Zoho Corp has announced the opening of the first two Middle East data centres in Saudi Arabia to ensure local data is stored within the geographical boundaries of the Kingdom, in line with Personal Data Protection Laws (PDPL).
Located in Jeddah and Riyadh, the two data centres are now fully operational. With this addition, Zoho Corp now has 18 data centres worldwide. Zoho Corp is a leading global technology company that encompasses prominent brands such as Zoho and ManageEngine.
This investment demonstrates Zoho Corp’s commitment to data sovereignty and compliance with local regulations while further enhancing service quality and security for its Saudi customers. The announcements were made on the sidelines of LEAP, the world’s most-attended tech event, taking place in Riyadh.
“Zoho Corporation has a strong R&D foundation, as we have invested in building our own full technology stack, including the data centres that are run using our proprietary patented technology. We have our robust solutions available in Saudi Arabia through our two established brands: ManageEngine and Zoho that are serving the local businesses. With our philosophy of transnational localism, we are committed to building strong roots here in order to serve the businesses and the community long term. We are here to stay, build and serve,” said Sridhar Vembu, CEO and Co-founder, Zoho Corp.
In a statement regarding Zoho Corp’s recent investment, His Excellency Vice Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Eng. Haytham AlOhali, expressed his unwavering confidence in the digital investment landscape of Saudi Arabia. AlOhali emphasised that Zoho Corp’s strategic move exemplifies the vast array of digital opportunities available in the country, thanks to its robust digital enablers and rock-solid infrastructure. Highlighting the significance of Zoho Corp’s new data centres, AlOhali underscored their pivotal role in driving Saudi Arabia’s future digital progress and reinforcing the nation’s digital capabilities. These developments align closely with the ambitious objectives outlined in Vision 2030, positioning the kingdom as a thriving digital hub connecting three continents.
Investments in the Kingdom
Contributing to the Saudi Vision 2030, Zoho Corp, will be investing a total of about SAR 500 million, focusing on digital infrastructure development and strategic partnerships with local government entities. The company has already partnered with Monsha’at, the SME authority in Saudi. Through the Monsha’at Academy and Thakaa Centre, Zoho Corp is digitally upskilling businesses’ workforces to foster tech adoption.
Furthermore, as part of a long-term strategy set forth in cooperation with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), Zoho Corp has allocated SAR 100 million in wallet credits yearly for the next 10 years, that can be utilised to access any of its 55 plus cloud-based applications under the Zoho brand and for training. These partnerships will help ease the adoption of digital technologies for SMEs in Saudi Arabia and promote digital upskilling amongst local businesses.
Cloud apps for every business need Under the Zoho brand, the company offers cloud-based business applications that have been built on the same technology stack for all business functions—from sales and marketing to finance and HR management. Zoho’s adoption in the Kingdom has been driven by Zoho One (unified platform of over 50 applications), Zoho Books (VAT-compliant, ZATCA-approved accounting software), Zoho CRM (customer experience platform), Zoho Creator (low-code application development platform) and Workplace (enterprise collaboration platform). Zoho serves thousands of Saudi customers such as Badael, Al Musbah group, Naizak and Leejam.
IT Management from the cloud The ManageEngine division has helped over 2,000 Saudi organisations, both in government and private sectors, manage and optimise their IT infrastructure. ManageEngine’s comprehensive suite of over 60 products, across domains like service management, identity and access management and unified endpoint management (UEM), available through on-premises, cloud-native, cloud ready and MSP models, helps Saudi organisations achieve digital resilience and securely navigate through the dynamic landscape.
Saudi Arabia has emerged as one of the top 10 markets worldwide for ManageEngine; this growth is led by the tremendous demand for its UEM solution, Endpoint Central and IT service management (ITSM) solution, ServiceDesk Plus. The customer count has also increased, particularly across IT services and solutions, oil and energy, healthcare and pharmaceutical, tourism, government and non-governmental organisation (NGO) sectors.
