Page 54 - SAMENA Trends - August 2019

REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

Oman Plans to be a Safe Haven for Critical Data

Oman is banking on its reputation as a
friendly and peaceful nation as it plans to
become a regional digital hub for disaster
recovery services, offering to store backup
copies of critical data for its neighbors.
Should other countries in the GCC and
the rest of the Arab region unfortunately
lose their data owing to natural disasters,
Oman will be able to provide them with a
backup copy, ensuring they don’t have to
spend precious time and money rebuilding
their databases and thereby enabling
services to resume more quickly. Oman’s
plans to become a data haven were for Investment Promotion and Export the presence of systems and ready data
raised by the nation’s Implementation, Development (Ithraa). The issuance of the availability is particularly important to
Support and Follow-up Unit (ISFU), Oman Data Protection Law will accelerate customers, because data recovery acts as
the government organization that is the implementation of this project.” He a backup that may mitigate human errors.
overseeing the country’s Tanfeedh plan for added: “The work on this project has Since the demand for data recovery is
economic diversification. The plans were already started and is expected to continue increasing by an annual rate of more than
discussed during a recent Information for the next 5 years. The government and 50 percent, there is a high demand for cross
and Communication Technology Lab private investments in this project will border data recovery, especially since
spearheaded by ISFU. Plans to set up this reach OMR 25 million and will create more some countries cannot meet the minimum
hub are already underway, with public than 850 job opportunities by 2024. The requirements to have these systems within
and private investment into this project lead implementer of this project is the their own nation.” He added: “A DR or a
expected to reach OMR25 million. The Information Technology Authority. The key disaster recovery data center is a facility
project also hopes to create more than stakeholders are the Telecommunications an organization can use to recover and
850 jobs. Speaking to Times of Oman, Regulatory Authority, the Ministry of restore its technological infrastructure
an official from ISFU said: “Oman is the Foreign Affairs, Ithraa and the data centers and operations when its primary data
ideal country to provide disaster recovery which will be set up in Oman to store center becomes unavailable.” Ramanuj
services in the region, thanks to the unique this information.” ISFU also laid out how Venkatesh, a financial analyst and risk
geographical location of the Sultanate, the backup center would work during a manager in Oman, said that rebuilding lost
which gives it a competitive advantage disaster. Under normal conditions, the databases often cost organizations time
over its neighbors, in addition to its political data recovery centers in Oman will be and money, which could be mitigated by
stability. These services are defined as synced with the main data centers of the investing in a fallback plan. “These days,
a facility used by the institutions to host organizations responsible for uploading everything is digitized, so if something
their basic applications and data, in order that data, wherever they are. This way, the happens to your data, be it either through
to operate and recover them when they information that is stored in the back-up natural disasters or cyber security lapses,
are not available in their original sources data centers is up to date. During a natural then you could potentially spend millions
for any reason.” He added: “In addition, disaster or an emergency, if the data in of dollars and hundreds of hours just to get
the Sultanate can ideally provide these the main centers is lost, this can then be this back. All of this can be avoided if you
services as it is connected to most of the replenished by the back-up copies that are have a sound back-up plan. Oman being
major submarine cable systems in the present in the data center in Oman. Oman a non-controversial and peaceful nation
region. It is also connected to the Asia- is one of the six-member Gulf Cooperation in the Middle East makes it a very good
Africa-Europe line, which is the new major Council (GCC), with the other nations being choice to have such a center.” He added:
link connecting more than six billion people Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and “This way, countries also don’t have to
through the internet.” To gather further the United Arab Emirates. Commenting spend money on their own data centers and
support and spread awareness of Oman’s on the importance of disaster recovery, a can rely on the back-ups available here.
plans to become a digital disaster recovery spokesperson for the country’s Information Building individual data centers could cost
hub for the GCC and the region, the Omani Technology Authority (ITA) said such a lot of money, which could be allocated
government embarked on a promotional centers proved critical to restoring services elsewhere, particularly if those needs are
program, in collaboration with other in the aftermath of natural disasters. He more pressing. This sort of cooperation
public agencies. The ISFU official said: “A told Times of Oman, “Data recovery often will also lead to closer ties between these
promotional program will be spearheaded acts as the savior in disasters, and the cost nations and Oman, since Oman has always
by the Information Technology Authority of implementing data recovery is worth the had a role as an impartial mediator and a
in cooperation with the Public Authority value of protecting this data. These days, friendly nation to all.”

54 AUGUST 2019