KUWAIT: Zain, the leading digital service provider in Kuwait, hosted a two-day event to mark the launch of its managed cloud services and cybersecurity solutions. The event took place at the Recital Hall in Jaber Al-Ahmad Cultural Center (JACC), and featured top executives from business, banking, and retail sectors. The new services are powered by ZainTech, Zain Group's regional digital and ICT solutions arm in the MENA region.

The event was attended by Zain Kuwait's Chief Enterprise Business Officer Hamad Al-Marzouq, Zain Group's Chief Technical Officer Nawaf Al-Gharabally, ZainTech CEO Andrew Hanna, and top executives from banking, investment, and local business sectors as well as Zain's global partners. The launch is part of the company's continuous efforts to offer a portfolio of world-class, advanced security solutions to the local business community, serving businesses of all sizes, including large enterprises, SMEs, startups, and government institutions. This comes in line with Zain's digital transformation strategy that aims at empowering a more efficient business sector in the Kuwaiti market under the New Kuwait 2035 vision.

Hamad Al-Marzouq
Hamad Al-Marzouq
Nawaf Al-Gharabally speaking during the event
Nawaf Al-Gharabally speaking during the event
Andrew Hanna delivering his speech
Andrew Hanna delivering his speech

The first day's program featured a number of panel discussions that hosted executives from Kuwait's banking and financial sectors. The discussions focused on the multi-cloud environment challenges in banking and finance, cloud challenges and opportunities in the financial sector, digital transformation trends in banking, leveraging the power of data in the banking and financial sectors, and cybersecurity challenges in the new COVID era.

The second day's program featured panel discussions that hosted representatives and officials from the Kuwaiti private sector's biggest institutions. The discussions highlighted the future of the digital retail experience, offloading the ERP onto the cloud, the challenges COVID posed on the retail sector, cybersecurity challenges during the pandemic, and leveraging the power of data in retail.

Panel discussion

ZainTech was introduced in October 2021 as Zain Group's regional digital and ICT solutions arm. The company unifies Zain Group's ICT assets to offer enterprises and governments a unique value proposition and comprehensive enterprise digital solutions and transformation services under one roof across the MENA markets.  With this announcement, Zain takes a new step towards its pledge to enable a full and secure digital transformation within the Kuwaiti business community. The company is introducing an integrated portfolio of managed cloud services and cybersecurity solutions to enterprises in join collaboration with ZainTech.

During the past few years, the local business market witnessed an accelerated wave of implementing digital transformation within private sector companies, SMEs and startups, and government institutions. However, at the same time, many new challenges surfaced along with this wave, emphasizing the importance of preserving data and protecting the digital infrastructures of companies from security breaches. Zain took the responsibility to offer an all-inclusive and integrated portfolio of cloud services and digital solutions built on the latest world-class technologies and provide cybersecurity solutions to the local business community.

Kuwait has always been a flagship market for Zain Group operations, and its pioneering developments in the enterprise segment have helped inspire initiatives in other Zain markets. ZainTech's establishment as the driver of the Group's digital and ICT solutions regionally reflects the need to continue to upgrade and evolve business solutions in order to manage the needs of transformational enterprises and continue providing customers, through the Zain operations, with the best-in-class services.

Technologies such as big data, cloud, artificial intelligence, IoT and cybersecurity are defining the next stage of digital solutions, and ZainTech is positioned to support entities such as Zain Business in Kuwait with a wide range of best-in-class business offerings, leveraging its own expertise as well as the deep and wide partner relationships that it possesses. Zain recognizes the importance of data in driving digital transformation in Kuwait. For this, the company has partnered with renowned global providers in cloud computing, data center solutions, and IT services to bring the best-in-class solutions to its business customers.

Zain's cloud solutions are custom-built by our talented solution architects to enable sustainable digital transformation, innovation, cost optimization and accelerated time to market. Zain solutions are backed by industry-leading SLAs with proactive 24/7 support through an advanced network operations center. Zain's portfolio covers a wide range of solutions from cloud advisory, virtual private servers and cloud containers to in-country datacenters and fully managed applications.

As global cyber threats continue to rise, the early detection and fast response to cyber security incidents can significantly help organizations contain risk and reduce the economic impacts on their operations, and bottom lines. Zain's fully managed cybersecurity solutions are built on the same premise and are designed to help businesses in Kuwait in swiftly detecting and responding to cyber threats, to ensure full protection of their operations and meet compliance requirements. Zain's solutions are custom-built by skilled security engineers and offer flexible payment models to suit every customer's specific requirements.

Zain Group recently introduced ZainTech across MENA, providing a center of excellence and managed solutions across the ICT stack including cloud, cybersecurity, big data, IoT, AI, smart cities, robotics, drones, and emerging technologies. ZainTech leverages Zain's global reach, unique footprint and infrastructure across its operations as well as other key markets in the Middle East to offer a single point of contact for sales and personalized customer care for multi-national corporations with multiple points of presence across the region.

Zain's strategy is centered around digital transformation leadership and empowering the community to enjoy a smarter portable lifestyle, as well as using advanced technology to enable an easier and more flexible life. The company places itself as an active partner in creating the future of smart life in Kuwait. Today's launch will contribute to prove the company's full potential in triggering the digital community.