Mumbai : The escalating need for high-level security, ease of access, and secured mode of payment are driving the growth of smart cards market in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region. The technology is likely to be primarily adopted in applications such as health cards, driver’s license, and conditional access system television, but the biggest demand is expected from the telecommunications segment due to the shift from fixed line telephony to mobile telephony. This segment is anticipated to account for 64.5 percent of the overall smart card sales.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan ( http://www.smartcards.frost.com ), Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Smart Cards Market, finds that the market earned revenues of $229.3 million in 2009 and estimates this to reach $328.5 million in 2014, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.8 percent.

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Meanwhile, over the last five years, the MENA region has ramped up homeland security by implementing more smart card-based security to avoid counterfeiting and instances of fraudulence in the existing database.

“Illegal immigration and the need for high-level security in the government administration are the key areas of concern,” says Frost & Sullivan Senior Research Analsyt Bharath K. “Smart card suppliers are focusing on providing a secured and customized solution for both government and private segments.”

The governments of different countries in the MENA region are in the process of assessing and building a complete database of the citizens, immigrants, and expats for the national identity card project. Individual government agencies are also supporting various government initiatives to make this project a major success.

However, providing a comprehensive database, securing the data for government-related projects, and integrating multi-government projects involve a tedious and time-consuming process. Suppliers with the technological resources are likely to make the most of the tremendous opportunities generated by these large-scale government projects.

Suppliers are investing considerably in R&D to keep pace with the continuous technology updates and the need for highly secured transactions in the banking industry. With an increasing number of applications in the smart cards market, the suppliers are investing heavily in developing superior products and solutions.

“The market is likely to get an additional boost from the usage of smart payment in both metros and road transportation,” notes Bharath. “The introduction of smart cards in driver’s license and vehicle registration also bodes well for the market.”

Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Smart Cards Market is part of the Smart Cards Growth Partnership Services program, which also includes research in the following markets: Asia Pacific Smart Card Integrated Circuit on Different Form Factors, India Smart Cards Market, South Korea Smart Cards Market, World Smart Card Readers and Chipsets Markets, among others. All research services included in subscriptions provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends that have been evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants.