The Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO) Technology Park is living up to expectations as is evident from substantial investment that has poured in over a rather short period since the initiative was launched.

The oasis has so far witnessed total investments of Dh19 billion ($5.17 billion), of which Dh2 billion is Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the form of technology, according to Dr Mohammed Al Zarouni, vice chairman and CEO of the DSO Authority (DSOA).
Dr Al Zarouni also said infrastructure investment had reached Dh650 million and was expected to increase in the very near future. 
The FDI is invested in various technology based-industries including photovoltaic technology, integrated circuit design, telecommunication R and D, servicing and training, plasma, LCD and laptop assembly. 
Furthermore, private foreign and local investment in the servicing and real estate industries has reached Dh13.5 billion and this will be reflected in the development of commercial and residential towers which should contribute greatly to the positive image that the park has.
“What is worth mentioning is that DSOA’s investments up to the year 2012 are expected to increase to Dh4 billion. They will go into the development of infrastructure and high-tech buildings for technology companies and in the development of the lifestyle aspect to guarantee investors, engineers and individuals living in DSO a luxurious lifestyle,” Dr Al Zarouni said.
DSO, the region’s premier integrated innovations hub for high-tech industries, was established by the Dubai Government in 2005 as a free zone. The project, launched as part of the Dubai Government’s strategy to build a knowledge-based economy, aims to attract semiconductor, microelectronic and other advanced technology-based companies into the emirate complete with customer support, incubation and R&D facilities.
The 7.2-sq km park, located on the intersection of Emirates Road and Al Ain Road, is recognised as one of the pioneering ventures of its kind in the Middle East and Africa.

Incentives offered
The government has devised a packet of incentives to draw businesses to the oasis. One of the important benefits of the free zone is the facility of 100 per cent capital repatriation.
 The Dubai government hopes DSO will serve as an encouragement to local and regional entrepreneurs to participate in technology-based industries and help make it a leading centre for advanced electronic innovation, design and development. Dr Al Zarouni mentioned semiconductors, nanotechnology, optoelectronics and photovoltaic technologies as areas that could be explored.
“We are confident DSO will contribute to Dubai’s overall economic development and be the key engine propelling it into the knowledge-based era,” he said.

A ‘Silicon Valley’
More than 130 companies have signed up in what is fast emerging as the ‘Silicon Valley of the Middle East.’
These include Europe’s Optical Disc Group and Solar Technologies Group, which have formed a joint venture to invest Dh112 million for activities that include research and development, an optical media training and support centre and manufacturing next-generation optical media products, solar cells, solar panels and tempered glass used in the photovoltaic and building industries.
Some of the other companies include US-based EtherCom Lisec, one of the largest manufacturers of high-tech insulating glass and machines for photovoltaic applications, and Time Group Middle East, which allocated Dh365 million to build a plant with capability to produce more than one million units of personal computers, plasma televisions and LCD monitors.
Celoxica, a company at the forefront of accelerated computing solutions, has set up its business in DSO.  The company’s solutions combine accelerated hardware, firmware, Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and professional services.
Since its formation as a technology spin-out from Oxford University in 1996, a wide range of industries including oil, gas and the life sciences have off-loaded their processor-intensive and performance-hungry tasks to Celoxica.
Today its focus is on addressing some of the most challenging problems facing the finance sector, such as the exponential development of electronic trading and growth of complex derivatives trading, where it can deliver advantage measured in microseconds.
Atlas Telecoms announced recently it would set up its headquarters in DSO. The company has been operating in the UAE since the arrival of technology in the region over 24 years ago and has been supplying state-of-the-art telecom and security products. Another market leader, Sphere Networks, has also established a presence at DSO.
Wacker Chemie AG, a leading global supplier to the chemical, semi-conductor and solar industries; Advanced Micro-Devices (AMD), Middle East, Africa and Pakistan, provider of innovative processing solutions in computing, graphics and consumer electronics, and IT infrastructure provider Fujitsu Siemens, found it important to have a base there. “For them, DSO was a natural choice given its commitment to semiconductor design and development,” said Dr Al Zarouni.

A German park
What is certain to be a conspicuous feature of DSO is the German Business Park, a mixed-use real estate development project created to offer German businesses a full array of services and facilities under one roof.
The complex will also be the home of the German Centre Dubai, which will provide affordable office space and business services to small and medium-sized companies. German Business Park facilities also include offices for sale, a business class hotel, adjunct serviced apartments, a luxury retail area and underground parking ... all fully incorporated and enclosed within a unique architectural configuration.

Aggressive marketing
Since the beginning of this year, DSO has been aggressively marketing the oasis at international events including the Global Semiconductor Forum (GSF) in Osaka-Japan and Interconex Forum in Paris.
 DSO hosted the 17th International Electronics Forum, where more than 120 decision-makers from the world’s largest technology companies attended and had the opportunity to experience the oasis’ state-of-the-art infrastructure.
They also were able to recognise Dubai’s ability to access regional talent and the park’s competitive cost of operations, as well as appreciating the luxurious lifestyle tenants were offered in Dubai in general and DSO in particular.

RIT-Dubai, a promising initiative
One of the significant events of recent months was DSOA’s tie-up with the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT - US), a leader in the field of microelectronics, for establishing a campus. Set to open this month (August), RIT Dubai is spread over three million sq ft of land and comprises the university campus, an academic centre, a dormitory and recreational facilities for students and faculty.
RIT will provide academic content, oversee management of the university and provide its internationally recognised and certified degrees. RIT Dubai will undergo two phases, the first of which will offer masters degrees at the DSOA headquarters, while the second will offer bachelors’ degrees within the university campus in the oasis.
“RIT’s presence in the high-tech park in Dubai will significantly add to the strength and diversity of Dubai’s higher educational sector,” said Dr Al Zarouni.
It will initially cater to full-time employees looking to pursue their masters’ degrees. Students will be able to concentrate on various disciplines within the fields of electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, networking, security and systems administration, human resource development, finance, project management, computer information assurance, service leadership and innovation.
University officials anticipate that graduate degree programmes will be augmented shortly to include computer engineering, telecommunications, facilities management and manufacturing management and leadership. 
RIT Dubai is expected to offer undergraduate programmes over the course of the coming years to full-time students in a variety of fields similar to those being offered at the graduate level.