Digital Qatar - Gulf Times

number of incubated startups to 57. Our incubated entrepreneurs benefit from operational and technical support, working office spaces, as well as regular training and mentorship sessions to accelerate the growth of their enterprises. “

In order to ensure that entrepreneurs have easy access to DIC and get answers to their pressing questions about IdeaCamp, the Digital Incubation Center organized 9 orientation sessions before the start of IdeaCamp, through which entrepreneurs were encouraged to register for IdeaCamp.

A total of 150 ideas were selected. The entrepreneurs behind these ideas have met DIC’s criteria to attend IdeasCamp training workshops, over the course of 6 weeks with over 33 training hours and mentoring sessions for entrepreneurs to build and integrate their business models.

The virtual ceremony also celebrated the graduation of 17 startups that have completed their incubation period at DIC in 2020, which brings the total of graduated startups to 100, these startups are Raeyi, Baqaala, Tomoh, Qertas, Saakin, EButler, PMOBytes, Bonocle, Spas Go, Medline Arabia, Xpander, ESmart Academy, Greenhat, Skilancer Solar Solar, NewsAmp, The Real Estate CRM and Artist Qatar.

The Digital Incubation Center was established in line with the Ministry of Transport and Communications’ vision to create a supportive ecosystem for the digital startup sector in Qatar. Since 2011, 100 startups have successfully graduated from DIC, 18 of which have expanded internationally.

Digital QatarThursday, April 8, 2021

The Digital Incubation Center of the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) has recently announced the 25 winners of the fourth edition of IdeaCamp, which was held virtually for

the first time, in line with the precautionary measures for COVID19. The announcement was made at a virtual ceremony attended by Reem Mohamed Al Mansouri, Assistant Undersecretary of Digital Society Development Sector at MOTC. The ceremony was also organized to celebrate the graduation of 17 startups that completed their incubation in 2020.

The announcement of the 25 IdeaCamp winners comes after a round of pitching by 40 shortlisted startups in front of a distinguished jury panel that included experts in the field from Ooredoo, Qatar Development Bank, Tasmu Smart Qatar, QRDI, Bedaya Center and AppLab.

The winner’s ideas harness emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, advanced analytics and the Internet of things to serve the sectors of education, health care, sports tourism, agriculture, environment and transportation.

On this occasion, Reem Al Mansoori, MOTC’s Assistant Undersecretary for Digital Society Development Affairs, said: “The Digital Society sector has an integrated strategic vision that aims to support digital innovations that harness emerging technologies and create a fostering environment for them to continue their success in the Qatari market.”

Duha Ali Al-Buhendi, Digital Incubation Center Acting Manager, said: “DIC is committed to providing support to digital entrepreneurs in Qatar. We are proud of the success of the virtual edition of IdeaCamp and our incubation of 25 new digital startups, which brings the total

Digital Incubation Center An initiative to boost your Startups

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2 Digital QatarSpecial SupplementThursday, April 8, 2021

Qatar Islamic Bank has embarked on a significant digital transformation journey with its core focus to provide its customers with the most convenient and easy to use banking solutions.

Leading the banking sector on digitization, QIB has introduced end-to-

end digital solutions that allow all retail customers to bank with QIB 24/7, and from anywhere in the world through either Internet Banking or the QIB Mobile App, now the primary banking channel of QIB’s customers to fulfil all their banking needs in an easier, faster, and safer way.

Mobile App includes over 100 features, accessible from any location across the globe and at any time round-the-clock. You can download the App from Apple Store, Google Play, and Huawei AppGallery, self-register in just a few clicks and enjoy a digital banking experience like never before

QIB Mobile App Answer to all your banking needs

More than a mobile banking AppThe QIB Mobile App is an award-winning digital one-stop-shop answering to all your banking needs. With

the introduction of major services, some of them for the first time in Qatar, the Mobile App now includes over 100 features, accessible from any location across the globe and at any time round-the-clock. Whether you are an existing QIB customer or not, you can download the App from Apple Store, Google Play, and Huawei AppGallery, self-register in just a few clicks and enjoy a digital banking experience like never before.

QIB is the first bank in Qatar to introduce a completely digital solution to open a bank account using your smartphone. The process is easy and smooth, and you do not need to visit a branch or submit any physical paperwork. Whether you are a Qatari citizen or a resident in Qatar, you just need to download the QIB Mobile App, take a selfie, and upload scanned copies of your Qatari ID, Passport (for residents) and Salary Certificate (if you want to open a current account). Your account will then be activated where you will have access to plenty of options and benefits!

International money transferThe QIB Mobile App offers you the fastest and easiest way to send money to more than 500,000 locations

in the world via Western Union. The Mobile App is now your choice to send money to across 200 countries around the world in 10 minutes, but if you are sending money to bank accounts in India, choose the Digital Direct Remit service on the Mobile App that lets you do so within just 60 seconds!

Personal financing in just 5 minutesQIB offers you the fastest and fully digital way to obtain personal financing in Qatar. And in only 5 minutes,

you will receive the money in your account! If the customer is eligible, the entire process is 100% digital and available via the QIB Mobile App from requesting the finance, to uploading the needed documents, until receiving the notification that money has been credited to your account, it’s all available via the QIB Mob App.

Account for domestic workers Domestic workers can open a bank account using the QIB Mobile App, free of charge and without a

minimum balance. Domestic workers can directly download the QIB Mobile App and open their account in just a few clicks. Once the onboarding journey is finished, the employer of the domestic worker will receive notification to approve the account opening, afterwards the account will be automatically activated with no need to physically visit any QIB branch.

Misk account and benefitsOpen a Misk Saving Account through the QIB Mobile App in a fast, simple, and convenient way from the

comfort of your home or office and start saving for your future through your smartphone. Simply download the QIB Mob App, scan the needed identification documents, verify your data and there you have your very own savings account where you can also win big! Having a Misk account guarantees you plenty of benefits, from Absher rewards points to being eligible to enter the weekly, monthly, and annual grand prize draws. Every week, 15 lucky Misk account holder winners are entitled to win QAR 10,000 each, 2 monthly winners are eligible for QAR 50,000 each, and 1 lucky winner will get the QAR 1 Million annual grand prize.

Instant credit cardThe hustle and bustle in applying for a Credit Card is long gone with QIB’s Instant Credit Card product. QIB

is the first bank in Qatar to provide customers the opportunity to apply for, and get approval on a credit card exclusively via the Mob App. It only takes 5 minutes where customers can login to QIB Mobile App, request a Credit Card, receive approval, and have the new card ready for use in just a few hours. The card will be printed and delivered to your doorstep upon your request, and you can start using it immediately.


The Ministry of Transport and Communications and Doha Institute for Graduate Studies (DI) recently signed an

MoU to boost ties of constructive cooperation, exchange information and expertise and develop joint activities in the field of developing digital skills in Qatar.

The MoU was signed by MOTC Assistant Undersecretary of Digital Society Development Reem Mohammed Al-Mansoori and Associate Professor, Dean of the School of Public Administration and Development Economics at DI Prof. Hamid Ali.

As per the MoU, the two parties will be cooperating in the fields of conducting research and studies of common interest and exchanging academic resources experienced in the field. They will be also cooperating in organizing workshops and symposia on topics of developing the professional and executive skills and leadership of Qatari nationals to contribute to the digital transformation of the country.

Commenting on the MoU, Al-Mansoori said that the Qatar Digital Government Training Programme of MOTC will continue to collaborate with partners and best technology service providers to provide high-quality training and boost the opportunities of accessing international certifications in the field of IT for ICT personnel working in the government sector. This, she noted, could guarantee the continuity of developing high-efficient managerial and leadership capacities in technology domains with a view of enhancing the execution of the

objectives of the Qatar Digital Government Strategy and digital transformation plans in Qatar.

“We are pleased to sign this MoU with Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and broaden the scope of cooperation and scientific, knowledge and research exchange with one of the most reputed Qatari institutions in the field of research projects and scientific and knowledge production and we are confident this cooperation will serve the digital transformation plans in the country.”

From his Part, Dr. Hamid Ali, Dean of the School of Public Administration and Development Economics (SPADE) at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies (DI), stated that the DI is a leading institution for research on social and economic trends affecting the needs of digital skills in Qatar, fully prepared to share and offer its academic experience and conduct training courses, as well as to provide academic staff who have regional and global experience. Dr Hamid added that the Doha Institute has assets and achievements in the field of training provided by the Excellence Center for Training and Consulting. Further, the signing of the MoU will allow the exchange of scientific, knowledge, expertise and experts, especially in scientific research and training.

As per the MoU, DI students will be able to participate in the training courses QDGTP provides and QDGTP beneficiaries will have access to the professional training and programs that DI provides.

MOTC to develop national digital skills

“Doha Institute has assets and achievements in the field of training provided by the Excellence Center for Training and Consulting. Further, the signing of the MoU will allow the exchange of scientific, knowledge, expertise and experts, especially in scientific research and training.” – Associate Professor, Dean of the School of Public Administration and Development Economics at DI Prof. Hamid Ali.

Reem Mohamed al-Mansoori and Prof Hamid Ali signing the agreement.

Digital Qatar 5Special SupplementThursday, April 8, 2021

By QNA

Qatar National Library (QNL) is taking a leading role in preserving the culture and history of Qatar, the Gulf, and the

Arab and Islamic worlds. To fulfill this important mission, the library’s facilities are equipped with the resources, technology and infrastructure to provide the highest quality digitisation of heritage items, preserving and making them accessible to researchers for generations to come.

Digitisation describes a process where physical materials are converted into digital versions which can be understood and stored by computers. QNL has, as of now, digitised over 10mn pages from various collections including 5mn Arabic pages from its Heritage Collection and nearly 2.8mn pages from the Arabic Collection of New York University.

Digital conversion of materials has advanced rapidly in the past few years, with QNL at the forefront of this process in the Middle East and on the world stage. The library digitises information via Optical Character Recognition (OCR), the technical practice of extracting text from images. The process itself is becoming popular in terms of usage and research, as it spans multiple areas of science, including image processing, machine learning, information retrieval and artificial intelligence.

Hany Abdellatif, head of Digitisation Services at QNL, is responsible for overseeing the library’s huge digitisation efforts.

“Using OCR images brings the documents to life and allows users to discover every bit of information stored within. At the Library, we have mastered multiple techniques and algorithms to capture text; these methods include both human and automated process.”

The marriage of human interaction with technological advances, he says, is vital to ensuring the success of the process.

“We have built an accurate system which streamlines our work, and harmonises the roles and responsibilities between humans and machines to reach the maximum quality of the extracted text. With the proper tools and algorithms, the library’s digitisation team has built a system which covers 99% of printed Arabic text based on shape, quality and size. It’s a process which has taken some time to master, but we now have a system that is accurate and reliable.”

QNL’s digitisation technicians scan a wide variety of heritage items, including rare manuscripts, books, maps, newspapers, magazines, photos and microfilms. Technicians then go through each individual item to ensure its quality is controlled, performing tasks such as colour curve correction, editing resolution settings, image compression and noise removal.

Nasser al-Ansari, director of IT Operations and Infrastructure at QNL says the library’s digitisation processes tie in with its overall mission to preserve Islamic history and culture, and technological advances are making this vision become reality.

“The library is committed to the preservation of heritage items not only in our region, but across the entire Islamic world. We have come a long way in building a reliable process to digitise content for the benefit of spreading rich Arabic knowledge, and we are committed to working harder to fulfil that goal. Having access to the latest technology at the library enables us to realise this ambition.”

In addition to ongoing efforts to digitise QNL’s collections of rare books, manuscripts, maps and photographs, the library’s Digitisation Center works on digitisation projects with other heritage collections in Qatar and international institutions.

These include projects at New York University (NYU) of more than 8,000 Arabic books in NYU library collections, which will also be available on QNL’s online platforms.

Nasser al-Ansari adds: “Our team’s goals are numerous; we want to increase and enhance the visibility, accessibility and usability of the library’s collections, and those of other organisations, including unique and rare materials that meet research and educational needs. We also want to provide access to collections at QNL which can no longer be physically available due to their fragile condition.”

Preservation has developed into a critically important part of managing QNL’s most precious assets—its collection. Digitisation is a key cog in this process, and the library’s digitisation technicians are acutely aware of the importance of their role.

Hany Abdellatif says: “We also hope to encourage the creation of digital Arabic content, while protecting the original materials by reducing frequent handling during reference use, and maintain important Arab and Islamic heritage and historical materials, preserving our history for many years to come.”

Nasser al-Ansari also sees digitisation as complimenting other preservation and conservation services:

“Digitisation is part of a package of long-term investment for our heritage items, and an important section of our preservation and conservation services. Unlike microfilm, digital images don’t help to preserve the original; digitisation assists us by reducing physical wear and tear on the original. It’s therefore vital that we see digitization not as replacement for a proper preservation program, based on conservation treatments or improved storage conditions, but as part of this holistic process of conservation of our treasures.”

QNL’s bid to preserve heritage through digitisation

The library digitises information via Optical Character Recognition (OCR), the technical practice of extracting text from images. The process itself is becoming popular in terms of usage and research, as it spans multiple areas of science, including image processing, machine learning, information retrieval and artificial intelligence.


Doha Bank has collaborated with Visa, the world’s leader in digital payments, to become the first bank in Qatar to launch a full suite of Visa Corporate Card solutions catering for

SMEs and corporate clients in Qatar.The launch revealed Doha Bank’s new Visa Corporate Card

solutions, whereby businesses and corporates are able to manage and have greater control over their employee expenses, travel & entertainment expenses and general business expenses in a simple and easy manner.

Businesses and corporates are now able to simply go online and access a self-service tool – Visa Payment Controls, where they are able to effectively manage their Visa Corporate Card programme by establishing limits for each card, establishing account alerts and avoid improper business spend by placing robust controls around time, location, category and spending limits.

Doha Bank’s key focus is to address “Payments to Suppliers” for which the Visa Corporate Card can function as a payment tool for Qatar’s key corporates and the SME sector – allowing for cash flow extension and stronger working capital management especially during the pandemic period where cash flow has been a key issue across the market.

Simplifying payments allows businesses to not only streamline their accounts payable function and pay their suppliers in a digital fashion with ease, but it gives back time to allow businesses to

focus on their core objectives such as running a business and increasing revenue and profitability.

Doha Bank is also currently working with Visa to issue Virtual Corporate Cards in the near future – a technology that allows instant issuance of a one-time use virtual cards to suppliers in the “buyer and supplier” supply chain.

In addition, this will also benefit travel use cases when a one-time card is sent to the mobile phone of individuals/employees when they receive their hotel’s final checkout bill to settle.

On this occasion Braik Al Marri – Chief Retail Banking Officer said, “Doha Bank is proud and excited to add yet another product to its vast array of services. With the bank’s focus to be a driving force in the local Qatari economy, the Doha Bank Visa Corporate Card will not only help us build our clientele but will also help corporates adopt smarter and robust technologies. Doha Bank and Visa share a strong relationship and have partnered on various “first-in-the-market products” in the recent past. The launch of the Doha Bank Visa Corporate Card reinforces our commitment to our long-standing partnership with Visa and to the growing payment needs in the local economy.”

Dr. Sudheer Nair, Visa’s Country Manager for Qatar, said, “We are delighted to see Doha Bank become the first bank in Qatar to launch our full suite of Visa Corporate card solutions for the local businesses. After a difficult year for many businesses, particularly SMBs, our Visa Corporate Card solution is an attractive proposition for businesses looking to reduce cost and streamline expense reporting both easily and securely. We continue to work closely with our partners like Doha Bank in supporting local businesses in their recovery and the country’s economic growth.”

The first bank in Qatar to launch full suite of Visa Corporate Card Solutions

The bank is also currently working with Visa to issue Virtual Corporate Cards in the near future – a technology that allows instant issuance of a one-time use virtual cards to suppliers in the ‘buyer and supplier’ supply chain.

Businesses and corporates will now be able to manage and have greater control over their employee expenses, travel & entertainment expenses and general business expenses in a simple and easy manner.

“The Doha Bank Visa Corporate Card will not only help us build our clientele but will also help corporates adopt smarter and robust technologies.”

Braik Al Marri, Chief Retail Banking Officer


Interviewed by Eric Beckwitt, Founder and CEO, Freightera

Benoit Montreuil is the father of the Physical Internet, a concept

he elaborated while at Université Laval, Quebec and disseminated in a series of papers, starting in 2010 and evolving until now. As summarized by Prof. Dr. J Rod Franklin, P.E., at transmetrics.eu: “The Physical Internet is a vision of how physical objects might be moved via a set of processes, procedures, systems and mechanisms from an origin point to a desired destination in a manner analogous to how the Internet moves packets of information from a host computer to another host computer.”

Q. What are the advantages to society and consumers?

A. For society, the Physical Internet (PI) enables order-of-magnitude improvements in the efficiency, sustainability, security, trustability and resilience of supply chains, logistics, and freight transportation, all around the world, within each company and across industries.For consumers across the world and in every locality, this means cheaper, greener, faster, more convenient, and reliable goods access, pickup and delivery, in normal times as well as during peak and crisis times.

Q. What is the current status of building the Physical Internet?

A. Each region is approaching this differently. Europe has been aware and active since 2010. The Alliance for Logistics Innovation Through Collaboration (ALICE), supported by the European Union, made the Physical Internet a key part of their freight systems. Now planning for complete Physical Internet system by 2030. They are making good progress and have the most advanced PI implementation roadmap in the world, and has significant momentum with projects notably in Austria, France, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Asia has a huge opportunity for transformation and innovation. China is moving very quickly now. The action to date on Physical Internet development in Asia has been driven by companies, but now the government is starting to get involved.

North America – Although the Physical Internet was invented in Canada, there has been no government engagement so far there. People in Canada are starting to work on PI, but very small projects so far. In the US, Amazon, Americold, UPS and other technology firms are getting increasingly interested in building the Physical Internet. When I went to Seattle last fall, I met with several leaders in Amazon’s transportation, supply chain and logistics teams: they are well aware of the Physical Internet. Indeed, Amazon has been hiring my graduate students. That said, most firms don’t see the big picture yet. At Georgia Tech, around thirty of our graduate students are now working on the Physical Internet, most through research projects with industry.

Q. What are the exceptions? Which big firms are interested in the Physical Internet?

A. The logistics service providers are more and more engaged toward the Physical Internet: SF Express in China, Americold and UPS in the USA, Yamato in Japan, and DHL in Europe.Among the top brands, Proctor & Gamble is a big player in this PI game. Amazon already leverages PI concepts in its fulfillment center network. Sephora is looking seriously into the impact of PI on its omnichannel operations, and other retailers are planning projects.

Q. In terms of research and innovation, who is interested?

A. There is a high interest in PI research and innovation by numerous players in the industry. At Georgia Tech, we currently have important projects with logistics service providers Americold, Home Depot, SF Express, and UPS. Daimler/Mercedes is getting a Physical Internet project on the road. We work with technology ventures such as Clear Distribution in Montreal and farm-to-restaurant startup Farm’d.Overall, the Physical Internet globally is now in an “embryonic” state, although still orders of magnitude more advanced than I expected at this stage. To make meaningful progress now, we need to access decision-makers directly, then show them how this works and how it benefits them.

Q. Can you describe the core systems and layers of this new logistics model? You mentioned a multi-layer architecture?

A. The Physical Internet defines a global hyperconnected logistics system enabling seamless multi-party asset sharing and multimodal flow consolidation, through open standard protocols and interfaces, and modular containerization. Similar to the Digital Internet, it leverages a multi-layer open logistic interconnection model. The hyperconnectivity stems from intense digital, physical, operational, transactional and legal interconnectivity, ultimately anytime, anywhere. This impacts all PI protocols: we are involved with several trials and refining how to share information, how to operate and make decisions, how to make and record transactions, and how to handle legal issues, in PI networks.In China, Water Mirror is a new startup working on an operating system for the Physical Internet. In Europe, MixMove is a venture focused on enabling logistics facilities to perform PI-type open consolidation and coordination. My goal is to have millions of companies using the same standard protocol. Platform operators need this to be interoperable.

Q. Have you patented these protocols, so they cannot be privatized?

A. No, we decided not to patent. We want the foundations of the Physical Internet to be open to everyone. We do however want governance of the standards and protocols. We are thinking how to guide collective action. We have a series of papers along that thread, but not yet a centralized set of standards and protocols everyone uses.It is very important that the Physical Internet has standards, and not let tech companies set them and compete in a way that breaks down the targeted hyperconnectivity and its induced efficiency and sustainability. For example, PI containers are meant to be reusable, recyclable, smart, connected, modular-size containers, with IP addresses, made of light and renewable materials, and equipped with connectors to easily join them. We need standards for three different tiers of such containers: Packaging containers (designed to avoid damaging product and to be constantly reused), Handling containers (for moving and being stored in facilities and carriers), and Transport containers (like the existing shipping containers, but many more modular sizes).

Courtesy: Originally appeared on Freightera website

Physical Internet - A vision for sustainable, secure, resilient supply chainsInterview with Benoit Montreuil, Professor, Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering; Director, Physical Internet Center; Director, Supply Chain & Logistics Institute, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta

Benoit Montreuil, Professor, Stewart School of Industrial & Systems Engineering at Georgia Tech

Digital Qatar 9Special SupplementThursday, April 8, 2021

SkipCash, a Qatari mobile payment technology company, promotes innovative and contactless mobile payment solutions to provide one of the unique and safe payment services for both individuals

and merchants.SkipCash is the innovation of Qatari entrepreneur Mohamed

Abdulaziz al-Delaimi, who has a long experience in technology. He devised a product to meet the local fintech sector requirements and fill in digital payments gaps, decreasing the dependency on cash or even bank cards.

In addition, SkipCash is the ideal contactless payment method during the pandemic and represents the perfect payment solution for individuals and merchants.

SkipCash was licensed by Qatar Financial Centre in 2019, and approved by Qatar Central Bank, after which the team started the new platform driving it to win third place in the 3rd edition of the Digital Incubation Centre at the Ministry of Transport and Communications.

The company introduced its flagship SkipCash application in two levels, for merchants and individual users, and launched its actual operation in December 2020 to be Qatar’s leading mobile digital payment solution.

“SkipCash seeks to make the most out of the significant technology revolution to provide consumers with an innovative range of unique digital payment services and multi-benefit programmes. We are pleased to introduce this special service to the Qatari market, which has been developed by national skills to optimise our society and homeland and to keep pace with the prevailing global trends in this field,” al-Delaimi, founder and managing director for SkipCash, said.

“Due to its quality and ease of its service along with the high degree of security and privacy, SkipCash managed to position itself as a leading digital platform in the market. We built trust in a short period among a large number of partners and individuals who believed that SkipCash is the best solution to pay and gain a range of great benefits in one app,” he said.

SkipCash application can be easily downloaded on mobiles through the Google Play Store or Apple Store on iOS. The application is user-friendly thanks to its perfectly designed platform. Besides, users can leverage from wide range of other services including track of all payments, check the latest promotions and discounts from various merchants, view their rewards, and identify the merchant’s locations along with their products and services. Users can also link their bank card with SkipCash account and use it without adding a balance.

Moreover, the app offers merchants several advantages such as reducing the operation cost as they will not need machines for payments, downloading the app for free and receiving their payments anywhere. Besides, they can collect and analyze data to promote and develop their business to meet consumer trends.

SkipCash is an innovative digital platform that provides all contributors from merchants, individuals, and banks the opportunity to collaborate and enhance the way of payments through this digital platform.

Besides, SkipCash generates positive results on the Qatari economy, driving the digital cashless economy and provides pioneering solutions for contactless payment, especially during the current pandemic.

Startups are the pillar of a countries economy, which are considered a great tool to improve overall performance, create jobs in the market and stimulate the economy.

Customers can now download the app on smartphones and enjoy contactless digital payment without the need for cash or bank card. SkipCash is currently available in more than 120 restaurants, shops, coffee shops, sports clubs, hotels, and even transport services.

SkipCash An innovative mobile payment solution

“SkipCash seeks to make the most out of the significant technology revolution to provide consumers with an innovative range of unique digital payment services and multi-benefit programmes” - Mohamed Abdulaziz al-Delaimi, founder and managing director for SkipCash

The Ministry of Transport and Communications recently hosted several government entities at a virtual event to introduce the “Microsoft

Government Framework Agreement 2020-2023” signed between the Government of the State of Qatar represented by MOTC and Microsoft represented by its two local agents; malomatia and Ebla, who formed the first consortium of its kind in the history of the agreement since 2003.

The agreement provides for technical support for all Microsoft licenses and software used in government entities, including for computer and user licenses (Office 365), server licenses such as Windows Servers, database server licenses such as SQL Server, and other licenses already deployed at government entities, in addition to cloud computing services through Microsoft Azure.

Addressing the event, which was attended by over 100 personnel from multiple government entities, Acting Assistant Undersecretary of Government Information Technology, MOTC, Mashael Ali Al-Hammadi, said that now more than a decade into the approach of framework agreements we can confirm that the return for Qatar government’s investment in purchasing global companies’ software through such

agreements is in the good interest of the government with what we have gained – a high quality yield that pays off significantly well in terms of efficiency and customer satisfaction, something which contributes to achieving QNV2030 and e-Government Strategy.

The COVID-19 pandemic, she said, has shown the vital role that digital technology plays amid an ever-accelerating digital transformation worldwide with regard to services provided to the people, including telework systems, videoconferences at and outside of workplaces, and access to healthcare, education, commodities and basic services.

The previous edition of this agreement, she added, had been of a big role during the pandemic as the government, represented by MOTC, adopted an ambitious digital transformation plan that featured installing, activating and running several software needed by entities and which also offer several channels for interaction and cooperation between personnel of the same government entity and with other entities.

Examples of software covered in the digital transformation plan include updating computer operating system on more than 70,000 machines at government entities to Windows 10; upgrading

more than 60,000 versions of OfficePro that allows integration with Office 365 cloud computing services; activating more than 70,000 accounts on MS Teams to allow for broader interaction and integration between employees as well as for easier remote work and meetings; and activating more than 45,000 accounts on OneDrive for easy, fast storage and access of documents anytime, anywhere.

In terms of document security, a number of services has been also activated at government entities such as Azure Active Directory for some 80,000 users, Multi-Factor Authentication and Azure Information Protection.

Through this new agreement, Al-Hammadi said, MOTC is embracing an advanced vision to make sure the benefits of government investment in cloud computing and advanced services such as Microsoft Azure reach all government entities, particularly the services focused on information security.

“malomatia intends to bring its rich local knowledge and capabilities to this agreement. We are determined to expand our operations locally with strong talents and certified team in the various domains of Microsoft technologies and solutions. Our goal is work closely with our partners to deliver more efficiency and improve the return of investments to all stakeholders”, said Yousef Al-Naama, Chief Executive Officer, malomatia.

Pact with Microsoft to upgrade government entities

10 Digital QatarSpecial SupplementWednesday, April 7, 2021

Digital Qatar - Gulf Times

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