Microsoft Cloud set to add $39b to UAE economy, create 100,000 jobs

Inayat-ur-Rahman, Business Editor

The Gitex Global entered its second day on Tuesday. Exhibitors are upbeat about this year show after the worst pandemic. The Microsoft Cloud will generate about $39 billion over four years and create close to 100,000 jobs, according to an International Data Corporation (IDC) study released on Tuesday at Gitex Global 2022 in Dubai World Trade Centre.

The IDC Infosnapshot, sponsored by Microsoft, “Microsoft Cloud Dividend Snapshot” for the United Arab Emirates shows that between now and 2026, the four-year accumulated total for new revenue from the Microsoft Cloud will be $39 billion, with 16.6% accumulated benefit emanating from its cloud data centre regions in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. This revenue will be generated by the Microsoft Cloud ecosystem, made up of Microsoft, its partners, and its cloud customers.

“IDC’s findings are confirmation that Microsoft’s efforts to support the government, business community, citizens, and residents of the UAE are bearing fruit,” said Naim Yazbeck, General Manager, Microsoft UAE. “Since we opened our Abu Dhabi and Dubai data centres in 2019, the trusted, versatile, flexible Microsoft Cloud has been driving investment in economies, the creation of jobs, a reduction in carbon emissions, and progress in sustainability. IDC’s snapshot is a projection of how our continued efforts will bring further successes for the communities we serve.”

“Microsoft has long been a trusted partner in the UAE’s growth journey,” Yazbeck added. “We guide individuals, enterprises, and governments to leverage our products, platforms, and data-driven services to thrive in a connected world. We pledge to continue investing in infrastructure, research, and people to ensure a future that is prosperous and sustainable for everyone in the UAE.”

Saudi Exports: The Saudi Export Development Authority (Saudi Exports) is taking part in the Gitex tech event. Featuring more than 33 national companies, the Saudi Made pavilion seeks to boost the Saudi best-in-class technology products and services at one of the world’s largest tech shows.

Saudi Exports’ participation in the prestigious event demonstrates its commitment to scaling up the brand image of  Saudi Exports and highlighting lucrative cross-border business opportunities. This will further cement Saudi Exports’ position in the regional and global markets, thereby connecting exporters with potential buyers, and promoting national products and services in one of the major vital trading platforms that gather investors and attract ICT enthusiasts. This participation will also unlock growth potential and contribute to increasing the share of national products and services in global markets with the aim of raising the private sector contribution to GDP to 65% and the share of non-oil exports to 50% of non-oil GDP by 2030.

During 2021, Saudi services exports posted a growth of 15 % compared to 2020, with a value of SAR 38.6 billion. It is worth noting that both the telecommunications and transportation sectors have yielded the most impressive growth.

Gitex is the world’s most prominent technology exhibition that showcases  IT products and solutions. Bringing together more than 170 countries and 100,000 visitors, the exhibition features the world’s technology trends in AI, cloud computing, consumer technology, and data centers, in addition to e-marketing and many other tech-powered revolutions.

OneScreen: Call it the new six-degrees of separation or what you will but a San Diego-based smart tech provider is making waves at this Gitex Global with an innovative system that promises to transform the way teams collaborate and communicate through its round-the-clock support inside a matter of six minutes.

OneScreen is participating at this year’s biggest tech gathering for the first time in partnership with region’s leading value-added ICT distributors DVCOM . At the top of their lineup of exhibits is their unique Guru Support that provides the corporate community with free live demonstrations of their products and free live help through audio/video calls at any time.

“We are absolutely thrilled to be attending Gitex to showcase the brilliant technologies that OneScreen has developed to change the scope of collaboration in the corporate sector for good. Our Guru Support is one of them,” said Sufian Munir, CEO of OneScreen.

OneScreen’s collaboration technologies allow teams to seamlessly work together. Its hardware, software and web conferencing solutions are ideal for the conference or board room, allowing remote teams as well as on-site teams to communicate without any barriers.

“As an organisation with associates all over the state, we are really happy with the service OneScreen offers. If we encounter issues the tech support is available immediately to get things solved in minutes,” said Heather Calhoun of Stark Raving Solutions.