Friday, March 2, 2012

Emirates e-Government and eHosting DataFort Highlight Importance of Managed IT Services



Event Brings Together Experts from Gartner and Key Decision Makers from Government Departments across the UAE
Dubai-UAE: 29 February, 2012 – Managed IT services enable government entities to realign their IT functions to better serve government goals through providing strategic, financial and operational benefits, according to Yasser Zeineldin, CEO, eHosting DataFort (eHDF), the region’s leading managed IT services provider and member of TECOM Investments.
He added: “Owing to budget constraints, businesses are now looking to consolidate and centralize their IT infrastructure to focus on core business objectives. More and more government entities are moving away from investing in upfront Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) to an Operational Expenditure (OPEX) model, allowing them to ‘pay-as-you-go’ and reduce overall risks associated with their business operations.”
Zeineldin’s comments came during a forum organised by eHosting DataFort in partnership with Emirates e-Government. Titled ‘Managed IT Services for the Government’, the event brought together Director Generals, Chief Information Officers (CIOs), and IT Executives from across government departments in the UAE.
In his opening address, His Excellency Salem Khamis Al-Shair Al Suwaidi, Deputy General Director for Information and eGovernment, said: "We are pleased to work with eHosting DataFort on this key forum. In the general interest of the national economy, we see this cooperation as a model for collaboration between the government and the private sector.
"Over the last two years, cloud services have captured the interest of the information technology world. We believe that integration of the cloud services methodology is timely and as a natural response to the challenges imposed by the financial crisis. The technology allows significant reduction of costs and optimum use of resources. In this regard, the UAE e-Government has launched the cloud computing services and we are working to gradually expand these services to the federal government departments.”
Dr. Maryam Matar, Founder and Chair of the Board, UAE Genetic Diseases Association, said: "Our participation in this event stems from our conviction about the importance of cloud computing and IT services. We have shared a rewarding experience in this area with the UAE e-Government and are delighted to work with this conference to explore further prospects of cooperation in this sector."

Biswajeet Mahapatra, Research Director, Gartner Research, was invited to offer a presentation on ‘Demystifying “The Cloud”.

Mahapatra said: "Cloud has become the latest buzz word across industries with emphasis on different adoption strategies for different forms of cloud. It is important, however, to understand the different offerings available as well as the trends and challenges that affect the adoption of the cloud. This session was aimed at clarifying some of these key issues and demystifying the myths and assumptions around this technology.”

In his presentation, Ashraf Al Masry, Head of Project Management at Emirates e-Government, provided insights on the UAE Federal e-Government’s cloud computing shared services and how it has helped the entity improvise its overall efficiency and services to end-users.

The event also hosted a panel discussion that was headlined by His Excellency Salem Khamis Al-Shair Al Suwaidi and Yasser Zeineldin. Moderated by Ashraf Al Masry, the session underscored the importance of managed services and cloud computing.

Emirates e-Government works in line with the strategy of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority. Responsible for formulating and overseeing the implementation of the e-Government mandate on the federal level, it hosts a robust shared infrastructure for federal government entities and enhanced government services. Emirates e-Government is committed to creating an information society and knowledge-based economy under the able guidance of the UAE’s visionary leaders.

eHosting DataFort has established itself as a market leader in the field of hosting and managed IT services with its state-of-the-art data centres, resilient and scalable infrastructure and round-the-clock managed operations. The company has been recognized year on year as the ‘Best Managed Service Provider of the Year’ in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 as well as Best Colocation Facility in 2010 and 2011.

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