Local talent key for UAE’s digital future

France’s Thales Group is keen to develop local talent in the UAE, with the objective of further supporting innovation, digital transformation, industrialisation and local partnerships by nurturing local talent and fostering diversity.

The company, which provides solutions, services and products in the defence, aeronautics, space, transportation and digital identity and security markets, has been the UAE’s partner for more than 45 years.

“Our objective is to further support innovation, digital transformation, industrialisation, and local partnerships by nurturing local talent and fostering diversity. As a long-term partner, Thales has developed its local presence in the country through numerous joint ventures and partnerships. This has allowed us to expand the local footprint, to be able to adapt and meet customer needs and, more importantly, to develop local talent through high-level professional and academic training programmes,” Thales UAE CEO Bernard Roux said.

In 2019, it set up Thales Emarat technologies, a 100 per cent local Emirati company to support the country’s ambitious national vision of industrial autonomy.

“We have set up an industrial footprint through three main axes — industry, innovation and education — to develop radar and radio communication centres of excellence, through Thales Emarat Technologies. We are constantly innovating locally to stay at the forefront of the industry and for us, this means investing in people,” said Roux.

“Today, as we’re at the cusp of a digital revolution, we believe that human capital is the world’s most prized resource. Countries and businesses around the world seek to attract and retain those who have the highest potential in the fields of artificial intelligence, big data, connectivity and cybersecurity amongst others. As we navigate through the current global health crisis, investment in education is a priority for us.”

Over the last few years, Thales has partnered with Khalifa University Abu Dhabi for the Thales Cybersecurity Hub and have entered a joint venture with the UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the form of the CERT Thales Institute. Thales has also teamed up with Sorbonne University of Abu Dhabi for the creation of an industrial chair in the field of artificial intelligence and the establishment of Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence.

“We are also strategic partners in the latest sustainable education initiative of the UAE defence and security industry enabler Tawazun Economic Council, Sustain and Enhance Emiratisation in Defence and Security – also known as the SEEDS programme. The programme aims to offer international companies the chance to meet their business and recruitment objectives through job placement programmes for home-grown talent,” said Roux.

Recently Thales announced a new collaboration with Google Cloud that will accelerate the ability of enterprises to safely migrate sensitive data between public cloud, hybrid and private IT infrastructures. Together, the two companies will offer new capabilities that enable security teams to own and control their encryption keys while helping to fulfill heightened regulatory requirements amidst today’s highly-distributed workforce. 
— sandhya@khaleejtimes.com