NEWS
Digital
Transformation
to fuel
government
ICT spending
growth says IDC
Hala Travel Management
extends partnership
with Amadeus
Hala Travel Management and Amadeus have
confirmed an extended partnership agreement
G
overnments across the Middle East and
Africa (MEA) spent a combined US$12.8
billion on information and communication
technologies (ICT) last year, according to
the latest findings from International Data
Corporation (IDC).
The global technology research and
consulting firm expects this figure to continue
rising over the coming years at a compound
annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.8%, crossing
the US$15 billion mark by 2023.
Digital Transformation (DX) initiatives will be
responsible for driving much of this growth in
the MEA region, with government spending
in this space forecast to increase at a CAGR
of 17.6% over the 2019 to 2023 period.
A key area of DX growth in the government
sector will be Artificial Intelligence (AI),
with IDC predicting that 60% of national
governments worldwide will have deployed
AI by 2023 as they strive to improve their
data centre management, service and
information accuracy and constituent
interactions. To this end, government
spending on AI in the MEA region is forecast
to grow at a CAGR of 22.2% over the
coming years.
More than 500 CIOs and other C-suite
executives from both the public and private
sectors discussed these issues at a CIO
Summit in Dubai organised by IDC.
H
ala Travel Management, a leading
Abu Dhabi based travel management
company, has confirmed an extended
partnership agreement with Amadeus
to develop and deploy cutting-edge
digital solutions for its government and
corporate clients.
Hala Travel Management is part of the
Etihad Aviation Group and has long
championed global best practices in
Digital Transformation and provides
bespoke experiences to its clients.
The agreement will span over the next
five years with a focus on personalised
services, traveller safety and delivering
unparalleled value for money to
organisations in the UAE. As part of the
agreement, the company will be able to
10
INTELLIGENTCIO
leverage the strengths of the Amadeus
Selling Platform, connecting with global
tools such as the Amadeus Online
Corporate Traveller, Amadeus Margin
Manager, Amadeus Fare Optimiser,
the Amadeus B2B Wallet, Mobile
Application and its latest Amadeus
Value Hotels program.
Ahmed Ershood Al Shehhi, General
Manager of Hala Travel Management,
said: “We have always looked at
technology as an enabler, a tool for
providing enhanced, seamless and more
personalised services to our clients.
“With Amadeus, we have a wealth of
digital tools at our fingertips and are free
from technology constraints so that we
can put more of our passion to work.”
www.intelligentcio.com