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The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology collaborated with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Qatar Development Bank to stage the SMEs Go Digital “Connect” gathering in Qatar on Tuesday, with additional support from Ooredoo and Qatar Post. Organisers established a unified platform that enabled direct exchanges between the participating businesses and accredited technology suppliers, according to a Gulf Times report on the proceedings. The initiative targeted priority sectors that included retail and wholesale trade along with transport, storage, tourism, education and healthcare. Digital offerings on display encompassed tools for building online presence, implementing e-commerce systems and accessing cloud services.
Matchmaking sessions allowed enterprises to engage one-on-one with solution providers while dedicated networking segments promoted knowledge exchange and future collaboration, the report indicated. A Mordor Intelligence sector outlook projected the Qatar digital transformation market to expand from $10.68 billion in 2026 at a compound annual growth rate of 16.16 percent, reaching $22.59 billion by 2031. Small and medium-sized enterprises within that market are forecast to record an 18.27 percent CAGR through the same period as accelerator programmes and subsidised cloud options lower entry barriers.
Faraj Jassim Abdulla, Director of Digital Economy Department at MCIT, said, “MCIT continues its efforts to empower SMEs to leverage digital technologies as a key driver for competitiveness and sustainable economic growth. Initiatives such as this provide a national platform that supports businesses’ readiness for digital transformation, enhances productivity, and strengthens the ability of the business sector to keep pace with the evolving digital economy.” He added in the same remarks that by connecting enterprises with an integrated ecosystem of solution providers and national expertise the ministry continues to support the transition towards innovation and a knowledge-based economy in line with the objectives of Qatar’s Digital Agenda 2030.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry underlined that backing SMEs forms one of the central pillars for lifting the competitiveness of the national economy while creating conditions that encourage growth, innovation and streamlined regulatory processes. Its representatives used the forum to outline services covering intellectual property protections such as copyrights, trademarks and patents in addition to commercial registration, licensing and electronic transaction systems. These measures, according to the ministry, help companies operate within approved frameworks and promote a culture of innovation and rights protection that sustains the business environment.
Dr Hamad Salem Mejegheer, executive director of SME Development at Qatar Development Bank, said, “This event highlights the role coordinated national efforts can play in accelerating digital transformation across Qatar’s business ecosystem. More broadly, it points to the value of creating opportunities for SMEs to engage directly with digital solution providers.” He continued that QDB places strong emphasis on empowering SMEs to adopt digital transformation in ways that enhance their efficiency and competitiveness through an integrated support framework beginning with digital readiness assessments and extending to grants, financing and advisory services.
The SME Go Digital Programme, a national effort directed by MCIT, supplies specialised assessments, linkages to technology providers, training on emerging tools and pathways to financing in partnership with Qatar Development Bank. Ministry of Communications and Information Technology data on the wider Digital Agenda 2030 sets targets of generating 40 billion QAR in value and producing 26,000 jobs in the ICT sector by the end of the decade. Separate official statistics place SMEs as accounting for 97 percent of private-sector establishments and roughly 30 percent of non-oil GDP.
