PROVINCE CONNECTS WITH WORLD'S FIRST INTERNET CITY

NI’s Trade Development centre in Dubai is to relocate to the world’s first Internet city in Dubai.

Sir Reg Empey, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, announced the decision to relocate the existing Trade Development Centre to Dubai’s Internet City on Thursday. A special briefing for Northern Ireland companies was held at Queen's University, Belfast at which, Mr Ahmad Bin Byatt, the organisation's chief executive outlined the Internet City concept.

Northern Ireland technology companies are to be offered innovative facilities by Trade International, the export and trade arm of the Industrial Development Board.

Sir Reg said: "Dubai Internet City is the first complete Information Technology and Telecommunications centre in the world to be built inside a free-trade zone. It is also the biggest IT infrastructure project in the Middle East and has already been backed by corporations such as Microsoft and Oracle.

“These facilities will enable them to take advantage of an initiative by the Dubai Government to create a unique global internet hub within a marketplace of 1.5 billion people.”

Dubai Internet City is a unique greenfield development which offers companies fully serviced space with low-cost broadband telecommunications in modern accommodation and is designed to transform Dubai into an internet and multi-media hub for the Gulf region.

Sir Reg said that this development offered our technology companies a tremendous opportunity to be involved at the very start of what could become one of the most strategically important investments in the Middle East.

"Our planned 1200 sq ft facility at Dubai Internet City will be a new and much larger base for the Northern Ireland Trade Development Centre in Dubai and will also provide managed space for IT companies wishing to develop business in this market with a reach of some 1.5 billion people.

"In addition, the facility will provide a showcase for companies involved in the recently launched Trade International Madini Hotel Works campaign to promote Northern Ireland products to hotel and luxury apartment developers in this very dynamic and fast-growing marketplace," added Sir Reg.

Trade International opened the Northern Ireland Trade Development Centre at the World Trade Centre in Dubai in October 1994.

Since its formation the centre has assisted over 150 Northern Ireland companies to secure business in the Arabian Gulf.

It has also supported IDB/Trade International participation at major exhibitions and other shows in the region. (AMcE)