As part of stc Group’s participation in the Capacity Conference Middle East 2022, which took place in Dubai in March, and which involved a number of global partners in the ICT sector, the discussion was held around cooperative projects and possible future partnerships as well as opportunities for international expansion in the field of carriers and operators.
During the conference, the Saudi digital enabler stc Group shed light on its plans for the regional digital center and its expansion in data centers in the region through a discussion by Eng. Mohammed Al-Abbadi, CWO of the carriers and operators sector at stc; Adil Alaskah, international cable management GM, stc and Rayan Alsaedi, global infrastructure development director, stc. During their panel discussions on the importance of submarine cables and the services they provide after the completion of projects, it was decided that stc expands its scope in transcontinental submarine cable projects and the 2Africa cable project which provides distinguished connectivity services by linking it to three continents, namely Africa, Europe and Asia through multiple landing sites in the Kingdom, in addition to several countries where this cable will land.
And based on stc’s “Dare” strategy, which revolves around expanding the selected growth axes of digital and basic services, instilling digital thinking, developing digital and analytical capabilities, adopting new ways and methodologies, and exciting customers with a smooth, personalized and secure experience, in addition to being the trusted partner for business in the region striving to connect the markets in which it operates through pioneering next-generation technologies, as well as being a role model for sustainability and corporate governance and a leader for cultural change at the company level, stc will offer these sites with the necessary capacities for service providers through neutral data centers and landing stations on a fair and equitable basis, which contributes in supporting and developing the Internet ecosystem. It is worth noting that the contribution of the 2Africa cable, through the new extensions aims at supporting the digital economy and enhancing the ability of many communities to provide more and more efficient internet-based services, such as education, healthcare and business activities, besides achieving significant economic and social benefits as a result of this increased international connectivity.
Eng. Mohammed Al-Abbadi; CWO of the carriers and operators sector at stc, confirmed the group’s role in the Capacity Middle East Conference, where stc plays the role of the largest digital enabler in the region providing the necessary capacities and speed to telecom service providers, international operators and the international business sector. After such investment, stc aims to enhance the digital infrastructure and develop a highly efficient network of international cables, which enables stc to meet the application of the principle of rapid fulfillment that lines up with the 2030 vision of increasing digitization in the Saudi market. stc invests in data centers to develop local content and digital transformation, and it contributes to providing digital resolutions to develop a world-class cloud computing solution.
stc has announced the establishment of the main digital center; MENA Hub for the Middle East and North Africa, with an investment of $1 billion in cooperation with regional and international partners. It will also include the installation of a number of highly efficient cables to meet the future requirements of cloud services by investing in an advanced fiber-optic network ensuring continuous service availability, enabling growth in the Kingdom's economy and GDP.
On the sidelines of the conference and based on its endeavor to develop the carriers and operators sector, stc signed a number of agreements with major telecommunications and technology companies, most notably China telecom Global. The group also signed an extension of its agreement with Virgin Mobile, in addition to an agreement with London Internet Exchange (LINX) in order to expand the JEDIX service for interconnection to new Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) in the Kingdom, including the cities of Riyadh and Dammam, for the purpose of completing the initial JEDIX cooperative project that was launched in 2018 in Jeddah.
These efforts came as a confirmation of the leadership of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia within the communications and information technology sector in the region and the great capabilities that stc possesses as a digital enabler in the Middle East.
