Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Council for Economic and Development Affairs, unveiled the National Gaming and Esports Strategy that marks the beginning of a new era toward leading the gaming sector and making the Kingdom a global hub for the sector by 2030.
This would contribute to achieving Vision 2030 objectives to diversify the economy, create new jobs in various sectors, and provide world-class entertainment for citizens, residents and visitors.
The Crown Prince said the National Gaming and Esports Strategy is driven by the creativity and energy of citizens and gamers, who are at the heart of the strategy.
"We are delivering on the ambitions of the gaming community in Saudi Arabia and around the world, with an exciting new career, and unique entertainment opportunities; aiming to make Saudi Arabia the ultimate global hub for this sector by 2030, " the state agency SPA quoted the Crown Prince as saying.
The strategy has three main objectives that have a direct impact on citizens, the private sector, fans and professionals of games and esports around the world, including to raise the quality of life by improving the players’ experience, providing new entertainment opportunities, and achieving an economic impact by contributing to the gross domestic product by about 50 billion riyals directly and indirectly.
It will also create 39,000 new direct and indirect job opportunities by 2030, providing the foundational environment for developing competencies, and aiming to reach global leadership and enhance the Kingdom’s position on the international arena, through the production of more than 30 competitive games Globally in the Kingdom’s studios, and reaching the top three countries in the number of professional esports players.
The launch of the strategy as a continuation of many other initiatives achieved by the Kingdom in entertainment, sports, and video game sectors, within the framework of Vision 2030. The Kingdom intends to implement the strategy through 86 initiatives covering the entire value chain, which will be launched and managed by more than 20 government and private entities.
The initiatives are divided into eight focus areas, including technology and hardware development, game production, e-sports, additional services, and other enabling aspects that include infrastructure, regulations, education, and talent acquisition, as well as financing and financial support.
The gaming and esports sector is considered the fastest growing among all media sectors, and its audience is rapidly increasing, which makes it an economy in itself, and is expected to reach $200 billion by 2023, according to SPA.
It also forms the Kingdom’s position as a geographical link between the East and West and its young population of around 21M.
