MIDDLE EAST REAL ESTATE FORUM Plans to create a new tech and innovation hub in the Emirate of Sharjah could help to boost the Gulf region’s position as a global tech player.
Speaking to EG at the Middle East Real Estate Forum in Dubai this week, Marwan bin Jassim Al Sarkal, chief executive of the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority, said the Emirate’s current focus on education and culture should be developed to create a new TMT hub in the region.
He said: “To take the Sharjah education hub to the next level, the government has decided it will be focusing on research, technology and innovation. And because we have a huge number of SMEs functioning in Sharjah, more than 55,000 companies, we are looking to create an innovation centre that will make them competitive for the future. To make that happen the government has created a new research and technology park.”
He added that the Arab world is “missing” innovation: “It used to focus a lot on innovation… now is the time to focus on it again and become more competitive for the future.”
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