Date: September 14, 2021
The Arab Federation for Digital Economy, affiliated with the Council of Arab Economic Unity of the League of Arab States, signed a memorandum of understanding to launch a first-of-its-kind joint initiative. The initiative aims to establish a new regional data center in the Kingdom of Bahrain to promote digital transformation in the region. The center aims to support local economies and contribute to protecting and enhancing data security and digital transformation initiatives in Arab countries.
The signing of the agreement was attended by His Excellency Abdullatif Al Zayani, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain; His Excellency Ambassador Hossam Zaki, Assistant Secretary-General of the League of Arab States; His Excellency Dr. Ali Mohammed Al Khouri, Advisor to the Council of Arab Economic Unity and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Federation for Digital Economy; representatives of ATDXT Group, the project’s executing entity; and a number of officials from both sides, in addition to a large number of international company executives and investment fund representatives.
The Arab Federation for Digital Economy explained that the main data center in Bahrain will serve all member states of the League of Arab States. These countries will be able to benefit from the solutions provided by the center to store data from all countries participating in the initiative in Bahrain, a key driver behind comprehensive digital economic transformation efforts in the region.
These solutions will support public and private sector organizations in the member states of the League of Arab States, with the goal of improving the competitiveness of Arab economies and enhancing their integration into the global economy.
The eco-friendly data center in Bahrain is designed to serve as a technology solutions hub to host advanced technology and digital transformation solutions. It will support the transfer and dissemination of these solutions to partner countries and members of the League of Arab States, such as the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Kuwait, and Jordan in the first phase, with other countries to follow soon.
The simple and secure technology solutions will cover e-government and e-commerce services, e-health, digital education, and secure financial technology. They will also include smart transportation solutions, digital identity solutions, communications systems, digital governance systems, crime management and cybersecurity, e-agriculture platforms, solar and renewable energy solutions, and other businesses.
On this occasion, Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain, expressed his pride and appreciation for the initiative and the selection of the Kingdom of Bahrain as the headquarters for this center, with its vital and important objectives. This demonstrates the excellence of the investment environment in the Kingdom of Bahrain, the care and support provided by the competent authorities concerned with attracting investment and capital in the Kingdom, and the numerous facilities they offer to investors. He expressed his pleasure that the group plans to transform this center into its headquarters to provide advanced technological services in the field of digital transformation, in order to provide the best services to its partners in many Arab countries.
Ambassador Hossam Zaki, Assistant Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, said: “The League of Arab States is actively working with the Arab Union to promote the joint Arab strategic vision for the digital economy, as digital transformation and related topics, such as artificial intelligence and digital data, have become essential resources for this era. This initiative will contribute to strengthening Arab cooperation in the digital world.”
For his part, His Excellency Dr. Ali Mohammed Al Khouri, Advisor to the Council of Arab Economic Unity and Chairman of the Arab Federation for Digital Economy at the League of Arab States, said: “The Arab world is evolving rapidly, and our digital transformation is the foundation of this steady progress. Arab countries are increasingly collaborating on digital economies for the benefit of all people in the region. This initiative represents a leap forward in the digital space, and we look forward to all member states making the most of this project with the aim of achieving collective prosperity in our Arab region.”
Mr. Khalid Ebrahim Humaidan, Chief Executive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board, said: “We are pleased that Bahrain has been chosen as the center for this initiative, and we look forward to achieving the goals of digital transformation in the Arab world across various economic sectors. Undoubtedly, Bahrain’s digital infrastructure, future regulatory environment, and local human resources with technical expertise make it a conducive environment for such digital transformation projects.”
Regarding this agreement, JS Marthy, Founder and CEO of ATDXT Group, said: “We are delighted with our partnership and our endeavor to host the first of its kind, multi-million dollar regional data centers in the Kingdom of Bahrain. This initiative will be a major step forward and complement the region’s digital transformation efforts, enhancing the competitiveness of Arab countries and supporting their integration into the global economy. We are confident that our initiative is the best of its kind for skills development, as it will focus on the use of the latest technologies and will create significant and qualitative job opportunities in the future technical fields across the Arab world.”
