BT plans to double its business in Turkey, the Middle East and Africa by hiring 170 new employees in the region. Among the new hires will be professional services specialists to provide local support to customers who will deliver consulting, integration and managed services.
Customers in the regions will be able to access a range of intelligent network services provided by the BT Connect portfolio. The solution offers networked IT services through 197 countries and territories.
BT will improve network reach and access options in Sub-Saharan Africa, including an international routing facility in South Africa and a new network connection between Cape Town and Johannesburg. Three new network nodes are being launched in the Middle East, while additional network interconnections will be rolled out in Turkey.
BT says the addressable market in Turkey, the Middle East and Africa was worth a combined 5.4 billion in 2011. IT spending growth across the regions is expected to top 10% in 2012. BT already serves around 600 organizations in the regions.
The Middle East already hosts some of the worlds main business hubs, and is a crucial region for many of our customers, says Jeff Kelly, CEO of BT Global Services. New opportunities are rapidly emerging in the region, and we are now expanding from our thriving base in the United Arab Emirates. Turkey is a key business bridge between Europe, Asia and the Middle East and is growing rapidly. Sub-Saharan Africa remains largely a new frontier for ambitious businesses and is currently showing strong growth rates in a number of countries. We are extending our network capabilities in that region beyond our strong South African operation, with the ambition of serving our customers wherever they seek new opportunities. We are also seeing the emergence of a new generation of local companies in these regions, eager to expand globally. Our new initiatives show that when we talk about global ambitions, we truly mean global.
The firm recently also built up its presence in Asia Pacific and Latin America, where orders in the first nine months of this financial year increased more than 50%.
(CG)