Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 12 | Page 10

NEWS QATAR agencies including Kanoo, ITL, and Dnata. As primary technology provider, Sabre has supported the growth and success of its agency customers by providing industry-leading technology and tailor-made solutions to enable agents to shop, book and manage travel for its clients. STNME also recently opened offices in Iraq and Palestine, and expanded its presence in Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, where its focus on training and customer service has helped the company grow its customer base. Sabre expands operations in Qatar Sabre Corporation, a technology provider to the global travel industry, is expanding itsSabre Travel Network Middle East (STNME) presence with a new office in Doha. This follows the recent appointment of Ghassan Abu Khalaf to country manager, Qatar. The new office in Qatar highlights STNME’s continued growth across the Middle East, after first establishing a presence in the region more than 30 years ago. Today, STNME has longstanding strategic relationships with some of the region’s largest travel Careem signs MOU with Ministry of Transportation and Communications in Qatar regulating and licensing the ride-hailing service technology in Qatar. The MOU follows recent moves by the authorities in Qatar to regulate the rapidly expanding transportation industry. Careem, the region’s car booking app, announced it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Transport and Communications for the purpose of 10 INTELLIGENTCIO H E Sheikh Hamad Bin Ghanim Al-Thani, Director of the Quality Performance Department for Land Transportation Services division and Ibrahim Manna, General Manager at CAREEM signed an agreement allowing the popular car-hailing app to connect CAREEM Captains (drivers) to customers. CAREEM is currently the “Qatar has established its position as a global tourism destination and showed resilience in spite of many challenges impacting the wider industry and economy,” said Daniel Naoumovitch, CEO, STNME. “Now is the right time for the travel industry to invest in global technology and solutions that will enable the region to compete even more effectively on a global scale. Sabre’s industry-leading solutions such as Sabre Red Workspace, and mobile, data, retailing and personalization technology positions the industry for success.” first and only car booking platform to have completed this step required by the Qatari authorities. “We have been proactively working with the Ministry of Transport and Communication to understand the regulations set forth and to ensure that we are fully compliant” said Ibrahim Manna, General Manager of Emerging Markets at Careem. Careem entered this market in 2014; now with three million registered users to date from more than 28 cities in the MENA region and Pakistan, along with an increasing fleet of more than 50,000 ‘captains’, Careem is re-inventing the current state of transportation. In Qatar alone, Careem has seen strong 30% growth month-on-month. www.intelligentcio.com