KARACHI: Saudi Arabia's economic diversification under Vision 2030 will provide “enormous opportunities” for information technology-based companies, the CEO of Pakistan's technology giant said on Tuesday, adding that the key to benefiting from these opportunities is ” “Diversification and specialization,” he emphasized. .
Saudi Arabia is seeking to integrate its economy on a modern path under Vision 2030, a strategic development framework aimed at reducing Saudi oil dependence. It aims to develop the Kingdom's public service sectors, including health, education, infrastructure, recreation and tourism.
In an interview with Arab News, Pakistan's IT industry tycoon Asif Peer said it is a “big market” for players in all sectors, especially in the IT field. Peer's Systems Limited boasts of being Pakistan's first IT company, established in 1977, with a market capitalization of 128 billion rupees ($444 million) and a market capitalization of 20.64 billion rupees ($69 million) in 2022. It earns a profit of USD).
“I think all the money being spent by the Saudi conglomerates, the big companies, and most importantly the public sector, the government, which is doing a lot of work, is mostly going towards technology,” Peer said. Told.
“If everyone recognizes what's going on… there's going to be a lot of opportunity for everyone,” he said, adding: “The key is diversification and specialization.”
Peer companies derive more than 80% of their revenue from exporting services to various countries in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and less than 20% from the domestic market. The company already has a significant presence in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Singapore, South Africa, Australia and the Netherlands.
Peer, however, said Pakistani businesses need to recognize and benefit from the opportunities that are coming as part of Vision 2030. Vision 2030 has many aspects, including infrastructure development, as well as technology, business and digital transformation, and gender diversity, he said.
“They all need technology in their backbone or backbone. We just need to know about these projects and sign up all these companies and big consulting partners,” he said. “So we know what projects are coming and we are trying to position ourselves.”
According to the CEO, Systems Limited last year established a company in the Kingdom called Systems Arabia, which has won significant contracts in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
A healthy pipeline will fuel momentum in Saudi Arabia, as the company is now looking to acquire customers in both the public and private sectors.
“They are all expanding and are focused on technology and digitization and AI. So there is ample opportunity to double and triple our investments in these markets,” Peer said. .
“Our Egypt center is not only a market for us, but also a supply center,” he said, adding that while the company employs hundreds of people at the center and supports customers in the GCC, its main The reason, he added, is because of the language and the coveted nature. A mix of cultures.
Pia's company is starting with Egypt and focusing on other regional markets for acquisitions.
“We're really focused on those markets now and acquiring more companies in those markets and related areas, because both organic growth and inorganic growth are better. Because I believe it will bring results,” he told Arab News.
When asked about the challenges his company faces in the Gulf region, Peer said there are no major challenges in the Middle East.
Commenting on its domestic and international growth plans, the CEO of Systems Limited said the company is in hyper-growth mode exceeding its own expectations.
“There are two sides to expansion and growth: one is demand and the other is supply. So on the supply side, we not only hire people, but we also have many training programs that we run in all competencies. “And we're expanding steadily, in all areas,” he said.
Peer announced that his company recently received the “Microsoft Partner of the Year” award for its outstanding development and delivery of Microsoft-based applications, services, and devices over the past year.
