Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 38 | Page 50

COUNTRY FOCUS: OMAN skills and hardware and organisations to maintain that. “If you go to Equinix you now go on to our global platform and you can meet your IT providers, cloud providers and service providers in our data centres and from behind one desk manage all of those locations. We work with our customers to make sure that in all those locations people have the same quality of services, the same secure access, the same performance and the same data compliance all over the world and that is the benefit of working with Equinix. It’s a single provider that offers you global consistency.” shifts occurring as the result of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), and how the sultanate can best leverage technology to stay ahead of changes and ensure that 4IR’s benefits accrue to all Omanis. Under the terms of the partnership, Microsoft will work with its global partners to put Oman’s ITA leaders in touch with the world’s most innovative solution providers, working in 4IR arenas such as Artificial Intelligence, predictive analytics, Machine Learning, Blockchain and the Internet of Things. Prem Rodrigues, Siemon’s director of sales and marketing for the Middle East, India and SAARC that help businesses future-proof their network infrastructures and the forum gave us a valuable opportunity to position the company as a leader in network infrastructure solutions in the region. “We will continue to build our presence in Oman, as we continue to provide technology and services that optimise data centre and intelligent building infrastructures.” Jeroen Schlosser, Managing Director, Equinix MENA Making next generation data centres a reality Equinix is not the only technology company to recognise the potential of Oman. Siemon, a leading global network infrastructure specialist, joined forces with Signify, formerly Philips Lighting, a leader in connected and IoT lighting, and value-added distributor Mart Networks to deliver an Emerging Technology Forum. This presented innovative solutions and technologies that are making next generation data centres and intelligent buildings a reality to delegates in Muscat. “We are delighted with the amount of interest this Emerging Technology Forum received,” said Prem Rodrigues, Siemon’s director of sales and marketing for the Middle East, India and SAARC at Siemon. Strong attendance confirms that there is great interest in solutions 50 INTELLIGENTCIO Partnerships key to Digital Transformation Oman’s Information Technology Authority (ITA) has joined forces with Microsoft in its efforts to digitally transform the nation, in line with Oman Vision 2040 – established by the royal directive of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said. The partnership, that will cement the co-operation between ITA and Microsoft, was signed in Washington, where the delegates witnessed the advanced technologies designed for ambitious Digital Transformation journeys. As the Oman Government’s frontline force in driving Digital Transformation across the sultanate, the ITA’s areas of responsibility span national infrastructure projects and the supervision of all programmes related to the implementation of the Digital Oman Strategy, including providing professional leadership to other government entities engaged in the Digital Transformation projects. The strategic collaboration between the ITA and Microsoft will focus on how Oman can take advantage of the societal Through such regional and global outreach, it is envisaged that Microsoft will promote and enable knowledge transfer and capacity building that will accelerate Digital Transformation across the public and private sectors of the sultanate. “Industry 4.0 is a runaway train that cannot be stopped,” said Dr Salim Al Ruzaiqi, CEO of ITA. “Instead, we in government must look for ways to harness the change to the benefit of all who call Oman home, in line with His Majesty’s vision. That is why we have partnered with Microsoft; because its leaders tell a compelling Digital Transformation story – one where the benefits of change are shared by all.” Each month, Microsoft will deliver technology-awareness sessions for government officials. Separate, quarterly ‘ideation workshops’ will be devoted to capacity-building, turning ideas into practical solutions, and delivering a high- level implementation roadmap. Technology proofs of concept will also play a significant role in the partnership. The ITA, will provide cloud infrastructure for hosting technology workshops and proofs of concept, and facilitate connections with business and technical stakeholders. “Microsoft is on a mission to empower every individual, organisation to achieve more,” said Sheikh Saif Al Hosni, Country Manager, Bahrain and Oman, Microsoft. “We have long admired the ITA’s vision for digitisation and its efforts to accelerate Digital Transformation in the public and private sectors of Oman enabling them to empower, engage, optimise and transform. Through this partnership, we will take the next steps together.” n www.intelligentcio.com