1.30 PM Friday, 29 March 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 04:56 06:10 12:26 15:53 18:37 19:52
29 March 2024

Arab World offers room for tech innovation

Mobile technologies are expected to support innovation in this region. (SUPPLIED)

Published
By Nancy Sudheer

There is enough room for innovations in the Arab World, say industry experts. Stonger educational system, content and funds will enhance the spirit of innovators and entrepreneurs in the region. The government and the private sector have to work hand in hand to achieve this goal.

Industry experts from major technology companies got together at the 'Seventh Investing in Technology Forum' held by Dubai Silicon Oasis for discussion.

Husni Khuffash, Regional Manager, Google UAE; Jihad (Jay) Srage, Vice-President, Business Development Mena, Qualcomm UAE; Rich Goldman, Vice-President, Corporate Marketing, Synopses and Strategic Alliances, USA; and John Waciawsky, former chief architect, Motorola, USA, highlighted the role of multinational corporations (MNCs) in driving innovation through activities in the region.

 

What are the challenges in creating an environment focused on innovation and creating entrepreneurs in the Arab World?

Khuffash: In the Arab World, innovation is less than 20 per cent in the past 10 years compared to a country like Korea does in one year.

The region is not an innovation zone and it is not because we are not creative but the Arab region is facing tough times. Politics, poverty, hunger are issues which are more in focus now due to which the region cannot go to the next level. In this kind of a scenario, it is not possible to focus on innovation and technology.

Governments alone cannot bring in this environment and therefore, the industry and professionals must put in efforts and bring this to the limelight. For example, patents are created the most in Sudan in the Arab World.

More than a successful business plan, it's about new ideas and patents. It is important to know about the latest inventions in the Arab World.'

Maktoob is the only company which comes to mind in the region, which was taken over last year by Yahoo.

There are individuals who are innovators but we need enablers to take this vision to the next level.

Srage:There is a fear in presenting a big idea as most of the revenue potential from new business ideas are always limited to few millions. This must step up to a billion dollar idea which will also attract MNCs.

These entrepreneurs have to be given tools to make it happen by working with local bodies like Dubai Silicon Oasis and government.

Additionally they will need labs, educational training and seminars. An entrepreneur must go through a complete programme to be able to take a great solution to market.

Being part of an MNC, I see the need of building an ecosystem, for example e-books, which is a success story in US, Europe and for companies such as Amazon. If this has to be brought to the region, there is an issue as there is a lack of content. There is a significant amount of content missing that is Arabic and localised. Hardware available in the market such as laptops and mobiles still don't support Arabic.

In a region with a population of 300 to 400 million, this does not make sense as it is like selling a Chinese handset in the US.

There is a need to put pressure on device manufacturers and technology based in the region to support the local culture. In a local ecosystem for example there should be a Facebook equivalent enabled by the market.

What is the role of a government in incubating innovation and entrepreneurs?

Srage: MNCs tend to focus on innovation as they have the resources, talent, engineers and business people to make it happen. These companies also want to work with the government and local university.

There is a need for an ecosystem to drive investments in innovation.

Outside their headquarters, local MNCs also have limited resources to drive initiatives without local partnerships.

MNCs are also afraid to invest as it's a high-risk investment. Governments can play a crucial role in such kind of an environment. For example, Abu Dhabi has put aside a fund to enable a wireless ecosystem which is a good start. They should also work with MNCs to set up a bigger fund managed by the government and monitored by the MNC.

Government officials must identify the sectors and bring in the foreign investment, resources and background support required for the funding. This makes it a less risky environment.

Processes must also be made easier to start a business and provide the investment needed by entrepreneurs. This will automatically initiate investments from the private sector.

IP protection policy is another area, which has no focus in the region. A drive must be initiated from the school and government level to raise the awareness about IP policies and protection.

Qualcomm has 55,000 patents either issued or pending. Therefore, if you want to generate new patents policies, enforcements are required in the region.

Therefore, the role of government is of a catalyst in such an environment.

Goldman: An ecosystem has to be created for an entrepreneur. Provide them a business model, education and take them to silicon valley to provide training. This helps them build an effective business and make them VCs (venture capitalists). This can be done by the strong diaspora of the business community in the country.

The business community will help them understand how to grow business, share experiences and improve their skills.

There is a need to experience innovation and with such a strong infrastructure enabling high connection to the internet, it is not impossible to enable this environment.

Do we need to set up business rules to create an ecosystem for innovation? Is technology free-formed or are there rules to govern this environment?

Waclawsky: There are fundamental laws governing technology and behaviour. According to Moore's law, processes within an organsation double every 12 months, therefore the technology network has to be capable to handle this load. As per Gibler's law, capacity in a network triples every year, which is true with information increasing at a speed of trillion bits per second.

New fibre-optic cables today enable thousand bits of information per signal, which supports the extensive use of video solutions.

In a community when more people come together, creative things happen. With the internet creating a strong impact on people's lives, everybody is moving to an environment where staying connected is important.

Khuffash: When an innovation is discussed, there is no need to go back to the Silicon Valley to make things happen. Innovation must happen in the region, by the region and to the region.

Creating local content is a start, which is done by setting up an ecosystem. Financial rewards should be given to write content online. Reading as a habit must also be inculcated in the Arab World. To cite an example, in Spain, each Spanish reads four books while in the Arab World five people read one book. This is the reason there is less information in the region. Television and other media are still given preference over online.

Today inspite of serious initiatives being conducted to drive Arab content online it was at less than 0.06 per cent two years back which has now reached one per cent.

How does the local telecom operator support such an environment?

Srage: Mobile technologies can support innovation in this region. With connectivity increasing from 1 MB to 21 MB per second, the region has the best networks deployed compared to global markets. Mobile broadband services are getting popular especially as there is low penetration of DSL connections at home.

Telecom operators have also been interested in acquisitions from local to regional to global markets in the last two years.

There is also a move towards embedded technology with products such as e-books as it requires wireless technology. Social networking must also be explored to drive the usage of technology and innovation.

Even in the area of Medical Science, technology is being used to diagnose chronic diseases. To diagnose any illness without long evaluation process is also being worked out with ministry of health and local operators.

The idea of interconnectivity has to move from a CD or DVD to online. Content must be accessed from everywhere supporting universities and schools.