UAE’s Ministry of Education and Germany-based technology company Siemens have announced software licenses for five universities in the country, valued at 100 million euros ($116 million) in total.

 The partnership between the Ministry of Education and Siemens comes on the back of the signing of a memorandum of understanding between both parties last year. The grant seeks to advance digital skills in the country to support its economic diversification goals, underscoring Siemens’ contribution to the Year of Giving in 2017.

The license handover was made during a signing ceremony in Abu Dhabi, attended by Dr Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, the UAE’s Minister of State for Higher Education and Advanced Skills, and Joe Kaeser, president and CEO of Siemens AG.

“As the UAE transitions to a competitive, knowledge economy, building the skills of the future among UAE nationals is a top priority. The software grant from Siemens is a significant contribution to enhancing local digital skills, as they become increasingly essential for the development of this country and the jobs of tomorrow,” said Dr Al Falasi. “We extend our gratitude to Siemens, a trusted private sector partner of the Ministry of Education, for their generosity and commitment during the Year of Giving.”

Following an open call for submissions of compelling ideas that illustrated how universities would use the company’s Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software, the Ministry of Education selected UAE University, Zayed University, Higher Colleges of Technology, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, and Rochester Institute of Technology.

Students and faculty at these universities can use the software for academic and institutional purposes to develop the required skills to drive the country’s digital transformation.

“During the Year of Giving in the UAE, private companies are inspired to engage in activities that reflect the spirit of generosity and bring benefits to the community. We believe this is a natural desire; to give back to society and support the country’s long-term aspirations for a sustainable knowledge economy,” said Joe Kaeser.

“Siemens’ software grant will stimulate research activity among higher education institutions, encourage talent development among UAE nationals in digitalization and innovation, and support alignment between academia and industry.”

PLM is a leading innovative software that has been a key component of globally-significant projects such as the Mars Rover Curiosity, the Maserati Ghibli car, and the Solar Impulse aircraft which flew around the world without using any fuel.

The software allows companies to manage this information throughout the entire lifecycle of a product efficiently and cost-effectively, from ideation, design and manufacture, through service and disposal. – TradeArabia News Service