Dubai FDI supports expansion by Amazon Web Services in UAE

The decision by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to open data centres in the UAE in the first half of 2022 has been welcomed by the Dubai Investment Development Agency (Dubai FDI). The new AWS Middle East (UAE) region will have three availability zones and will be AWS’ second Middle East region.

The announcement builds on the momentum of cloud adoption in the Middle East by enabling customers to run applications and store data locally. This will provide businesses access to advanced cloud services and technologies such as computing, storage, networking, database, analytics, machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), mobile services, and more, all of which will help them innovate.

Fahad Al Gergawi, CEO of Dubai FDI, said: “Our strategic location facilitates digital communication around the world in terms of speed, security, and infrastructure readiness. The opening of AWS’s data centres next year builds on this relationship and a new stage in the journey of excellence that has already seen the opening of two AWS direct connect locations and two Amazon CloudFront edge locations in the UAE.”

Vinod Krishnan, head of Middle East and North Africa, AWS, and advisory council member of the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy said, “We are excited to launch the AWS cloud infrastructure in the UAE in the first half of next year, which will benefit organisations of all sizes in the UAE and across the region. We look forward to advancing our work with Dubai FDI to enable startups, enterprises, and government agencies to realise the full potential of the AWS Cloud.”

Read: The need to build low-carbon, energy-saving data centres in the Middle East

According to data from the Dubai FDI Monitor, Dubai had good inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2020, with 455 projects worth Dhs24.7bn being launched in the city. Inbound FDI is expected to create 18,325 new employment in 2020. According to FDI Markets, Dubai will be among the top global FDI sites in 2020, ranking first in the MENA region and fourth internationally in attracting greenfield FDI capital. FDI inflow to the UAE increased by 44 per cent in 2020, reaching Dhs73bn.

Read: How technology providers can address data centre cooling challenges