ICT Industry leaders tells Oxford Business Group
Cairo, October 2019: Egypt’s successful efforts to carve a niche as a regional hub for technology and innovation, and attract multinational ICT companies are explored by four key industry players in interviews they gave recently to Oxford Business Group’s online broadcasting channel, Global Platform.
Alexandre Froment-Curtil, CEO, Vodafone Egypt; Frances Woodworth, Deputy Site Leader, Orange Business Services Egypt; Reem Asaad, CEO, Raya Contact Centre; and Ahmed Osama, Innovation Manager, Dell Technologies Centre of Excellence, discussed a wide range of topical issues, including the country’s competitive advantages and the diversification under way within the Egyptian ICT sector.
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The video is now available to view in full at https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/video/itida
A national drive to support Egypt’s young population by equipping them with the qualifications and skills they need to participate in the industry’s development met with approval from the executives interviewed.
“We’re seeing lots of great talent that comes out of universities, bringing plenty of innovative mindsets,” Osama said. “It’s not just in artificial intelligence and the latest technologies, but it’s even in the traditional way of doing business.”
Woodworth agreed, noting the growing contribution that Egypt’s increasing youthful workforce was making to the industry. “When we look at the labour market, the resource pool, each year more than one half million professionals are introduced into the job market,” she said. “What’s also very helpful is the engagement of the government in supporting multinational companies.”
Froment-Curtil told viewers that the country’s young, tech-savvy population also provided businesses with a promising consumer base. “Vodafone has been present in Egypt for the last 20 years,” he said. “So obviously it is a place where we believe that our investment makes sense across the world. But also, fundamentally, it has a young dynamic population full of energy and that’s brilliant for a digital world.”
Egypt’s strategic location, which enables it to act as a hub for Europe, Africa and Asia, along with the government support, and ITIDA’s role as an executive IT arm and one-stop-shop for investment attraction and support, were also noted by the business leaders.
Asaad informed viewers that from the 110 clients being serviced locally, close to 80% are based offshore. “We can scale all the languages you can imagine out of Egypt,” she said. “I can service my clients with 25 languages: German; English; Dutch; Polish; and Zulu.”
Marc-André de Blois, OBG’s director of PR and Video Content, said it was clear that the executives interviewed had high hopes for Egypt’s ICT industry.
“Egypt’s ease of doing business and prime global positioning have long been a draw for investors,” he said. “Our video shows that the decision to focus on education and training, and increase government support for the sector, is delivering the desired results.”
About Global Platform
Global Platform is Oxford Business Group’s on-demand digital broadcasting channel.
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About Oxford Business Group
Oxford Business Group (OBG) is a global research and advisory company with a presence in over 30 countries, from the Middle East, Asia and Africa to the Americas.
