SmartCity promotes Kochi and Malta at GITEX 2008

At GITEX 2008, SmartCity, a joint venture between TECOM and Sama Dubai, both members of Dubai Holding, is presenting landmark status updates of its current projects in Kochi and Malta.

SmartCity is actively marketing the development of knowledge based communities, like SmartCity Malta and SmartCity Kochi, to senior CIOs, knowledge workers and IT professionals from some of the Middle East’s most dynamic business and government organisations, as well as developers from the world’s leading IT companies.

Held in Dubai, GITEX TECHNOLOGY WEEK 2008 builds upon the global interest in the Middle East’s ICT landscape by presenting a power-packed week of dedicated trade segments, which includes GITEX Business Solutions, GULFCOMMS and Consumer Electronics. Focusing on the region’s fastest growing sectors – these three distinct, yet closely related segments, deliver focused forums for key buyers and decision-makers from across the region.

On Tuesday 21st October, Claudio Grech, SmartCity Malta CEO, will be delivering a presentation to a series of potential regional operators, explaining how SmartCity Malta is set to become the European ICT and Media destination offering unparalleled services to its partners in the first knowledge-based township in the region.

Commenting on the developments, Fareed Abdulrahman, SmartCity CEO said: “SmartCity Malta and SmartCity Kochi are the first two nodes in a top-tier global network of excellence townships. In the next few years, both of these SmartCity entities will open up a world of opportunities not only for the people of Malta and Kerala, who will benefit from new jobs, but also for the knowledge-based industry that will now have access new markets, talent pools and business partners. This will create prosperous and educated societies underpinned by long-term and extensive networks of life and work opportunities.”

SmartCity aims to create a global network of self-sustained business townships to foster knowledge-based businesses in strategically located destinations worldwide. These townships will harness commerce by providing an environment conducive to business, intelligent infrastructure and advanced support systems. SmartCity entities worldwide, will be home to a vibrant knowledge economy anchored by international, regional and local companies. The SmartCity strategy is based on the successful models of Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and Dubai Knowledge Village.
SmartCity Malta, developed in partnership with the Government of Malta, has just received permits to begin construction from the Malta Environment and Planning authority (MEPA) and is set to become the leading ICT and media cluster in the heart of the Mediterranean. It will also be the first European outpost of the SmartCity global network. On completion, which is expected to be in 2021, SmartCity Malta will offer a combination of ICT and media office space, hotels, a conference centre, retail, food and beverage outlets, residential units and open public spaces. The USD300 million knowledge based township, which overlooks the Mediterranean Sea, is the largest foreign investment in Malta and is expected to create 5,600 jobs.

SmartCity Kochi is a joint venture between SmartCity and the Government of Kerala, on a site of 246 acres in the rapidly expanding Southern Indian state of Kerala. SmartCity Kochi is currently undergoing the necessary procedures to obtain the SEZ notification from the Authorities. Construction will commence when full approvals are received. SmartCity Kochi will eventually become a regional destination for knowledge-based industries in Kerala. SmartCity Kochi will also host a number of business support services as well as residential, hospitality, retail and recreational facilities. The project has an employment generation potential of 90,000 jobs.

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