IT giant Infosys sets up joint venture in Kingdom

JEDDAH: Infosys Ltd. has become the latest Indian IT services company to set up a joint venture with a local company in Saudi Arabia to tap local customers in the Kingdom.
Infosys is investing $321,671 or Rs21.2 million (SR1.2 million) for a 70 percent stake in the JV with Saudi Prerogative Company (SPC) to tap local IT service business, the company said in a statement to the stock market.
The deal is subject to approval from the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA), Business Standard reported.
Infosys lags behind local rivals such as Wipro and Tata Consultancy Services in engaging with the Kingdom, which is investing in infrastructure and education to adapt to the knowledge economy.
TCS has a strong local business in its all women back office center in Saudi Arabia jointly with Saudi Aramco and GE, where it employs over 1,000 women doing back office work for the petroleum company. The Kingdom is transforming itself from a largely oil driven economy to a site for technological disruption, and research and development.
Wipro has a presence in Saudi Arabia since 2002, serving customers such as Saudi Aramco and Saudi Telecom with software consultancy and building applications.
In May, Wipro’s local subsidiary, Saudi Aramco and Princess Nora University (PNU) set up Saudi’s first all women business and technology park.
The project is expected to create nearly 21,000 jobs for Saudi women over a period of 10 years.