Arun ShankarOracle’s second Cloud region in UAE located in Abu Dhabi has gone live. The Abu Dhabi Cloud region, and the previously launched Dubai Cloud region, will offer Oracle Cloud services, Oracle Autonomous Database and Oracle Cloud Applications.
Speaking at the event, Ahmed Adly, Senior Director Cloud Solutions Engineering, MEA Oracle, pointed out that Oracle had one of its best ever quarter earnings ending in November 2021. “We are pivoting at the right time,” he pointed out.
Also speaking at the event, Sean Murphy, Chargé d’Affaires at the United States Embassy, Abu Dhabi, pointed out that the launch of the cloud regions in UAE, are a model of Emirati and US business innovation. “Oracle is an example of a US company dedicated to UAE, the regional digital hub.” Oracle remains committed to promoting cross border, data transfer flows.
UAE Ministers were also present and spoke during the event, including His Excellency Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade; His Excellency Dr Mohamed Hamad Al Kuwaiti, Head of Cybersecurity for the UAE Government; and His Excellency Mohamed Abdelhameed Al Askar, Director General, Abu Dhabi Digital Authority.
They were of the opinion that initiatives such as the Oracle cloud regions inside the county can enhance local activities and help to accelerate the GDP targets set for UAE. In-country data transfer flows will boost automation, data analysis, and enable digital transformation within the cloud regions. Many of the Abu Dhabi government institutions are already actively spending on cloud and the vision is no servers in the government.
Regis Louis, Vice President of Cloud Strategy, EMEA Oracle, pointed out that Oracle Cloud regions and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure datacentres, are the same all over the world. “They have the same architecture, same services, and this gives predictability to Oracle’s global operation.”
As part of Oracle’s planned expansion of its cloud region footprint to support customer demand for Oracle Cloud services worldwide, Oracle will open seven additional cloud regions in 2022, in Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Chile, France, Israel, and Saudi Arabia. Oracle plans to have at least 44 cloud regions by the end of 2022.
Oracle’s two cloud regions in UAE will provide secure, advanced, agile platform for organisations to leverage the full potential of digital technologies. IDC estimates public cloud services adoption is accelerating at CAGR of 28% YoY between 2020 and 2025 in the UAE. IDC projects this growth momentum will continue.
The UAE’s Fourth Industrial Revolution Strategy focuses on advancing the national economy by driving innovation with latest emerging technologies.
Growing number of organisations in the UAE have migrated some or all their on-premises IT infrastructure deployments to IaaS and PaaS cloud environments and are realising a range of benefits. These include anywhere, anytime access, open-ended scalability, infrastructure flexibility, rapid deployment, and shorter time to market. One of the most sought-after benefits, not surprisingly, is cost reduction.
These significant cost savings are channelled back into the local economy, thus making an important contribution to the national digital economy.
Oracle is fully aligned with Abu Dhabi Digital Authority’s mandate of delivering digital services, platforms, channels, and implementation of applied intelligence and cybersecurity solutions for government entities. Oracle’s new cloud region in Abu Dhabi will help accelerate the authority’s efforts.
Oracle has been working towards creating a strong local IT talent pool in the UAE. Under the recently completed skills development initiatives with the UAE’s Higher Colleges of Technology and its commercial arm, the Centre of Excellence for Applied Research & Training, Oracle has upskilled 1,098 students in emerging technologies.
His Excellency Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade
“Oracle’s decision to open a second cloud region in the UAE is a clear reflection of our nation’s embrace of digital transformation, advanced technologies and the applications of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which have become central to our economic and investment strategy for the next 50 years. We are committed to developing an innovative- and knowledge-based economy that encourages the development and deployment of the technologies of the future, and attracting human, financial and technological capital to the nation is central to these ambitions. Oracle’s continued investment into the UAE will only accelerate this process, providing critical infrastructure, expertise and insights to further elevate the UAE’s standing as a place where the boldest ideas and biggest projects can come to life.”
His Excellency Dr Mohamed Hamad Al Kuwaiti, Head of Cybersecurity for the UAE Government
“The UAE Government has rapidly transitioned from being a conventional set up to a smart government entity, and now with the increasing pace of digital transformation across the country’s public and private sector, we are progressing towards being an AI enabled government. This progress is in line with the digital economy goals of our country, but we must also ensure that the cyber resilience of the UAE is maintained to mitigate cybercrime and increase international collaboration. Oracle’s two cloud regions in the UAE are important investments towards providing cyber resilience and secure digital infrastructure for organisations to enjoy the full benefits of cloud computing.”
His Excellency Mohamed Abdelhameed Al Askar, Director General, Abu Dhabi Digital Authority
“At Abu Dhabi Digital Authority, we are on a mission to enable, support and deliver a digital government that is proactive, personalised, collaborative, and secure. Oracle’s cloud region in Abu Dhabi will help us accelerate the Emirate’s digital agenda and leverage innovative solutions and emerging technologies to help achieve Abu Dhabi’s socio-economic objectives.”
