Bahrain ranked ‘top in the Gulf’ in net connectivity
BAHRAIN has been ranked the top Gulf country in serving the digital needs of its population.
The Digital Life Abroad Report released by German-based InterNations, the world’s largest online expat community, has ranked Bahrain 12th among 68 countries and first among GCC nations for easy Internet connectivity.
The survey, based on responses from expats, identifies the best and worst countries to live a connected life.
Countries are ranked based on several parameters including unrestricted access to online services, ease of getting a local mobile phone number, ease of paying without cash, and ease of getting access to high-speed Internet at home.
Estonia, Finland, Norway, Denmark and New Zealand have been ranked the top five countries in the world for offering the best digital environment.
“Within the GCC states, Bahrain (12th) ranks far ahead of Qatar (28th), the UAE (37th), Oman (46th), Kuwait (56th), and Saudi Arabia (63rd),” said the report.
“Expats in the (region) are particularly unsatisfied with the restricted access to online services, while the availability of online administrative or government services is rated positively in most of the states.”
The report also highlighted that Bahrain was rated as ‘The Country for Expats’ in 2018 by InterNations.
“It receives its best rating with regard to the availability of administrative or government online services (seventh out of 68), with 84 per cent of expats rating this positively (compared with 55pc globally),” added the report.
It explained that expats in Bahrain find it easy to get a mobile phone number (13th out of 68) and to pay without cash (15th out of 68).
However, Bahrain has been ranked at 49 for unrestricted access to online services (social media).
“While this is a low ranking globally, Bahrain is still ahead of all other GCC states surveyed, which rank among the bottom 10 countries for this factor,” said the report.
One expat quoted in the report said compared to other Gulf countries, including the UAE, Bahrain has more freedoms when it came to Internet connectivity.
“We have Skype and WhatsApp calls, which also helps us to communicate with friends and family more easily,” said the Kenyan national in the report.
The five countries that received low ratings for unrestricted access to online services are Myanmar, China, Egypt, India and the Philippines.
