Cisco recently supported and participated in Salman Bin Abdulaziz University's first ever Technology Day held at the university's Al-Kharj headquarters. Aside from a keynote speech on education trends in 21st century, delivered by Cisco's Director for Sales and Operations for Saudi Arabia Sean MacKirdy, Cisco also unveiled for the first time its Innovation Bus which represents a technology set-up on wheels designed to demo the company's latest innovative, state-of-the art technology solutions. The event was conducted under the patronage of the University's Rector Dr Abdulrahman Al-Asmi. The diverse curriculum on offer from educational establishments in Saudi Arabia is designed to help the Kingdom prepare its citizens for life and work in a global economy and technology will play a very important role in this. Cisco is working with the government and key educational institutions like Salman Bin Abdulaziz University to support the Kingdom's adoption of information technology (IT) to achieve its development goals and prepare future generations to meet contemporary challenges. Dr. Mohammed Al-Kahtani, Dean IT & Distance Learning Salman bin Abdulaziz University, said “technology and delivering first class ICT education is a top priority for Salman Bin Abdulaziz University and indeed the Kingdom as a whole. We are therefore delighted to be able to strategically partner with organizations like Cisco to help us achieve our goal. In Saudi Arabia there is a growing population that needs to be equipped with the right ICT skills to help them thrive in this ever changing world. By providing access to high-quality educational opportunities and working with the ICT sector through public and private partnerships we can help create a knowledge economy by imparting training that will prepare students to become members of the global 21st century workforce.” Dr. Tarig Enaya, Managing Director, Cisco Saudi Arabia, said “given the level of investment and focus on ICT education in the Kingdom, Cisco is delighted to have supported Salman Bin Abdulaziz University's Technology Day and we look forward to supporting similar initiatives in the future. Over the next few years, the Internet will provide phenomenal opportunities for businesses and individuals throughout the Middle East region and Cisco is at a very exciting, pivotal place being at forefront of Internet of Everything (IoE), an era where the Internet has the potential to dramatically improve the lives of everyone on our planet. Cisco's presence at Salman Bin Abdulaziz University's Technology Day was engineered to demonstrate how technology will and is already evolving to embrace the new opportunities.” — SG
