Connect | MENA // Major Panel: Blueprints without builders - Can MENA deliver the talent to match its digital ambitions?

MENA’s rapid digital infrastructure expansion is running up against a severe execution bottleneck, in a shortage of skilled, scalable talent. As project complexity increases, the gap between technical demand and workforce capacity is driving up costs, extending timelines, and jeopardizing operational quality. This session addresses the region’s workforce crisis, exploring whether national training programs, vocational pathways, and cross-sector mobility can build the human capital required to sustain growth. Can structural reforms and industry partnerships transform ambitious plans into delivered infrastructure, or will workforce shortages force a rethink of design and delivery scope? The discussion will examine how current talent gaps are affecting project execution, the long-term implications of dependency on foreign expertise, and the effectiveness of national workforce strategies. Panelists will also assess how cross-sector skill migration can be optimized and what the future holds for MENA’s infrastructure delivery if workforce challenges remain unresolved.