GITEX Africa 2024, held in Marrakech from May 29-31, will gather global experts to address Africa’s cybersecurity challenges amid its digital revolution. Key figures like Ghita Mezzour and Mohamed Al Kuwaiti will discuss strategies to enhance digital security and foster international collaboration, ensuring a secure future for the continent’s digital growth.
Bayanat reported a 12% YoY revenue increase to AED113 million ($31 million) for Q1 2024, with a 9% growth in net profit. Key growth drivers included strong product offerings and strategic partnerships. The company emphasized significant investments in R&D and a strategic partnership with Microsoft to enhance AI services.
Thuraya Telecommunications Company, a subsidiary of Yahsat, has launched IP NEO, a next-generation satellite communication product. Developed with Cobham Satcom, IP NEO offers advanced voice and data capabilities, tailored to diverse industry needs. Officially unveiling at Critical Comms World Dubai, the product highlights Thuraya’s commitment to technological advancement in satellite communications.
Qatari Investors Group (QIG) has partnered with SAP SE to transition its business processes to SAP’s cloud ERP solution, SAP S/4HANA Cloud. This move, supported by RISE with SAP, aims to enhance operational efficiency, real-time data access, and innovation, aligning with Qatar’s National Vision 2030.
UAE telecommunications company du has partnered with STL, an optical and digital solutions provider, to expand fibre-dense mobile and FTTH networks. This collaboration will enhance network performance and deployment efficiency. The UAE continues to lead globally in FTTH penetration, achieving a 99.3% rate, according to the latest FTTH Council report.
The 5G-Advanced Leaders’ Forum in Dubai highlighted the transformative potential of 5G-Advanced (5G-A) technology. Industry leaders discussed the enhancements in network efficiency, coverage, and performance, and emphasized its role in driving digital innovation across sectors. The UAE announced plans for nationwide 5G-A deployment, reinforcing its commitment to technological advancement.
Dubai’s du and HPE have partnered with the Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD) to implement HPE GreenLake, enhancing CBD’s hybrid cloud capabilities. Hosted in du’s Tier III data centres, this solution aims to improve IT efficiency, security, and customer experience while supporting CBD’s five-year strategic digital transformation plan.
The Sri Lankan government is amending telecom laws to allow independent companies to build telecom towers, aiming to accelerate tower rollouts and support the digital economy’s expansion to $15 billion by 2030. The amendments are expected to be debated in parliament soon.
UAE’s Yahsat has restored Thuraya satellite services in parts of Southeast Asia and China by reconfiguring its Thuraya 2 satellite after Thuraya 3 experienced an anomaly. However, service remains unavailable in the Asia-Pacific region east of Thuraya 2’s footprint.
The Technology Innovation Institute (TII) has launched Falcon 2, featuring Falcon 2 11B and Falcon 2 11B VLM models. These efficient, multilingual, and multimodal AI models surpass competitors and are open-source, providing developers with advanced tools for various applications. TII plans to further enhance these models with advanced machine learning capabilities.
