RIYADH, 20 April 2004 — The growing trend in e-government and e-commerce has spurred new investments in the IT sector as ministries and various public sector organizations change over to new technology. Manpower development is now in demand with Cisco, a major US-based networking firm, alone investing $250 million in training 800 Saudis to use its operating system.
Rob Lloyd, Cisco president for Europe, Middle East and Africa, said that besides the Ministry of Haj, other government departments were discussing the blueprint for setting up networks. These would provide smart solutions for traffic control, health management services and other services to make government more public-oriented, cut down cost, and boost productivity.
So far, 35 Saudis have completed the 280-hour curriculum to qualify as Cisco Certified Network Associates. Cisco, one of the associates of Saudi Telecom Company, has also set up 20 networking academies in the Kingdom’s three major provinces in conjunction with universities and technical institutions, including the General Organization for Technical Education and Vocational Training (GOTEVOT).
Lloyd said that Cisco is working closely with STC in the launch of its Internet Protocol Virtual Private Network (IP VPN) that allows the establishment of private networks.
This service, offered by Saudi Data, allows the interconnection of many locations through the establishment of a private network within companies, establishments and banks. The networks enable all work locations within the organization to share the information, access the Internet, transfer data quickly leading to increased productivity.
He said this service has several features, such as prioritizing data transmission between sites networks, increasing channel capacity, adding new sites networks. The network will also give video conferencing, image, voice and data transmission via one circuit. The service is secure as it is managed and controlled by STC.
Fazal Sait, corporate accounts manager, Saudi Logistics & Electronics Co., a registered Cisco partner, told Arab News that investment in the networking sector is expected to double in the next two to three years.
“Our company has begun a major project for one of the ministries in the data networking using IP-based technology leading to the integration of data, voice and video,” said Fazal.