On 22 May 2023, Google Cloud announced the opening of its Doha cloud region at an official launch event attended by ministers from the Qatari Cabinet and executives from leading Qatari businesses, with the cooperation of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) and Qatar Free Zone Authority (QFZ). The new cloud region will meet the growing demand for cloud services in Qatar and the Middle East region and support Qatar’s National Vision 2030, which aims to transform the country into a digital economy through innovation and digital transformation.

According to research commissioned by Google Cloud and conducted by Access Partnership, the new Doha cloud region is expected to drive increased economic activity and is estimated to contribute a cumulative 18.9 billion USD in higher gross economic output to the economy of Qatar between 2023 and 2030 and support the creation of 25,000 jobs in 2030 alone. This new cloud region is the latest significant investment made by Google Cloud in Qatar, following the recent opening of a country office and virtual center of excellence (CoE) in Msheireb.

The series of investments in infrastructure and resources demonstrates Google Cloud’s continued commitment to playing a pivotal role in advancing Qatar’s digital future and technological capabilities.

MCIT and the Qatari government have helped enable the growth of the cloud across the government through the adoption of cloud policies, which facilitated Google Cloud's market entry.

QFZ and Google Cloud’s strategic collaboration agreement to enable in-country Google Cloud presence was announced in early 2020. QFZ’s continued support of the launch of the Center of Excellence has helped the growth of the technology ecosystem in Qatar.

Adaire Fox-Martin, President, Google Cloud Go-to-Market, said:

“We are proud to be delivering on the commitment we made in 2020 to the Government of Qatar and the business community to open a cloud region in the country. The economy of Qatar holds tremendous growth potential. The Doha cloud region will be a catalyst for economic development and will create more employment opportunities in the Qatari market as more businesses grow and expand with the power of cloud technologies. We are also humbled by the presence of Qatari Cabinet Ministers and leaders from Qatari businesses at the region launch event today, which reflects the endorsement of the new cloud regions' potential.”

The new Doha region is part of Google Cloud’s global network of 37 regions and 112 zones that bring cloud services to over 200 countries and territories worldwide. The new region brings high-performance, low-latency services and products to customers of all sizes, from public sector organizations to large enterprises, to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and startups in Qatar and the Middle East. Organizations in the region will benefit from key controls that allow them to maintain the highest security, data residency, and compliance standards, including specific data storage requirements.

The news was revealed as part of a keynote by Adaire Fox-Martin, President, Go-to-Market, Google Cloud, at the company’s launch event held at the Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC). The event was attended by over 1,200 participants from Qatar’s top decision makers, government officials, CIOs, CXOs and IT community.

Source & cover image credit: Press Release

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Fareeha Imtiaz

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