Focus on skills development and research capabilities to address urban development challenges

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - May 13, 2014: IBM (NYSE:IBM) and the University of Dubai, today announced a plan to establish a Smarter Cities Institute. The center will be a venue for businesses, universities and city-administrators to develop and test solutions for future urban demands and Smart City challenges. For example, researching the use of analytics by governments and cities and how it can improve the delivery and effectiveness of citizen services - speeding social services payments, reducing crime, refining transportation systems and improving education. The Centre of Excellence aims to support the vision of the ruler of Dubai, HH. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's to transform Dubai into a Smart City and the UAE government into a Smarter Government.

The center will be located at the University of Dubai's campus and will focus on curriculum development mainly around Mobility, Cloud, Security and Business Analytics which will help equip the next generation of professionals with business and technology skills needed to support a strong human capital innovation ecosystem as part of the smarter cities and smarter government agendas.

"Our mission at the University of Dubai is to develop and educate the future leaders of the country who will make a difference in the business world and play a major role in the Smart Dubai agenda," said Dr. Easa Bastaki, President of University of Dubai. "By collaborating with a global leader like IBM, we will be able to support the development of a strong human capital innovation ecosystem and expand our research capabilities to address the societal and economical challenges inherent to the smart cities urban development."

The center will enable students and faculty members to research Big Data, Cloud Computing and Social Business and conduct applied research focused on the economic development of the UAE.

"Our collaboration with the University of Dubai will provide researchers, faculty and students in the UAE with a platform for innovation, resources and technology expertise to help ensure that today's graduates have the knowledge and workforce skills to contribute to building a Smarter City," said Amr Refaat, General Manager, IBM Middle East and Pakistan. "IBM collaborates with educational institutions around the world to drive innovation through research and skills development to support the development of the technical and business talent that fuels economic growth."

As part of the agreement, the University of Dubai becomes an IBM academic partner within the framework of the IBM Academic Initiative.

The IBM Academic Initiative is a global programme that facilitates collaboration between IBM and educators to teach students the information technology skills they need to offer competitive skills and keep pace with changes in the workplace. The programme boasts collaborations and partnerships with more than 1,000 universities across the globe, focusing on Big Data and analytics -- all of which are designed to prepare students for the 4.4 million jobs that will be created worldwide to support Big Data skills by 2015.

About IBM:
www.research.ibm.com/university/research/

About University of Dubai:
The University of Dubai (UD) is one of the leading higher education institutions in the United Arab Emirates offering a Bachelor and Master degree in Business Administration, a Bachelor of Science degree in Computing and Information Systems, a Master of Science degree in Information Systems Management and Master of Laws (LLM) in Business Arbitration & Anti-Money Laundering as well as PhD In Business Administration. Licensed nationally by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, UD became the first private University in Dubai to hold the AACSB international accreditation in 2009 as well as the first private university in the UAE to hold the ABET-CAC accreditation for its Computing and Information Systems (BS) program in 2006. The AACSB accreditation makes the University of Dubai part of an elite group to which only 5% of the world's business schools belong. UD delivers a premium education aided by a team of professors with extensive experience in their respective disciplines. The Dubai Chamber founded UD in 1997 to prepare future generations with the tools to become world leaders. Visit our website at www.ud.ac.ae or call +971 4 207 2787 for more information.

IBM Media Contact:
Jumana Akkawi
External Relations Leader, IBM Middle East
Direct: +971 4 4498353
Email: jumanaak@ae.ibm.com

University of Dubai Contact:
PR Department
University of Dubai
Tel: +971 4 207 2661
E-mail: info@ud.ac.ae

© Press Release 2014