Qatar’s first hyper scale cloud datacenter region was launched, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) and Microsoft announced on Wednesday.
Within the next five years, it is anticipated to generate about $18.7 billion in additional revenue for the Qatari economy and create 36,000 new employment in the region.
The Microsoft cloud datacenter region will see Qatar step in to the world’s largest cloud infrastructure footprint, drastically boosting its competitiveness on a global and regional scale while strengthening the nation’s role as a leader in the digital realm.
The announcement came during an event dubbed “Qatar’s Digital Journey into the Future,” an occasion attended by ministers, senior private sector executives, as well as Microsoft’s global and regional executives.
The Microsoft cloud datacenter region in Qatar will exponentially influence the growth of the local economy and support the Gulf country’s efforts to diversify its economy, nurture talent, and draw in foreign investment.
“These pioneering projects in the field of digital transformation, communications and information technology would not have been achieved without the ambitions of the country’s wise leadership and its vision to this vital sector, believing in its crucial role in the development of other economic sectors. Legislative and legal regulation of the sector and enhance its attractiveness,” said Mohammed bin Ali Al Mannai, Minister of
MCIT.
Businesses and companies are now able to host their cloud workloads in Microsoft’s Qatar datacenter.
Customers can start utilising Microsoft Azure to develop advanced applications that use AI, data and analytics, IoT and hybrid capabilities, advanced digital security, among other services.
They can also start using Microsoft 365, the world’s leading productivity cloud that delivers best-of-breed productivity apps delivered seamlessly through cloud services,” Al Mannai detailed.
“Across Qatar, Microsoft customers are already leveraging our trusted cloud to innovate, achieve their business goals and do more with less. We are proud to deliver the first hyperscale cloud datacenter region to the country, which will significantly amplify opportunities for even more transformation,” President of Microsoft EMEA, Ralph Haupter, noted.
More than 70% of Qatari Startups are on the Microsoft Founders hub. Such startups have the capability of transitioning into the next “unicorns” of their fields.
Separately, some 11 global partners and ISV established operations in Qatar in 2021 alone. Research also revealed that for every $1 of Microsoft cloud-generated revenue, the partner ecosystem is expected to generate $7.87 by 2026, up from $6.41 by 2023.
