Open Forum #1 Digital Inclusiveness in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Summary

This discussion focused on Saudi Arabia’s digital inclusiveness initiative launched by the Digital Government Authority to enable accessibility for people with disabilities and elderly citizens. Fawaz Alanazi presented how Saudi Arabia has achieved high rankings in global digital government indexes, including third place in the World Bank’s Government Tech Maturity Index and sixth in the UN E-Government Development Index, as part of the Vision 2030 digital transformation goals. The Digital Government Authority, established in 2021, operates an innovation hub that provides digital advisory services, training programs like Kudratik which has trained over 400 government employees, and various specialized labs including design studios and usability labs.

The digital inclusiveness program addresses a significant need, as Saudi Arabia has 1.6 million elderly citizens (4.8% of the population) and 1.4 million people with disabilities (4.2% of the population) who face various impairments including cognitive, mobility, visual, and hearing challenges. The program aims to ensure independence and ease of use in digital services for everyone by aligning with WCAG accessibility standards and humanizing the service experience. During the Q&A session, an attendee from the Norwegian Digitalization Agency asked about regulatory compliance, WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector entities aren’t included in the legislation. Alanazi explained that Saudi Arabia uses an e-participation platform for citizen feedback and collaborates with private sectors through the SADF initiative for public-private partnerships. The discussion highlighted Saudi Arabia’s comprehensive approach to digital transformation while emphasizing the importance of leaving no one behind in accessing government digital services.

Keypoints

**Major Discussion Points:**

– **Saudi Arabia’s Digital Government Achievements**: The country has achieved high rankings in global digital government indexes, including 1st regionally in ESCOA, 3rd globally in Government Tech Maturity Index, and 6th in E-Government Development Index, supported by the Digital Government Authority established in 2021.

– **Digital Inclusiveness Program Launch**: A new initiative targeting 1.6 million elderly citizens (4.8% of population) and 1.4 million people with disabilities (4.2% of population) to ensure government digital services are accessible and usable for everyone, emphasizing independence and ease of use.

– **Innovation Hub Infrastructure**: The Digital Government Authority operates comprehensive facilities including design studios, usability labs, learning experience labs, and emerging technology labs, along with programs like Kudratik training (400+ employees trained) and digital advisory services.

– **WCAG Standards and Regulatory Framework**: Discussion of following Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards for government services, with questions raised about compliance requirements, regulatory oversight, and why private sector inclusion is limited compared to other countries.

– **Collaborative Testing and Implementation Process**: Government entities can reserve and utilize the inclusiveness labs to test their services and products, receiving detailed reports on current accessibility status and improvement recommendations for end users.

**Overall Purpose:**

The discussion aimed to present Saudi Arabia’s digital inclusiveness initiative as part of Vision 2030, showcasing how the Digital Government Authority is working to make government digital services accessible to elderly citizens and people with disabilities through specialized labs, testing facilities, and adherence to international accessibility standards.

**Overall Tone:**

The discussion maintained a formal, informative, and promotional tone throughout. It began as a structured presentation highlighting achievements and initiatives, then shifted to a more interactive Q&A format where the presenter addressed technical questions about regulations, standards, and implementation. The tone remained consistently professional and collaborative, with the presenter expressing appreciation for questions and emphasizing partnership approaches to digital transformation.

Speakers

– **Fawaz Alanazi**: Works with the Digital Government Authority in Saudi Arabia, presenting on digital inclusiveness initiatives and digital transformation programs

– **Audience**: Multiple audience members asking questions during the session, including:

– Adil Hussain from Norwegian Digitalization Agency and the Norwegian Authority for Universal Design of ICT

– An Arabic-speaking questioner (name appears to be Qusay based on the response)

**Additional speakers:**

– **Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi**: Mentioned at the beginning as a co-presenter but no actual speaking content is provided in the transcript

– **Dr. Areej Alfaraj**: Mentioned multiple times in the transcript but no actual speaking content is provided

# Discussion Report: Saudi Arabia’s Digital Inclusiveness Initiative

## Executive Summary

This session featured a presentation by Fawaz Alanazi from Saudi Arabia’s Digital Government Authority on the country’s digital inclusiveness initiative. The presentation covered Saudi Arabia’s digital government achievements, infrastructure for supporting accessibility, and programmes targeting elderly citizens and people with disabilities. The session included a Q&A portion with questions from Adil Hussain of the Norwegian Digitalisation Agency and Norwegian Authority for Universal Design of ICT, as well as an Arabic-speaking participant named Qusay.

*Note: The transcript contains technical issues with repetitive text and incomplete sections, particularly regarding contributions from co-presenters Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi and Dr. Areej Alfaraj, which affects the completeness of this summary.*

## Key Participants

– **Fawaz Alanazi** – Digital Government Authority, Saudi Arabia (primary presenter)

– **Adil Hussain** – Norwegian Digitalisation Agency and Norwegian Authority for Universal Design of ICT

– **Qusay** – Arabic-speaking participant

– **Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi and Dr. Areej Alfaraj** – Listed as co-presenters but their contributions are not captured in the available transcript

## Saudi Arabia’s Digital Government Achievements

Alanazi presented Saudi Arabia’s international rankings in digital government:

– First place regionally in ESCOA

– Third place globally in the World Bank’s Government Tech Maturity Index

– Sixth place in the UN E-Government Development Index

These achievements support Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 initiative. The Digital Government Authority, established in 2021, serves as the central coordinating body for the country’s digital transformation efforts.

## Digital Inclusiveness Programme Context

The programme addresses the needs of specific demographic groups in Saudi Arabia:

– 1.6 million elderly citizens (4.8% of the 35 million population)

– 1.4 million people with disabilities (4.2% of the population)

– Expected increase in elderly population to 11% in 2023

Alanazi explained the programme’s philosophy: “what we mean by inclusiveness is to ensure the independency and ease of use of digital services for everyone, while inclusiveness aims not to digitise the services, but rather to ensure they are designed to include everyone.”

The programme follows three main objectives:

1. Increasing user independence

2. Aligning with international accessibility standards (WCAG)

3. Humanising the service experience

## Innovation Hub Infrastructure

The Digital Government Authority operates an innovation hub providing multiple services:

– Digital advisory services

– Training programmes (including the “Kudratik” programme that has trained over 400 government employees)

– Awards recognition

– Emerging technology initiatives

The hub includes specialised laboratories:

– Design studios

– Usability labs for user experience testing

– Learning experience labs

– Emerging technology labs

## Laboratory Operations

The digital inclusiveness laboratories operate on a reservation-based system where government entities can book sessions to test their services and products against accessibility standards. Following each testing session, the laboratories provide comprehensive reports with assessments and recommendations for improvements.

## Questions and Responses

### Norwegian Participant Questions

Adil Hussain posed four specific technical questions:

1. **Regulatory authority for business compliance**: Asked about mechanisms for ensuring business compliance with accessibility requirements.

2. **WCAG requirements**: Inquired how many of the 78 WCAG success criteria public sector bodies must follow.

3. **Private sector inclusion**: Questioned why private sector entities are not included in the digital accessibility legislation, particularly given Saudi Arabia’s high e-government ranking.

4. **Scope of digital services**: Asked what types of digital services the legislation covers.

### Saudi Response

Alanazi’s responses mentioned:

– Use of an e-participation platform for citizen feedback

– The SADF (Saudi Development Fund) initiative for public-private partnerships in digital service development

– Collaborative approaches with private entities rather than mandatory compliance

– Following WCAG standards “precisely”

However, the responses did not provide detailed answers to all the specific technical questions raised.

### Arabic Language Question

Qusay asked about the laboratory experience and procedures. Alanazi responded by explaining the reservation system for accessing the labs and mentioned that final reports are provided after testing sessions.

## Programme Implementation

The digital inclusiveness programme addresses various types of impairments including cognitive, mobility, visual, and hearing challenges. The approach emphasises designing services to be inherently accessible rather than retrofitting existing services.

The programme aligns with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards to ensure Saudi Arabia’s digital services meet internationally recognised accessibility criteria.

## Conclusion

The session provided an overview of Saudi Arabia’s systematic approach to digital inclusiveness, highlighting the country’s infrastructure investment and commitment to international standards. The Q&A session revealed interest from international participants in understanding the technical and regulatory details of implementation, though some specific questions about compliance mechanisms and private sector involvement were not fully addressed in the available transcript.

Fawaz Alanazi: and Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi. Hi, everyone, and welcome to this session where we talk about one of the latest initiatives that have been recently launched by the Digital Government Authority in Saudi Arabia, which is the digital inclusiveness in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to enable people with disability and elderly. Today we’ll talk about the overall of the digital transformation and innovation in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Then we’ll talk about the digital inclusiveness program with its usability lab, and we’ll end up with some success stories from digital inclusiveness initiatives. If you have any question, you may ask at the end of this session. To start with, actually, the digital government or the Vision 2030 prioritized digital transformation and innovation to ensure the successful achievement of the national goals of vibrant society, thriving economy, as well as ambitious nation. And because of that, as you can see, Saudi Arabia is ranked top in the government global indexes. For example, it’s ranked first regionally in the ESCOA, which is the Government Electronic and Mobile Service Index. It’s ranked number third globally in the Government Tech Maturity Index by the World Bank, and it’s ranked number six globally in the E-Government Development Index, as well as number eighth in the Waseda Index as digital government most progressing country. The Digital Government Authority, who was established in 2021, to play a main role of organizing the digital landscape in Saudi Arabia in collaboration with the government entities. The Digital Government Authority, as a result, have established an innovation hub for the sake of fostering innovation, as well as enable government entities to design and test their creative solution. What we have or provide inside the innovation hub? First of all, there are some programs and initiatives falls under the innovation hub. Firstly, we provide digital advisory and study where we consult a government entity in terms of digital transformation agenda, as well as enriching the digital content with the latest digital study. At the same time, one of the success story is the training program, which is called Kudratik. We have trained more than 400 employees among whether they are professional or executive employees in different government entities. At the same time, we are providing awards and digital competitiveness program to incentivize government entity to reshape their digital solutions and products to their end user. At the same time, we provide innovation and experience design, and lastly, emerging technology program to make some proof of concept of the latest technology and examine that in collaboration with the government entities to see to what extent the technology can bring digital solution for different government entities. Secondly, we provide some labs and spaces. These labs include design studio, usability lab, learning experience lab, emerging technology lab, as well as experiment or ex-reality lab. For example, in the learning experience, we are observing the current tools and techniques being provided as learning techniques, and we reshape those techniques inside the observation room, as well as in the emerging technology lab, we are examining to what extent some emerging technologies, for example, digital twin can play a vital role when it comes to the digital transformation and innovation. Now let’s talk about our initiative that have been recently launched by digital government authority, which is digital inclusivity program. As you can see, before we start, there is a need for such initiative. More than 1.6 million elder population, which equals to 4.8 of the total population, is of 35 million, and this number is expected to increase by 11% in 2023. At the same time, 1.4 million people with disability in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which is equal to 4.2% of the total population of 35 millions. Some examples of those disability include cognitive impairments, mobility impairments, visual impairments, and other physical difficulties and hearing impairments. So because of that, the digital government authority have launched the digital inclusivity program to advance the government excellence in the digital inclusivity and accessibility of government services. It provides essential tools and enablers to support digital integration and foster innovation in the delivery of government services. And there are a couple of things I would like to highlight here. Firstly, what we mean by inclusiveness is to ensure the independency and ease of use of digital services for everyone, while inclusiveness aims not to digitize the services, but rather to ensure they are designed to include everyone. The objective of digital inclusivity program includes increasing the independence rate of users in accessing government services by designing services that are accessible and easy to use for all groups, including elderly and persons with disability. And secondly, aligning with the accessibility standard means making sure that the digital services and platform follow recognized guidelines like WCAG to ensure they are usable for everyone, including people with disability. Thirdly, humanizing the service experience for the sake of providing accessible services to everyone. and Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Dr. Areej Alfaraj, Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Mr. Fawaz Alanazi and Ms. Bayan Alghuraybi, Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Yes, this is Adil Hussain from Norwegian Digitalization Agency and the Norwegian Authority for Universal

Audience: Design of ICT in other part of the world. So, the term used is digital accessibility and digital inclusiveness. But in Norway, we use the term universal design and that’s why we have authority for universal design of ICT Norway. So, my question is about, do you have, I have actually three questions. Then question one is regulatory authority that regulate the businesses if they compliance with the national legislation. And my second question is about, you mentioned you are following WCAG standards and WCAG have like 78 requirements, 78 success criteria. So, how many of these requirements businesses are obliged to follow? My third question is like you mentioned, the legislation only applies to public sector bodies. So, in Saudi Arabia, I see it’s a sixth rank in the UN e-government index. So, my third question is why not private sectors are included? And maybe I have one more question. It’s about, you mentioned digital services. So, what kind of digital services the legislation applies to? Is it only websites or mobile applications or self-service machines, maybe digital documents like PDF, EPUBs or other documents? Thanks.

Fawaz Alanazi: Thank you. Let’s answer the first question about the regulations. Actually, there is what we call it a platform. It’s called e-participation where people can send their feedback about the current services and products being provided by government entities. So, the end user with our citizens, visitors can reshape the future of the government in Saudi Arabia. So, in terms of regulations, the government, digital government authority works hand-in-hand with other government entities to ensure the latest legislation when it comes to digital transformation and innovation. The second question, I believe, or it was about the ranking of Saudi Arabia as the sixth in the UN. It’s a success story that we brought here to ensure collaboration. It’s all about collaboration. Digital government authority have worked with all government entities to ensure there is no one left behind when it comes to providing a digital service or delivery of digital services to the end user. I think the third question was about the naming

Audience: of whether it’s called accessibility or… My third question was actually the number of requirements businesses, public sector bodies have to follow. In WCAG, you mentioned WCAG. So, WCAG actually has 78 success criteria. So, how many requirements public sector bodies in Saudi have to follow? And fourth question was why the legislation not applies to private sector bodies because, as you mentioned, Saudi Arabia ranks sixth in the UN e-government ranking. So, because I know that private sector… private sector, they also develop services that government supply again to their citizens. So, that’s why I’m asking question why it don’t apply to private sector. Two

Fawaz Alanazi: questions, basically. I got it. For the private sectors, actually, we have an initiative called SADF, a digital government authority, which includes the PP or three PP, where there is a collaboration between government entities and private sectors to design a digital service for the government entity or on behalf of government entities by the private sectors. So, there is an initiative. We have it. It’s called SADF for such goal. For the requirements, as far as I know, we are following precisely the WCAG standards for the time being. Thank you. The question is, how do you see the experience of digital exclusiveness lab? And how do the procedures start to reach the final product as an initiative? And then, in this context, is it considered one of the accelerators of the application of technology in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia? Thank you. May God bless you, my brother Qusay. Thank you for your question. The experience, we may have exhibited the labs provided by the digital government authority to the government entities as a space to test the services and current products. We may even have exhibited the visionary lab. The visionary lab is where the observation, care and services and products are carried out for all government services. So, the request starts from the government side. They make the reservation to visit the center and test the current services available to them and examine the observation, testing environment inside these labs. In light of this, the final report will be shared on the current situation of the offerings of services and products and how they will be improved for the end users later on. I hope I answered your question. I think we don’t have another question. Thank you again for attending such session. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you.

Agreement points

Importance of comprehensive digital inclusivity infrastructure and testing procedures

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

Multiple specialized labs are available including design studio, usability lab, learning experience lab, and emerging technology lab for testing and development

Labs serve as testing spaces for government entities, with reservation-based visits and comprehensive reporting on service improvements

Questions about lab experience procedures and role as technology accelerator in Saudi Arabia

Summary

Both the presenter and audience members recognize the value and importance of having dedicated laboratory facilities for testing and improving digital inclusivity. The audience’s detailed questions about lab operations demonstrate engagement with and validation of the infrastructure approach.

Topics

Infrastructure | Development

Need for regulatory framework and standards compliance in digital accessibility

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

The digital inclusivity program aims to ensure independence and ease of use of digital services for everyone, following WCAG accessibility standards

The program focuses on increasing user independence, aligning with accessibility standards, and humanizing service experiences

Questions raised about regulatory authority for business compliance, specific WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector isn’t included in legislation

Summary

Both speakers acknowledge the importance of following established accessibility standards like WCAG and having proper regulatory frameworks. The audience’s technical questions about implementation details show agreement with the need for standards-based approaches.

Topics

Legal and regulatory | Human rights

Similar viewpoints

Both recognize the importance of involving multiple stakeholders (citizens, private sector, government) in digital service delivery and the need for comprehensive regulatory approaches that extend beyond just public sector entities.

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

Response indicates collaboration through e-participation platform for citizen feedback and SADF initiative for public-private partnerships in digital services

Questions raised about regulatory authority for business compliance, specific WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector isn’t included in legislation

Topics

Legal and regulatory | Development

Both acknowledge that digital inclusivity initiatives serve broader strategic purposes beyond just compliance, acting as drivers for overall technological advancement and social development.

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

Digital Inclusity Program for Elderly and People with Disabilities – Saudi Arabia has 1.6 million elderly (4.8% of population) and 1.4 million people with disabilities (4.2% of population) who need accessible digital services

Questions about experience of digital exclusiveness lab, procedures from start to final product, and whether it’s considered a technology accelerator in Saudi Arabia

Topics

Human rights | Development

Unexpected consensus

International benchmarking and comparison of digital accessibility approaches

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

Saudi Arabia’s Digital Transformation and Government Rankings – Saudi Arabia ranks highly in global digital government indexes, including first regionally in ESCOA and third globally in Government Tech Maturity Index

Questions raised about regulatory authority for business compliance, specific WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector isn’t included in legislation

Explanation

The unexpected consensus emerged around the value of international comparison and learning from global best practices. The Norwegian audience member’s detailed technical questions and the presenter’s positive reception of international ranking achievements show mutual appreciation for cross-border knowledge sharing in digital accessibility approaches.

Topics

Legal and regulatory | Development

Overall assessment

Summary

The discussion showed strong consensus around the fundamental importance of digital inclusivity infrastructure, standards-based approaches to accessibility, and multi-stakeholder collaboration. Both the presenter and audience members demonstrated shared understanding of the technical and regulatory complexities involved in implementing comprehensive digital accessibility programs.

Consensus level

High level of consensus with constructive engagement. The audience’s detailed technical questions indicated validation of the approach rather than disagreement, and the presenter’s responses showed openness to international comparison and learning. This consensus suggests strong potential for international collaboration and knowledge sharing in digital accessibility initiatives, with implications for broader adoption of similar comprehensive approaches globally.

Different viewpoints

Terminology and regulatory approach for digital accessibility

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

The program focuses on increasing user independence, aligning with accessibility standards, and humanizing service experiences

Questions raised about regulatory authority for business compliance, specific WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector isn’t included in legislation

Summary

The audience member from Norway highlighted differences in terminology (digital accessibility vs universal design) and questioned the regulatory framework’s scope and enforcement mechanisms, while the Saudi presenter focused on their current approach without addressing these regulatory gaps

Topics

Legal and regulatory | Human rights

Scope of digital inclusivity legislation coverage

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

Response indicates collaboration through e-participation platform for citizen feedback and SADF initiative for public-private partnerships in digital services

Questions raised about regulatory authority for business compliance, specific WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector isn’t included in legislation

Summary

The audience questioned why private sector is excluded from digital accessibility legislation despite Saudi Arabia’s high e-government ranking, while the Saudi response focused on voluntary partnerships rather than mandatory compliance for private entities

Topics

Legal and regulatory | Development

Unexpected differences

International terminology and approach differences

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

The digital inclusivity program aims to ensure independence and ease of use of digital services for everyone, following WCAG accessibility standards

Questions raised about regulatory authority for business compliance, specific WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector isn’t included in legislation

Explanation

The Norwegian audience member’s emphasis on ‘universal design’ terminology versus Saudi Arabia’s ‘digital inclusivity’ approach revealed unexpected international differences in conceptual frameworks for the same goals, suggesting varying national approaches to accessibility policy

Topics

Legal and regulatory | Human rights

Overall assessment

Summary

The main disagreements centered around regulatory framework comprehensiveness, private sector inclusion, and specific implementation details of accessibility standards

Disagreement level

Moderate disagreement level with significant implications – the questions raised by the international audience member highlighted potential gaps in Saudi Arabia’s regulatory approach, particularly regarding private sector compliance and specific technical requirements, which could affect the overall effectiveness of digital inclusivity initiatives

Partial agreements

Similar viewpoints

Both recognize the importance of involving multiple stakeholders (citizens, private sector, government) in digital service delivery and the need for comprehensive regulatory approaches that extend beyond just public sector entities.

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

Response indicates collaboration through e-participation platform for citizen feedback and SADF initiative for public-private partnerships in digital services

Questions raised about regulatory authority for business compliance, specific WCAG requirements implementation, and why private sector isn’t included in legislation

Topics

Legal and regulatory | Development

Both acknowledge that digital inclusivity initiatives serve broader strategic purposes beyond just compliance, acting as drivers for overall technological advancement and social development.

Speakers

– Fawaz Alanazi
– Audience

Arguments

Digital Inclusity Program for Elderly and People with Disabilities – Saudi Arabia has 1.6 million elderly (4.8% of population) and 1.4 million people with disabilities (4.2% of population) who need accessible digital services

Questions about experience of digital exclusiveness lab, procedures from start to final product, and whether it’s considered a technology accelerator in Saudi Arabia

Topics

Human rights | Development

Key takeaways

Saudi Arabia has achieved significant digital government rankings globally, including 1st regionally in ESCOA and 3rd globally in Government Tech Maturity Index, supporting Vision 2030 goals

The Digital Government Authority established in 2021 operates an innovation hub with multiple specialized labs and programs, including the successful Kudratik training program that has trained 400+ government employees

Digital inclusivity is a critical need in Saudi Arabia with 1.6 million elderly (4.8% of population) and 1.4 million people with disabilities (4.2% of population) requiring accessible digital services

The digital inclusivity program focuses on ensuring independence and ease of use for all users, following WCAG accessibility standards and humanizing service experiences

Government entities can reserve and utilize the digital inclusiveness labs for testing services and products, receiving comprehensive reports on improvements needed for end users

Collaboration between government and private sector exists through initiatives like SADF and public-private partnerships for digital service development

Resolutions and action items

Government entities can make reservations to visit and test their services in the digital inclusiveness labs

Final reports will be shared with government entities on current service status and improvement recommendations

Continued collaboration through e-participation platform for citizen feedback on government services

Unresolved issues

Specific number of WCAG requirements (out of 78 success criteria) that Saudi public sector bodies must follow was not clearly answered

Why private sector legislation compliance is not mandated despite Saudi Arabia’s high e-government ranking remains unclear

Scope of digital services covered by legislation (websites, mobile apps, self-service machines, digital documents) was not specified

Details about regulatory authority mechanisms for ensuring business compliance were not fully explained

Suggested compromises

None identified

So, the term used is digital accessibility and digital inclusiveness. But in Norway, we use the term universal design and that’s why we have authority for universal design of ICT Norway.

Speaker

Adil Hussain (Norwegian Digitalization Agency)

Reason

This comment is insightful because it introduces a comparative international perspective and highlights how different countries conceptualize the same fundamental challenge. The distinction between ‘digital accessibility/inclusiveness’ versus ‘universal design’ represents different philosophical approaches – one focusing on accommodation and the other on inherent design principles that work for everyone from the start.

Impact

This comment shifted the discussion from a purely Saudi-focused presentation to a more comparative, international dialogue. It established a framework for cross-cultural learning and prompted deeper questions about implementation approaches, regulatory frameworks, and scope of coverage.

WCAG have like 78 requirements, 78 success criteria. So, how many of these requirements businesses are obliged to follow?… why not private sectors are included?

Speaker

Adil Hussain

Reason

This series of questions is particularly thought-provoking because it challenges the scope and depth of Saudi Arabia’s digital inclusivity initiative. By asking about specific compliance requirements and private sector inclusion, it exposes potential gaps in coverage and implementation that could limit the program’s overall effectiveness.

Impact

These questions forced the presenter to address practical implementation challenges and revealed some limitations in the current approach. The questions about private sector inclusion particularly highlighted a significant gap, as private companies often develop services used by government entities, creating potential accessibility bottlenecks.

what we mean by inclusiveness is to ensure the independency and ease of use of digital services for everyone, while inclusiveness aims not to digitize the services, but rather to ensure they are designed to include everyone.

Speaker

Fawaz Alanazi

Reason

This distinction is philosophically important as it clarifies that digital inclusivity isn’t just about making services digital, but about ensuring digital services are inherently accessible. This represents a mature understanding that technology alone doesn’t solve accessibility challenges – intentional inclusive design does.

Impact

This comment established the conceptual foundation for the entire discussion and helped frame the Saudi approach as being focused on design principles rather than just technological implementation. It set the stage for more nuanced questions about how this philosophy translates into practice.

Overall assessment

The key comments fundamentally transformed what began as a straightforward presentation into a more complex, internationally-informed dialogue about digital inclusivity approaches. Adil Hussain’s interventions were particularly impactful, introducing comparative perspectives that challenged the presenters to think beyond their national context and address practical implementation gaps. His questions about private sector inclusion, specific compliance requirements, and terminology differences elevated the discussion from descriptive to analytical, forcing deeper examination of policy choices and their implications. The presenter’s philosophical distinction about inclusiveness provided important conceptual grounding, but the international perspective revealed areas where the Saudi approach might be strengthened, particularly regarding private sector engagement and comprehensive regulatory frameworks.

What is the regulatory framework for enforcing digital accessibility compliance in businesses and public sector bodies in Saudi Arabia?

Speaker

Adil Hussain (Norwegian Digitalization Agency)

Explanation

Understanding the enforcement mechanisms is crucial for ensuring actual implementation of accessibility standards rather than just guidelines

How many of the 78 WCAG success criteria are public sector bodies in Saudi Arabia obligated to follow?

Speaker

Adil Hussain (Norwegian Digitalization Agency)

Explanation

This clarifies the specific scope and depth of accessibility requirements that organizations must meet

Why doesn’t the digital accessibility legislation apply to private sector organizations in Saudi Arabia?

Speaker

Adil Hussain (Norwegian Digitalization Agency)

Explanation

Given that private sectors often develop services for government use and Saudi Arabia’s high e-government ranking, understanding this gap is important for comprehensive digital inclusion

What specific types of digital services does the accessibility legislation cover (websites, mobile apps, self-service machines, digital documents like PDFs, EPUBs)?

Speaker

Adil Hussain (Norwegian Digitalization Agency)

Explanation

Defining the scope of covered digital services is essential for organizations to understand their compliance obligations

How can the digital inclusiveness lab experience be leveraged as an accelerator for technology application in Saudi Arabia?

Speaker

Qusay (implied from Arabic question)

Explanation

Understanding the broader impact and scalability of the lab’s work could help maximize its contribution to national digital transformation goals