The Qatar Financial Centre, one of the world’s leading and fastest growing onshore business and financial centres, has inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Microsoft as part of efforts to woo global digital and IT businesses into the country.
The MoU was signed by QFC chief executive Yousuf Mohamed al-Jaida and Microsoft Qatar country manager Lana Khalaf during the recent Qatar’s Information and Communication Technology Exhibition and Conference (Qitcom).
The MoU will facilitate strategic co-operation across business activities and knowledge-sharing in an aim to attract international digital and IT businesses and firms to Qatar.
As part of the agreement, the two entities will jointly work on a host of initiatives aimed at supporting Qatar’s smart country transformation and enhancing Qatar’s digital competitiveness.
"The QFC’s agreement with Microsoft is strongly in line with our recently announced strategy that focuses on key sectors we believe are set for significant growth, and this includes digital," said al-Jaida.
The QFC’s partnership with Microsoft reflects its strong commitment to developing Qatar’s technological innovation, sustainability and competitiveness on the world stage, according to Sarah al-Dorani, chief marketing officer, QFC Authority.
"Microsoft’s world-leading reputation, network and expertise will enhance the QFC’s business activities across the financial and digital sectors as we attract new firms to Qatar’s digital industry," she said.
Al-Jaida also participated in a panel session entitled: ‘Fostering Urban Innovation in Cities’ with high-level executives including Abdelaziz Nasser al-Khalifa, Qatar Development Bank chief executive and Faisal al-Kuwari, Chief Technology Officer, Meeza.
During the session, he discussed the QFC’s vision to transform Doha into a leading global financial and commercial capital, in addition to the QFC’s commitment to supporting urban innovation with the highly-anticipated move to Msheireb Downtown Doha.
