ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF ICT ON ECONOMIC GROWTH FOR QATAR IN GLOBALIZATION CONTEXT

In recent years, advancement in information and communication technology (ICT) has caused many international structural changes. The world as developed, emerging and developing communities started extremely to harness ICT for sustainable development and advance creative and innovative knowledge societies in globalization context. The significant role of ICT is stemmed from empowering humans, governments and organizations to renovate information into knowledge as a forceful driver in progressing lasting change in the globalization of economy and society. Given the significance of ICT development and innovation as a key cause in increasing productivity, growth rates, economic development and advancement in all expanses, the developed countries have given great importance to adopt ICT drivers, tools and techniques to achieve continuous technology development, so as followed by developing countries to be accommodated with international changes. Economists forecast that economic growth is motivated by investments in ICT. The determination of this investigation is to examine the effects of ICT capital and labour stocks on economic growth for Qatar covering the period from 1995 to 2013, as ICT is an important driver for the globalization process. The outcomes show that there is a positive and significant association between the GDP per capita and the ICT index. The information density that consists of network and skills sub-indices is used as an indicator of ICT, where this ICT index has interpreted the impact on GDP per capita.