Smartphone use in Saudi Arabia is nearly double the international average. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that Saudis are some of the most connected people on Earth.

In total, the kingdom has more than 44 million mobile phone subscribers, 88 percent of which have smartphones, according to the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), as reported by Arab News.

These figures also mean that there are more mobile subscriptions in the kingdom than there are citizens. 

Mohammed Al-Tamimi, deputy governor of the organization and competition sector of the CITC, explained that the prevalence of mobile phones is 138.7 percent – or about 1.4 devices per person in the kingdom.

Of these, 75 percent are prepaid subscriptions and 25 percent are post-paid subscriptions.

As Riyadh pushes forward with its ambitious Vision 2030 plan and its largest-ever budget planned for 2018, connectivity will be key to the kingdom's future success.

This week, CITC governor Abdul Aziz Al-Ruwais said that communication and connectivity are valuable parts of Vision 2030, as the kingdom seeks to "create an environment which attracts local and international investors and strengthens their trust", according to Arab News.

Al-Tamimi also stressed that CITC is taking important steps to organize the mobile communications market and ensure competition.

Saudi Arabia has permanently shut down its only land border with Qatar, as tensions between the kingdom and the emirate persist.

Since Monday night, the Salwa border gate has been permanently closed, according to a letter issued by Saudi Arabia's customs directorate and reported the Daily Sabah.

The letter says that Saudi officials ordered the border's closure.

Qatar has been at odds with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, and Egypt since earlier this year. All four Arab countries ended their diplomatic and trade ties with the emirate on June 5. Qatari media was also blocked in the countries.

Led by Saudi Arabia, the Arab nations have accused Qatar of funding extremists and supporting terrorism throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For its part, Qatar has denied the allegations.

The land border was initially closed shortly after the boycott began. However, during the Hajj season, the land border was once again reopened for pilgrims to pass through to visit the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

In July, Qatar boasted that it is wealthy enough to withstand the economic blockade from its neighboring countries.

"We have sovereign wealth funds of 250 percent of our gross domestic product, we have Qatar Central Bank reserves, and we have a ministry of finance strategic reserve," Qatar's Finance Minister Ali Sharif al-Emadi said, explaining this would allow his country to withstand sanctions from its neighbors.

The Saudi-led boycott against Qatar has clearly listed its demands but so far, no diplomatic solution has proven fruitful in resolving the crisis.