RIYADH, 19 April 2006 — Cisco Systems, a worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, will invest SR1 billion ($265 million) in Saudi Arabia. This significant investment initiative was signed by Cisco Systems President and CEO John Chambers and Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) Gov. Amr Al-Dabbagh.
“Saudi Arabia is experiencing a transformation as it expands its economic growth opportunities into new sectors using advanced information technology,” said Chambers. “Today’s investment in Saudi Arabia reflects our alignment with the country’s focus on entrepreneurship, innovation and education, which we believe will help drive the 21st century global economy,” he added.
Dabbagh said: “This affirms SAGIA’s commitment in attracting investments by leading multinational corporations such as Cisco Systems. SAGIA helps provide a positive environment for foreign investors to support the Kingdom’s vision of being an important part of the global economy. In this regard, Cisco Systems’ investments will play a critical role in transforming the ICT and educational sectors in Saudi Arabia.”
Cisco Systems’ investment plan for Saudi Arabia includes an increase in the overall headcount of the company’s employees in Saudi Arabia from 70 to 600 while also providing leasing and other financial solutions to Cisco Systems customers and partners in the country.
It will also develop a Cisco Systems Technology and Entrepreneurship Innovation Center and sponsor a Saudi technology innovation and entrepreneurship institute, incubation space for local start-ups, research and development activities, labs and demonstration centers and an academic chair in entrepreneurship.
The company will also provide equipment, training, education and support required to network 2,000 homes in Saudi Arabia’s underprivileged communities, in support of King Abdullah’s Charitable Housing Foundation effort. It will establish 100 more Networking Academies in the country to provide enhanced technical programs in concert with leading local universities. There are 46 networking academies currently in operation across Saudi Arabia.
The company will expand the existing Cisco Systems Networking Academy program by establishing a “Netversity” in the Kingdom which will partner with public and private education organizations and provide advanced business and technical training to align Saudi youth with the needs of world class employers.
As Saudi Arabia transforms itself into a connected Kingdom, it is well positioned to leapfrog more traditional markets in terms of technology adoption, the SAGIA press release said. Cisco Systems first established operations in Saudi Arabia in 1998 and today has offices in Riyadh, Jeddah and Alkhobar.
A recent Momentum Research Group study aimed at measuring the productivity effect of IT compared government and health care operations and services in the Kingdom to countries in Europe, put Saudi Arabia leading the European nations in many areas.