March 20, 2008 Gulf IT Sector to
Cross $12-bn Mark by 2011
Dubai
The information technology market in the Gulf is growing at a fast
rate and is expected to be worth over $12 billion mark by 2011.
"The Middle East and Africa region are growing at a phenomenal rate.
Projections are that the market will cross the $12 billion mark by
2011," Jyoti Lalchandani, International Data Corporation (IDC)
vice-president and regional director for Middle East and Africa,
told the Gulf News.
He said 40 percent of IT budgets in the region are going to be
allocated towards new initiatives such as supply chain management,
business management or consolidation of infrastructure.
He, however, warned that shortage of skills could affect the growth
of IT in the region.
"The region is currently facing a shortage of skills in several
areas such as networking, application and implementation, which is
quite predominant in other parts of the world as well," he said.
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Dubai firm unveils details of
$12-bn Saudi project
Limitless, the real estate development arm of Dubai World, the
holding company of the Dubai government, has unveiled details of its
$12-billion Al Wasl project in Saudi Arabia.
The master plan includes 55,000 homes for 200,000 people, offices,
hotels, mosques, health and educational facilities, shopping malls,
sports amenities and over 300 hectares of green, open space.
"In delivering Al Wasl, Limitless will apply its key strengths of
creating distinctive, large-scale, balanced projects. Al Wasl,
meaning 'connection', will bring together a tailor-made development
that preserves traditional Saudi culture and a stainable, modern
community that will create some 50,000 jobs," Limitless CEO Saeed
Ahmed Saeed said in a statement.
Al Wasl is the first of several projects in the pipeline for
Limitless in Saudi Arabia, where 50,000 new homes are needed each
year.
The new development will include, among other things, 55 mosques,
including seven grand mosques, eight shopping complexes, including
world-class malls, several five star hotels and an
environment-friendly internal transit system.
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Emaar in $600-mn Indonesian JV to
develop mega-tourism project
The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) leading real estate developer Emaar
has entered into a joint venture with Indonesia's Bali Tourism
Development Corporation (BTDC) for a $600-million mega-tourism and
mixed-use project.
Emaar chairman Mohamed Ali Alabbar signed the agreement with BTDC
president director I. Made Mandra, and chief of BTDC's investment
coordinating board Muhammad Lutfi in the presence of Indonesian
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Dubai.
The flagship Lombok project is envisaged as a world-class
residential and resort community sprawling over 1,175 hectares.
The focus of the project will be to drive tourism to the region by
offering a diverse leisure spread such as diving, snorkeling, hiking
and surfing sports, for which Lombok is acclaimed globally.
There will be a seven-km natural waterfront supporting a marina,
luxury residences, golf course and resorts to be operated by
five-star hospitality chains.
"The joint venture lends momentum to our expansion plans for
Indonesia, a key market where we have already been involved in
developing eco-friendly homes in Ngelepen to rehabilitate the
earthquake affected," Alabbar said in a statement.
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