AL MADINAH'S Knowledge Economic City is to work with Cisco, one of the world's leading IT companies, to create a futuristic city.
The two organisations will work together to create a 'smart city' where KEC workers and residents are permanently connected to high-speed broadband networks, no matter where they are, in a world-class IT infrastructure.
Under a Memorandum of Understanding signed in Riyadh, KEC and Cisco also will work together to establish a networking academy at Knowledge Economic City to provide state of the art ICT training.
The MoU was signed at a special ceremony attended by Cisco's Vice President of Global Projects, Rangu Salgame; Deputy Governor of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) Fahd Al Rasheed; Dr Yousef AL Othaimeen from King Abdullah Foundation; Sheikh Ibrahim Al Eissa, President of Seera City Real Estate, KEC’s management company; KEC CEO Tahir Bawazir and other Cisco and KEC executives.
Mr Fahd Al Rasheed said the new economic cities announced by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin AbdulAziz last year would play an important role in the future of Saudi Arabia.
“Developments such as Knowledge Economic City are bringing some of the world’s best expertise to the Kingdom and that expertise will work to the benefit of the Saudi economy.
“Partnerships such as this one between KEC and Cisco show that there is a tremendous amount of international interest in helping us develop our IT infrastructure,” he said.
“No other company in the world has as much experience as Cisco in creating smart cities,” said Sheikh Ibrahim. "Cisco is a world leading networking company and not only will they be helping with the IT infrastructure but the plan is for them to help train thousands of young Saudis as knowledge workers for the IT industry.”
Tahir Bawazeer, CEO of Knowledge Economic City in Madinah, said Cisco was keen to train young Saudis as Cisco-certified engineers. “That will benefit the entire country and make Knowledge Economic City a beacon for learning in the Islamic world.”
KEC’s senior technology officer, Mohammed Shah, said Cisco’s concept of a connected city was an exciting one. “Imagine a city that wherever you are you can connect to the Internet or your company’s network. It doesn’t matter whether you are in your office, sitting at home, enjoying a coffee in a café or driving in a car, you will be able to stay connected and productive.
“With the help of Cisco and other companies Knowledge Economic City workers and residents will stay connected using ultra mobile PCs (UMPCs), devices like smart phones that will cover all of your computing needs and keep you connected wherever you travel in the city.
“People won’t be tied to their desks any longer because everywhere you go you will have access to a very high speed broadband Internet connection,” Mohammed Khoja, Marketing Director of KEC, added
