The State of Qatar is ranked among the highest countries in the world in terms of Internet penetration and quality of communications, with a usage rate of about 99% of the population compared to a global average of about 63%, supported by an advanced digital infrastructure and communications networks that are among the most advanced in the world.
The latest reports of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) showed that Qatar is among the highest performing countries in the ICT Development Index for the year 2025, achieving 98.4 points out of 100, which reflects the remarkable progress that the country continues to achieve in the areas of digital infrastructure, connectivity, availability of services at affordable prices, and use of the Internet.
The ICT Development Index is a global reference tool for measuring the development of the digital sector, and it relies on two basic dimensions: comprehensive communication, which evaluates the availability of infrastructure and services, and purposeful communication, which focuses on quality of use, ease of access, and efficiency of digital interaction. This year’s index included an assessment of 164 countries around the world.
Excel in comprehensive communication
The State of Qatar scored a full score (100) in comprehensive connectivity, which reflects complete coverage of mobile broadband and Internet connectivity. It also achieved 96.8 points in meaningful connectivity, which evaluates the level of use, the availability of services at affordable prices, and the volume of data consumption.
With its performance of (98.4) points, the State of Qatar is also ranked among the ranks of advanced digital countries such as Finland (98.7 points), Denmark (97.9 points), and Singapore (97.7 points). Among the Arab countries, the State of Qatar achieved one of the highest results in 2025.
Mobile communications represent approximately 156% of the population, reflecting the widespread use of multiple SIM cards and smartphones, while social media accounts cover approximately 84% of the population. According to the global digital report (Digital 2025: Qatar) issued by DataReportal. It is the most widely used reference globally for statistics on the Internet, mobile phones, and social media platforms.
Wide network coverage
Qatar enjoys wide coverage of 4G and 5G networks in various regions of the country, supported by continuous investments in digital infrastructure, which contributes to providing high-speed communication services to individuals and companies, including desert areas, giving it one of the densest mobile broadband environments in the region.
The latest reports of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority also indicate that the State of Qatar has one of the highest coverage rates of fifth generation networks in the world, through the main telecommunications operators Vodafone Qatar and Ooredoo.
Advanced infrastructure
On the infrastructure front, Qatar combines near-universal fiber-to-the-home coverage with strong international connectivity via at least six operational submarine cable systems (AAE-1, Falcon, FOG, GBI, Qatar-Emirates and TGN-Gulf), as well as new capacity from the 2Africa cable and the regional Fiber to the Gulf (FIG) cable.
The Oreed Group recently announced a partnership with Du, a company specializing in communications and digital services, to land a fiber optic cable in the Gulf – Fiber in Gulf (FIG)/ in the United Arab Emirates.
Arid explained that the Gulf fiber optic system is the largest submarine cable system to be constructed in the Gulf Cooperation Council region, as it was designed to provide a data capacity of up to 720 terabits per second through 24 pairs of optical fibers. The system is being developed to meet the growing demand from hyperscale computing providers, cloud service providers, artificial intelligence platforms, and data center operators, allowing data flows with high efficiency and low response time across Qatar, the Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and the Sultanate. Oman.
Qatar is also one of the few countries in the region to host two hyperscale cloud regions, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Doha, providing a multi-region infrastructure within the country supported by a growing local data center market and a national Internet exchange point.