Eman Al Kuwari (second left), Fahad Ali Al Kuwari, (second right), and Kamal Zian (first right) during the panel discussion held recently at The Pearl Qatar. PIC: Rajan Vadakkemuriyil/The Peninsula.
Doha, Qatar: Commencing a business in the transforming digital technology hub results in sustainability, security, and profitability, explained experts during a panel discussion recently.
During the launch of Huawei’s new headquarters in Pearl Island, officials elucidated that Qatar welcomes all businesses and opens up space to contribute to the country’s economy.
Fahad Ali Al Kuwari, Senior Manager of Investor Relations at IPA Qatar highlighted that the country is an open door for business opportunities to explore especially in the tech sector. He said: A company the size of Huawei choosing to come to Qatar allows other companies to identify the presence of Huawei but also it signals to other companies that Huawei has done their homework and they find Qatar profitable.”
He further emphasised the importance of attracting foreign investments and the opportunities available in the market. “It gives a vote of confidence not just to companies in the same size but also gives a vote of confidence within your vicinity that Qatar is open to doing business with everyone and although the market is small, the propensity to consume is high and the accessibility to other markets is very large in Qatar as well,” he added.
Eman Al Kuwari, Director of the Digital Innovation Department at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, provided insights into the ministry’s role in collaborating with institutes to ensure sustainability in the industry.
“We have leveraged a lot of transport data through the telecom infrastructure and this has enabled us to collaborate with Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute within QF to come up with a sustainability covering footprint measurement. I think there is a lot of potential in the data that we are collecting through the telecom partners that we can come up with sustainability to monitor and also improve air quality in the country, she said.
In addition to sustainability and profitability, the panelists also shed light on the secured measures of carrying out a business in Qatar. Kamal Zian Chief Cybersecurity and Privacy Officer at the Gulf North Representative office at Huawei remarked Qatar is one of the safest countries to carry out a business.
He said “Standardisation helps us to set the standard quality of services, the level of security especially cyber security as we are talking about accelerating the digital transformation. It is really important not to rush but to ensure that we are doing it safely. So cybersecurity in that regard is a key pillar of our strategy. All the formats that you can see or services that we are offering are fully certified from a global perspective. We are adhering to the best practices of cybersecurity and privacy protection.”
He further added that “This is critical for us to build this communication with the industry about security to build this trust bridge between us and our customers and make them feel comfortable using Huawei’s products and services because they know that Huawei has been certified and recognised over the cyber security process.”
