DOHA: Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC), a part of the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDC) of Malaysia, is considering making Doha its regional headquarters as part of its plans to make forays into the Middle East.
In any event, a few of its affiliate firms are looking into the possibility of making Qatar a regional hub, given the fact that places like Dubai are bursting at the seams. The Ericsson stall at the Comit 2006.
MSC serves as the umbrella company of 1,400 firms offering various services, which together account for around $10bn in revenues. The company has a presence in Qatar to some extent, with one of the affiliates imparting e-learning to the Al Israa School, from grades one 1 to three.
The work is being done in coordination with Qatar's Ministry of Education and the Supreme Education Council (SEC). Training was given to the faculty and soon, parents and students will be called upon to assess the programme, According to Ahmed Yusri bin Mohamed, senior manager, project management of Gulf International Technology Ventures, a Qatari firm partnering the company: "There is a possibility of developing e-content for a Qatari curriculum, suitable for an Arab and Muslim country, in coordination with the Ministry of Education," he said.
Ahmad Izham Khairuddin, of MDC's global reach, told The Peninsula yesterday: "We are interested to collaborate with Qatari firms, share our experience setting up a multimedia corridor and to initiate information communications technology (ICT) programmes." He said his organisation could help should Qatar decide to also go for a knowledge based economy at some stage.
IFCA MSC Berhad another MSC company channel manager, Pratheep Kumar Arumugam, said his firm is looking for opportunities in its areas of specialization, such as offering collaborative solutions in areas like property management, development, contracting and the hospitality sector, among others. He said: "Qatar is an ideal place to start base. Doha could soon become a future branch to make a regional base."
He praised the roads and transportation network in the country and said a place like Dubai had become too "saturated", further brightening Doha's prospects as a regional hub. Arumugam said joint ventures with Qatari firms are a distinct possibility but it didn't preclude his company from going it alone.
N2N Connect Berhad offers cellphone subscribers as well as brokers the option of trading online using their handsets for a fee. N2N managing director Andrew Tiang said: "We mean to emphasize and develop trading.
To give traders (in the stock market) mobility is important." He said that recently delegations from the UAE and Saudi Arabia had expressed interest while on a visit to Malaysia and they may soon take on the mobile services. Talks are planned with Doha Securities Market (DSM) officials on the issue of trading using mobiles, he said.
Local cellphone service provider Qtel would also have to be taken on board he said, stating both the provider and his company stood to gain should trading over mobile phones become a reality.
By Rabin Gupta
© The Peninsula 2006
