2008, the number of ICT staff in Qatar totaled
• More than 5 percent of private companies are
approximately 13,500 individuals. By 2009, this grew to
currently looking to recruit ICT staff with general
around 20,000, representing 1.6 percent of the entire
skills in application development or software
workforce in the country.
engineering, Internet and networking, databases,
The global economic crisis resulted in a more conservative operating systems, email/groupware, enterprise
approach toward hiring of ICT staff compared with previous resource management (ERP), and customer
relationship management (CRM).
years. Nonetheless, Qatar continued to see growth of ICT Staff in the Private Sector
its ICT workforce. In 2010, the approximate size of the
country’s ICT workforce stood at about 21,500 individuals, a Private sector organizations in Qatar with 50 or more
modest increase of 7.4 percent over the previous year. employees exhibit appreciation of the transformational
capabilities of ICT. As of 2010, approximately 90 percent of 55
As the overall ICT market in Qatar is forecasted to continue such enterprises maintained at least one permanent ICT
its growth trajectory, so too is the ICT workforce. This base employee within their organization.
is projected to grow 11.4 percent over 2010 levels, to reach
an estimated total of 24,000 individuals by the end of 2011. Overall, companies in Qatar employ an average of 264.8
permanent employees, of which 6.7 individuals comprise
Figure 1 : Size and Forecasted Growth of Qatar’s ICT the ICT staff. This equates to an overall ratio of 39.5 non-ICT-
Workforce related permanent employees for every ICT staff member.
It is important to note is that the average number of ICT
23,841 staff refers to the average number of employees within the
19,925
21,394 internal IT department of a company.
As Qatar’s economy continues to grow and evolve, it will

13,438 Number of ICT Professionals increasingly need specialized ICT skills. At present, private
sector companies in Qatar have an average of 7.9 ICT
positions they are seeking to fill.
2008 2009 2010 2011
Source: IDC model utilizing survey data and secondary research information.
7 Refers to individuals performing design, development, build out, sales and management, as well as support of computer hardware, software solutions, information systems,
and telecommunication networks.

Table 1: Private Sector ICT Workforce Overview fully saturated. In fact, at least 5 percent of private sector
companies are looking to recruit ICT staff with capabilities
Private Sector in application development or software engineering,
Qatar Workforce Indicators
Enterprises Internet and networking, databases, operating systems,
with 50 or More email-groupware, ERP, and CRM.
Employees
Average number of permanent employees 264.8 Primary Origin of ICT Skills Base in Qatar
Average number of permanent ICT employ- 6.7
ees As of 2010, 75 percent of ICT professionals working in
Qatar came from outside the GCC region, 17 percent from
Percentage of ICT staff relative to full-time 2.5%
employees
within Qatar, and 8 percent from other GCC countries. The
largest countries being tapped by recruitment firms for ICT
Average number of full-time ICT positions 7.9 manpower outside the GCC are India, Nepal, Pakistan, the
available Philippines, and Sri Lanka.
Source: HR Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=312.
Figure 3: Primary Origin of ICT Skills Base in Qatar
Roles of Existing ICT Staff and Corresponding
Vacancies Percentage of Professionals
In the private sector, individuals with Internet and Qatar

17%
networking skills comprise 44 percent of currently filled ICT 8%

positions. Database skills (38 percent) are the second-most GCC
popular, followed by individuals with operating systems 75%

Outside the GCC
skills (37 percent).
Figure 2: Filled ICT Positions versus Vacancies in Private

Sector Companies Source: Recruitment Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=45.
56
Percentage of IT Positions Perceived ICT Employee Retention in Qatar
Filled Positions In a 2010 survey of recruitment executives in Qatar and
Available Vacancies other GCC countries, Qatar received a positive rating in
44%
the area of employee retention. Overall, 58 percent of
38% 37%
recruitment executives surveyed rated ICT employee
31% 31%
27%
retention in Qatar positively. Looking ahead, in order to
24% 22% ensure that skilled professionals continue to be attracted
and remain interested in working in Qatar, recruitment
7% 6% 5% 5%
8%
4% 5% 6% campaigns must be balanced with continuous training of
3% 2%
the existing ICT workforce.
Internet/networking skills
Database skills
Operating systems skills
Email/groupware skills
Application dev't/software engineering

skills
Security skills
Process & systems management skills
ERP/CRM skills
Geographic information systems skills
Figure 4: Perceived ICT Employee Retention in Qatar
Percentage of Recruitment Executives
Negative ('1 to 3' on a 7 point scale) 14%

23%
6%
Neutral ('4' on a 7 point scale)
Positive ('5 to 7' on a 7 point scale)
Don't know 58%
Source: HR Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=312.
Even while considering the relatively high penetration

Source: Recruitment Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=45.
rates of these skills, it does not appear that the market is

Appendix
Methodology permit robust analysis. Accordingly, all surveys, with
the exception of those for the tourism and sports sector,
Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011 report was conducted using a obtained a margin of error of ±5 percent or less at the 95
two-pronged approach to data collection: percent confidence interval. These figures have room for
both statistical and non-sampling errors.
The primary research effort encompassed 16 surveys
across relevant audience groups in Qatar. In total, 6,455 IDC also conducted secondary and supply-side research
surveys were conducted between April and October 2010. to obtain statistics on the various sectors covered in the
Data collection was conducted primarily through face- research. In addition a list of international data indicators
to-face interviews, supplemented by self-administered was also designed for benchmarking purposes. The
questionnaires and, in some cases, telephone interviews. countries included in the international benchmarking were:
Table 1: Target Groups Surveyed and Sample Distribution • Estonia, Ireland, and Singapore-three relatively small
countries that quickly developed into solid knowledge-
Completed based economies, becoming models in their respective
Audience Groups Surveyed Sector Sample Size regions.
(n)
Households and • China and India-two large economies with above-
Household and Individuals 1,700 average growth and developing ICT sectors.
Individuals
Residents utilizing Media Media 633
• Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the
School Students 418 UAE-regional peers for Qatar in the Middle East.
School Executives 309
School Teachers 400 • Australia and the United Kingdom-countries that are
Education
Sector particularly advanced in terms of uptake in the ICT
University Students 380
sector.
University Executives 9
University Educators 300 Also included in the benchmarking are combined indicators
Business Executives Business Sector 594 for EU-15, a basket of 15 countries within the European
Union made up of Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, 59
Government IT Executives Government 44
France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the
Government Employees Sector 380 Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the United
Health Care Professionals
Healthcare
501
Kingdom.
Sector
Visitors 380 As part of the secondary research effort, fact-finding
Tourism Sector activities included consulting international organizations
Tourism/Sports Executives 50
for ICT-related country data; referencing annual
HR Executives 312
ICT Workforce statistical abstracts of Qatar government sources;
Recruitment Executives 45 meeting with officials in various organizations within
Total 6,455 the national statistical system to identify and gather
relevant information; referencing IDC proprietary in-house
Note: Some of the surveys provide information to multiple sectors, e.g., households and databases, newspaper clippings, and periodicals; and
individuals. Media sector report published separately.
researching the Internet for relevant databases, articles,
The sample size required across each audience group and reports.
was a specific consideration in the survey design process
in order to obtain a margin of error threshold that would

Definitions of Terminology Used (in Government Network is a highly secure network
Alphabetical Order) communications platform in Qatar that connects a
range of government agencies with the aim of improving
Asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL), a form of communications and data sharing between them and
digital subscriber line technology, is a data communication supporting the delivery of e-services.
technology that enables faster data transmission over
ordinary telephone lines by utilizing frequencies that are not Household consists of all persons who occupy a housing
used by voice telephone calls. unit. The unit must be intended for year-round use and not
seasonal or migratory use. The occupants may be a single
Benchmark is a standard test or measurement used family, one person living alone, two or more families living
to compare the performance of similar components or together, or any other group of related or unrelated persons
systems. who share living arrangements. Persons living in group
quarters/temporary housing are not classified as living in
Broadband Internet refers to a high-speed-data- households.
transmission-rate Internet connection with speeds equal to
or greater than 256 Kbps as the sum of the capacity in both ICT covers any product that will store, retrieve, manipulate,
directions. transmit, or receive information electronically in a digital
form. A good way to think about ICT is to consider all
CRM is an abbreviation for customer relationship the uses of digital technology that already exist to help
management. It is a widely implemented strategy for individuals, businesses, and organizations use information.
managing a company’s interactions with customers, clients,
and sales prospects and involves using technology to ICT training includes all training on the use of computers
organize, automate, and synchronize business processes. and related hardware, software, PC applications, and
systems. It can be basic (such as International Computer
ERP is an abbreviation for enterprise resource planning, Driving License training or how to use MS Office, etc.)
which integrates internal and external management or advanced (such as network management training).
information across an entire organization, embracing The training can be received in ICT-related workshops,
finance/accounting, manufacturing, sales, and service. seminars, or courses-whether such training is carried out
60
in-house, in training institutions, or in other locations.
EU-15 is a reference to the 15 countries that constituted the
European Union before the union was expanded into former Indicator is a quantitative or qualitative measure derived
Eastern Europe. from a series of observed facts that can reveal relative
position in a given area and, when measured over time, can
Extranet is a private network that uses Internet protocols point out the direction of change. In the context of policy
and the public telecommunication system to securely analysis at national and international levels, indicators are
share part of a business’s information or operations useful in identifying trends in performance and policies and
with suppliers, vendors, partners, customers, or other drawing attention to particular issues.
businesses. An extranet can be viewed as part of a
company’s intranet that is extended to users outside the ICT-qualified employees or ICT staff refers to individuals
company. performing design, development, build out, sales
and management, as well as support of computer
Fixed telephone line refers to a telephone line connecting hardware, software solutions, information systems, and
customer equipment (e.g., telephone set or facsimile telecommunication networks.
machine) to the public switched telephone network (PSTN)
that has a dedicated port on a telephone exchange. Internet refers to a global system of computer networks
interlinked by a broad array of electronic, wireless, and
optical networking technologies.

Intranet is a computer network, based on Internet
technology, that is designed to meet the needs for sharing
information within a single organization.
K–12 is a designation for the sum of primary and secondary

education. The expression is a shortening of kindergarten
through 12th grade or grade 12.
Local area network (LAN) is a computer network

technology designed to connect multiple computers
separated by a short distance in order to share information.
A LAN can be connected to the Internet and can also be
configured as an intranet.
Mobile phone refers to an electronic device used for two-

way radio telecommunication over a cellular network. It is
also known as a cellular telephone, a cell phone, or simply
a mobile.
Online banking is a term used for performing transactions,

payments, etc., over the Internet through a bank’s secure
website.
Transactional website is a database-driven website that

allows two-way interaction between the site owner and the
end user. It is where a user can acquire goods or services
by filling in simple electronic forms on website pages.
61

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ictQATAR&#39;s 2011 Qatar&#39;s ICT Landscape Report

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Qatar’s ICT Landscape

Chapter I: Households and Individuals 9

Chapter II: Business 19

Chapter III: Government 27

Chapter IV: Education 33

Chapter VI: Tourism and Sports 47

Chapter VII: ICT Workforce 53

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Tourism and Sports • More than 5 percent of private companies are

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Percentage of the Population • Broadband penetration is enabling many individuals

Because of the complex and fluctuating nature of the

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Fixed Telephones in Households

Access to Computers in Households

2 Includes both desktop and laptop computers.

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Percentage of Households Percentage of Households

Table 1: Time Needed to Download Content at Different Download Speeds

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Mobile phone ownership continued to grow in Qatar in

2008 However, when considering the overall individual

99% 99% Mainstream Population Overall Population

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

32% Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1,400.

progressively decreases among older age groups.

Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1,400.

4 Connectivity through either fixed line or mobile device.

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

84% 82% 82%

Source: Households and Individuals Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=1400.

Table 2: Location of Internet Use among Individuals

The Internet has become a critical tool in the digital

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

While a lower percentage of individuals sought information

Figure 18: Tasks Performed on the Internet by Individuals in

Sending and receiving emails 93%

Downloading movies, images, music, watching TV or video 65%

Getting information about goods or services 51%

Finding, downloading, and installing software 42%

Reading or downloading online newspapers or magazines 41%

Playing or downloading video games or computer games 36%

Education and learning activities 30%

Getting information from governmen organizations 24%

Online banking 22%

Interacting with government organizations 16%

Purchase or place orders for goods and services 15% 17

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

To this extent, a key highlight within the business sector in

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

Figure 4: PC Penetration-International Benchmark

As with the uptake of PCs, there is a wide disparity in

Figure 6: Internet Penetration Rate by Business Size

Small Medium-sized Large Very Large

Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2011

96% 96% 95% 94%

Small Medium Large Very Large

Source: Business Executives Survey (Qatar, 2010), n=594.

When compared with regional and international benchmark

There is a clear move away from older Internet technology 23

ictQATAR's 2011 Qatar's ICT Landscape Report

ictQATAR's 2011 Qatar's ICT Landscape Report