DIC eyes tie-up with top IT firms to train Emiratis

Dubai Internet City (DIC) is examining a scheme which will place Emirati IT students with tech companies in order to give them valuable on-the-job experience before they graduate.

The proposals, scheduled to begin as early as 2010, could see local students placed with international giants such as Microsoft, Intel or Dell.

“We are working on a formal relationship with Dubai universities to make sure that UAE nationals are trained and nurtured with companies at DIC,” said Malek Al Malek, executive director of DIC.

“We are looking at it now and we hope the scheme will start next year. We will be a mediator between the universities and the employers, to give Emiratis internships so they can work on projects with our companies,” he added.

“Before an IT graduate leaves university, he or she will spend a couple of months with an employer to gain valuable experience.”

Launched in 2000, DIC is the region's largest managed Information and Communications Technology cluster (ICT) and a member of TECOM Investments, part of the Dubai Holding group. It features a dynamic international community of ICT companies including global giants as well as a range of small and medium businesses.

The cluster comprises companies from a variety of sectors - Software Development, Business Services, Web Based and e-Commerce, Consultancy, Sales and Marketing and Back Office.

Built as a strategic base for companies targeting emerging markets in several neighbouring regions, DIC’s catchment area extends from the Middle East to the Indian Subcontinent, and from Africa to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), covering nearly three billion people with a GDP of over $10 trillion.

In 2008, 140 new companies joined the DIC cluster – a figure Al Malek said DIC should match in 2009.

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