“The future is for those who excel digitally.”
These are the words of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Ruler of Dubai. And they capture the nation’s long-running attitude and ambition in the field of digital transformation. They speak to a challenge that we all now face – to digitally transform or be left behind. UAE leaders have long spoken on the necessity to change mindsets in both the private and public sectors to achieve competitiveness and foment economic growth.
In 2019, before most of us had heard of coronaviruses, let alone COVID-19, Gartner reported that two thirds (67 percent) of organisations were conducting culture-change initiatives because their current cultures were barriers to digital transformation. The analyst firm also predicted that by 2021, 80 percent of mid- or large-scale enterprises would have undergone culture changes for the same reason.
While Gartner’s perspective was global, we saw this happening regionally. In the UAE, where digital success is particularly notable, the Telecommunication and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) marked the country’s Jubilee Year by releasing a report that served as a journal of digital transformation in the Emirates, starting with the 1982 founding of the Public Authority for Information. The history is long and impressive, and includes the establishment of Dubai Internet City in 1999, and the successes in e-government and m-government. Among the most enviable of achievements must be the nation’s pioneering steps in blockchain and becoming the first country to appoint a minister of state for artificial intelligence.
UAE workers believe AI and data science will directly impact their work in coming years
The UAE’s economic success mirrored its digital journey. This was chiefly because its leaders recognised the importance of skilling in the culture hacks that had become necessary to accommodate digital transformation. The Mohammed bin Rashid Smart Learning Programme, launched in 2011, sought to use technology to enhance classroom experiences. And last year, the Ministry of AI initiated the National Programme for Coders to create, over time, 100,000 software professionals and 1,000 digital businesses. In these initiatives, and many others, the role of people in the national success story is emphasised again and again.
In 2019, Microsoft, which had been a long-time growth partner for the UAE and the region, took the critical step of opening two cloud regions in the UAE. From our data centres in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, we made the trusted, versatile Microsoft Cloud available to the region. These cloud regions have continued to spur regional entrepreneurship, accelerate innovation, fuel growth for businesses, and aid government organisations to better serve their customers and the people of the UAE. Additionally, organisations critical to the country’s growth, in both the public and private sectors, have enhanced their operations by meeting local data residency and governance requirements. Iconic brands such as Etihad Airways, the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism, Dubai Tourism, Mashreq, and Commercial Bank of Dubai have already benefited from these cloud regions.
We invested and participated in skilling programmes like the National Programme for Coders to ensure the youth of today can contribute to the culture hacks ahead. According to IDC, Microsoft, its partners, and cloud-using customers will add 69,000 new jobs to the UAE economy by 2024 – including 16,000 for skilled IT professionals – and will generate $27 billion for the economy along the way.
Let us remember Sheikh Mohammed’s words as we equip the youth of now for their shared digital future. A population trained is a population prepared.
