GOH Address by IDA CEO at the Official Opening of Dell Solution Centre

21 July 2011 - GOH Address by RADM(NS) Ronnie Tay, Chief Executive Officer, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore at the Official Opening of Dell Solution Centre

GOH Address by RADM(NS) Ronnie Tay, Chief Executive Officer, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) at the Official Opening of Dell Solution Centre on 21 July 2011, Thursday, 2.15pm, 2 International Park, The Strategy, Tower 2, Level 4

Mr Paul-Henri Ferrand, President, Dell Asia Pacific & Japan

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and gentlemen

Good afternoon

1. It gives me great pleasure to be here today to witness the opening of the Dell Singapore Solution Centre, one of the 12 solution centres set up globally, and the first in the South Asia region to be opened this year. We welcome the setting up of this customer-centric solution centre, which focuses on strategic IT partnerships to enable dedicated Proof-of-Concept testing with a full suite of solutions that meets the evolving needs of its customers.

2. The infocomm industry is growing and thriving. IT research company Gartner has forecast an international IT spending of close to US$3.7 trillion in 2011, a 7.1 per cent growth¹ over the previous year. Locally, Singapore's infocomm revenue grew by 12.2 per cent to reach S$70.39 billion in 2010. Singapore has also established its position as a top location and trusted hub for businesses. According to a 2010 World Bank Report on "Doing Business", Singapore is ranked first² based on the ease of conducting business here. Singapore also maintained its third place³ in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Index (GCI). With a thriving infocomm industry and a conducive business environment here, more global companies such as Amazon Web Service and NTT Communications have set up critical regional IT functions in Singapore in the past two years to serve the region.

3. IDA is committed to developing Singapore's infocomm infrastructure so as to create an attractive environment for infocomm businesses to grow. For example, through the multiple submarine cable systems laid in Singapore, we have a high level of connectivity to support potentially up to 67 terabits-per-second of high-speed international capacity globally. This is complemented by the deployment of the Next Generation Nationwide Broadband Network that is able to provide ultra high speeds of up to one gigabit-per-second.

4. In the infocomm realm, we are moving from the traditional "on premise" model to a cloud model, where applications are delivered and consumed via the wire and on mobile devices. This shift has been driven not only by the considerable savings in business costs, but also the opportunities to more effectively engage customers to deliver infocomm enabled services to local and global consumers and enterprises. According to the Asian results of the 2011 Gartner Executive Programs (EXP) CIO Agenda survey, cloud computing leads the CIO's technology priority list this year.

5. I understand Dell has been making many acquisitions, including some in the cloud computing space. Dell has also been the IT provider for many local SMEs, and will play an important role in accelerating the adoption of cloud computing among these SMEs. IDA welcomes the establishment of the Dell Solution Centre, which will offer a platform for test-bedding of cloud solutions and services to encourage enterprises to build up their confidence and capabilities to transit into the cloud. They will be able to leverage on the solution centre and focus more on technology innovation to grow their business and to extend the reach of their services and solutions to global markets.

6. One of the key roles of the Government is to work with the infocomm industry in cultivating infocomm talent, who can meet the requirements and demands of the changing global landscape. The Critical Infocomm Technology Resource Programme (CITREP) which helps to support the course fees for selected training courses and certification has been expanded since 1 April this year. It will now cover new and emerging areas, such as Cloud Computing, Business Analytics and Green ICT. The aim is to deepen the capabilities of infocomm professionals and to ensure that Singapore's infocomm manpower continues to remain competitive with the evolution of the industry globally and here in Singapore.

7. Indeed, Singapore's pro-business environment, supported by its excellent infocomm infrastructure and skilled manpower, has attracted companies from different sectors such as finance, infocomm & media and logistics to locate their global centres here. The presence of these MNCs adds diversity to our infocomm eco-system with a healthy mix of local and international industry partners. Similarly, Dell's investment and location of its Solution Centre in Singapore will add to the vibrancy of our infocomm eco-system, with increased business opportunities and knowledge exchange between global and local enterprises.

8. Once again, let me extend my congratulations and best wishes to Dell on the establishment of its Solution Centre in Singapore. We look forward to more opportunities for collaboration that will further strengthen the exciting and dynamic infocomm eco-system here in Singapore. Thank you.

Notes to Editor:

¹ According to Gartner's "Worldwide IT Spending Is on Pace to Grow 7.1 Percent in 2011", published on 1 Jul 11

² 2010 World Bank Report on "Doing Business"

³ Global Competitiveness Index 2010-2011, www.weforum.org/issues/global-competitiveness