The Middle-East market for video surveillance equipment exceeded $500 million in 2015 and is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 8 percent, from 2016 to 2020. Market growth is more than three times greater in the Middle East than in Europe and Africa, making it an attractive market for vendors, writes Jon Cropley, Principal Analyst, at the market research company IHS Markit.
Even so, not all Middle-Eastern countries are growing at equal rates. In some countries, markets will grow much faster than the regional average, while others will experience slower growth, according to latest information from the IHS Markit Video Surveillance Intelligence Service.
The Turkish and Qatari markets are both forecast to grow quickly, but for different reasons. In Turkey, comparatively high economic growth, recent civil unrest, and terrorist attacks are key factors. In Qatar, large infrastructure and leisure projects linked to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, coupled with local regulations, are important. Meanwhile, in some other Middle-Eastern countries, government and private sector security spending is being postponed or cancelled, due to the knock-on effects of low oil prices.
Regulations still play an important role in many Middle-Eastern countries, including mandates about the kind of organizations that must install video surveillance and the level of coverage they have to maintain. Other regulations cover minimum camera resolutions, frame rates, and footage retention times and other equipment specifications.
Familiarity with these regulations, which are frequently updated, is not the only challenge international vendors face when doing business in the Middle East. Business deals depend heavily on personal relationships, local support, cultural understanding, and a proven track record of reliability. Nevertheless, there is a stronger appetite for international brands than in many other regional markets. None of the largest fifteen vendors in 2015 were headquartered in the Middle East. Furthermore, the supply base is less fragmented than many other regional markets, with the top fifteen accounting for more than two-thirds (70 percent) of market revenues.
