Hi-Tech Park in Oman: a practical step toward a new partnership in the Middle East
Hi-Tech Park, as part of the official Belarusian delegation led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, is participating in a visit to the Sultanate of Oman.
On the first working day, Anna Ryabova, the director of Hi-Tech Park, spoke at the meeting of the Belarusian-Omani Joint Committee on Cooperation and Investment about the development of the IT industry of Belarus, as well as the state and prospects of cooperation with Oman in the field of high technologies.
Anna Ryabova emphasized that Belarus has one of the most dynamically developing IT sectors in the region, evidenced by steady growth in IT service exports and a unique legal environment that provides HTP residents with favorable conditions for doing business. The director of Hi-Tech Park also indicated the Belarusian side's interest in deepening cooperation with Oman, which is steadily moving toward digital transformation under its national program, "Oman Vision 2040."
"Hi-Tech Park sees Oman as a reliable and promising partner. Our residents are ready to share their accumulated expertise, offer comprehensive digital products, and work on creating solutions that meet the highest international standards," Anna Ryabova added.
She also specifically addressed the development of the national startup ecosystem:
"We are actively engaged in building a national startup ecosystem – literally, nurturing young unicorns. This is of great interest to investors from around the world. Oman also values and develops this approach. We truly want both to present our companies and to explore how to create new high-margin stories, including from an investment perspective."
During the visit, Anna Ryabova met with Simai Al Kaabi, the Director General of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology of the Sultanate of Oman. The Omani side showed keen interest in Belarus's experience in developing IT education and training personnel for the digital economy. Key areas of focus included the competencies and developments of HTP residents in smart city technologies (digitalization of urban infrastructure, traffic management, urban environment safety) and cybersecurity (critical infrastructure protection, secure communications). The parties discussed prospects for cooperation and potential projects involving HTP resident companies.
A meeting was also held with the management of ITHCA Group. The parties discussed prospects for collaboration in the development of Oman's digital infrastructure. The Belarusian side expressed readiness of HTP resident companies to participate in joint projects in the Sultanate.
On the second day of the visit, the Belarusian-Omani Business Forum took place. The representatives of Hi-Tech Park spoke about the growth drivers of Belarus's IT-sector, its importance to the country's economy, presented the opportunities for collaboration with Omani partners, and shared success stories of HTP residents and their breakthrough developments.
During the forum, HTP companies presented their solutions in digitalization, e-government, information security, BIM design, and artificial intelligence.
STiM-techno showcased a web platform for road inventory management, traffic control, and traffic flow analytics using artificial intelligence technologies.
The representatives of InDev Solutions presented solutions in e-government, national security, transportation, fintech, and information security, offering a full development cycle – from design to deployment of secure systems.
ENECA presented its own approach to implementing BIM in construction, allowing rapid realization of digital design benefits without significant investment, as well as an AI-solution for automating drawing documentation, significantly reducing labor costs.
The forum brought together over 200 Omani companies interested in cooperation with Belarus. HTP residents held a series of B2B negotiations with potential partners, discussing areas of collaboration, localization conditions, and entry into the Sultanate's market. Contacts were exchanged with the representatives of regulatory and industry bodies.
The Omani side confirmed its readiness to consider the implementation of IT products from HTP residents, as well as the development of custom IT-solutions tailored to local specifics.
Furthermore, the Omani partners expressed interest in exploring the possibility of joining Hi-Tech Park as a jurisdiction with unique conditions for conducting digital business.
The visit of Hi-Tech Park to the Sultanate of Oman has set a practical direction for bilateral cooperation in the information technology sector. The presentation of resident companies' competencies, along with substantive negotiations at the level of ministries and strategic investors opened new horizons for Belarusian IT-companies in the Middle East.
