Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 47 | Page 15

flyEgypt selects PAYFORT as its payment provider E gypt’s hybrid airline flyEgypt has selected PAYFORT’s payment services to offer more payment options and an enhanced booking experience for passengers. PAYFORT, an Amazon company, has announced that flyEgypt, a Cairo based hybrid airline chose PayFort’s payment services to deliver improved payment experiences for their customers. “Beyond the legislative challenges that affect everyone in the industry, the biggest challenge we face is a lack of local and regional understanding of the low cost carrier /hybrid business model, which is why we chose PAYFORT as our preferred payment service provider,” said Captain Ihab El Tahtawi, CEO at flyEgypt. “As we continue to grow, and for the convenience of our customers, it becomes increasingly important for us to have a reliable payment services provider and to widen the range of payment channels available to customers online, while keeping the transaction process easy-to-use. “The scale that flyEgypt deals with means that customer payment transactions are just one element of this process, and we rely on PAYFORT to support us with its vast knowledge and expertise, not only with the airline industry but also international banks, technology providers and card schemes, as we continue to evolve our business.” The PAYFORT solution will allow customers to make payments using globally recognised payment leaders such as credit and debit cards, plus Egypt’s national debit card MEEZA and Saudi Arabia’s national payment card, mada. Additional payment networks – namely Installments, FAWRY and SADAD – will be added in the near future. ///////////////// / Minister reveals Egypt to establish seven new technology parks A n Egyptian minister has revealed that seven technology parks will be launched at different universities. Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), speaking at the Euromoney Egypt Conference 2019, said the number of technology trainees in Egypt is expected to double because of the establishment of seven more training institutes affiliated to MCIT. He added that a project of establishing a specialised ICT university at the Knowledge City in the New Administrative Capital is also in the pipeline, as well as a centre for applied research. The minister highlighted Egypt’s keenness to co-operate with international companies specialising in AI. He referred to the on-going co-operation with a Chinese company in Natural Language Processing (NLP) and mentioned Egypt’s strong position in participating in Arabic language processing. www.intelligentcio.com Talaat explained that an important aspect of the country’s future direction was to achieve Digital Transformation. He said that by the end of 2019, the number of e-government services launched in Port Said city, as a pilot project, will reach 174. The services are provided through digital platforms and mobile applications and the project is due to expand in other governorates later.The minister added that Egypt is eager to co-operate with African countries in ICT initiatives with the most prominent being the African App Launchpad (AAL) presidential initiative. INTELLIGENTCIO 15