Which companies national governments choose to work with, and which they don’t, can be a telling indicator of global alliances and geopolitical positioning. Perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than with Chinese tech company Huawei, and the mixed reception it has received from governments around the world.
While many European and American politicians have been downright hostile to the prospect of Huawei’s involvement in critical national infrastructure, if recent developments are to be believed, policymakers in the Middle East and North Africa ( MENA) take a much more welcoming stance. .
The most contentious issue at stake is the use of Huawei components in building 5G mobile network infrastructure. Hardliners in Sweden and the UK have explicitly banned the Chinese company’s involvement in 5G infrastructure and ordered telecom companies to remove any Huawei-made equipment from their networks.
Read more: UK government seeks to reduce influence of Chinese technology and investment
Meanwhile, in Eastern Europe, Slovenia, Poland, Czechia, Romania, Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia and Bulgaria have signed deals with former President Donald Trump’s administration. to implement similar material bans.
See more : Huawei CFO says tech company is more united in the face of US pressure
MENA countries embrace Huawei technology
Effectively shut out of many European 5G markets, Huawei seems to have turned its attention to the MENA region.
Last month, the technology company announced that it had signed an agreement with Zain KSA to accelerate the deployment of 5G in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi telecommunications company will deploy Huawei products in its national network as part of efforts to increase 5G capacity and coverage. The latest deal adds to Huawei’s growing presence in Middle Eastern telecoms after the company previously secured key 5G contracts in the United Arab Emirates.
Huawei is also set to open its second Middle East data center in Saudi Arabia, the first being the Abu Dhabi “disaster recovery” data center.
Along with building partnerships with digital infrastructure players in the region, Huawei also deepened its relationship with UAE airline Emirates after the two companies met in Dubai to discuss shared technology development. and commercial synergies in September.
Emirates and Huawei first established a strategic partnership in early 2020, a move that expanded the Emirates app’s user base by making it available on Huawei’s smart device AppGallery.
Then, in May this year, the two companies signed an agreement encompassing marketing collaborations on joint projects and promotional activities, aimed at expanding their reach in each other’s home market.
As part of another strategic deal for Huawei’s presence in the region, the company last week signed an agreement with Flat6Labs, a venture capital firm focused on the MENA region.
The deal will see Huawei launch its “Spark” program in Egypt, a business accelerator program designed to foster innovation in digital technologies. Under the new agreement, selected Egyptian startups will benefit from free access to Huawei’s latest technologies, as well as funding and investments from Flat6Labs.
In the end, it would be oversimplifying the facts to say that Huawei is reviewing its European ambitions, because despite its difficulties with 5G, the company is still heavily invested in the data center, mobile device and connected vehicle markets.
Read more: Volkswagen and Huawei negotiate self-driving unit deal
Nonetheless, the overall narrative is one of greater integration and high-level cooperation in the MENA region against an uphill battle for political approval in Europe.
For all PYMNTS EMEA coverage, subscribe daily EMEA Newsletter.
New PYMNTS Study: How Consumers Use Digital Banks
A PYMNTS survey of 2,124 US consumers shows that while two-thirds of consumers have used FinTechs for some aspect of banking, only 9.3% call them their primary bank.
https://www.pymnts.com/earnings/2022/partnerships-credit-platform-expansion-help-drive-marqetas-tpv-up-53-in-q2/partial/
Which companies national governments choose to work with, and which they don’t, can be a telling indicator of global alliances and geopolitical positioning. Perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than with Chinese tech company Huawei, and the mixed reception it has received from governments around the world.
While many European and American politicians have been downright hostile to the prospect of Huawei’s involvement in critical national infrastructure, if recent developments are to be believed, policymakers in the Middle East and North Africa ( MENA) take a much more welcoming stance. .
The most contentious issue at stake is the use of Huawei components in building 5G mobile network infrastructure. Hardliners in Sweden and the UK have explicitly banned the Chinese company’s involvement in 5G infrastructure and ordered telecom companies to remove any Huawei-made equipment from their networks.
Read more: UK government seeks to reduce influence of Chinese technology and investment
Meanwhile, in Eastern Europe, Slovenia, Poland, Czechia, Romania, Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia and Bulgaria have signed deals with former President Donald Trump’s administration. to implement similar material bans.
See more : Huawei CFO says tech company is more united in the face of US pressure
MENA countries embrace Huawei technology
Effectively shut out of many European 5G markets, Huawei seems to have turned its attention to the MENA region.
Last month, the technology company announced that it had signed an agreement with Zain KSA to accelerate the deployment of 5G in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi telecommunications company will deploy Huawei products in its national network as part of efforts to increase 5G capacity and coverage. The latest deal adds to Huawei’s growing presence in Middle Eastern telecoms after the company previously secured key 5G contracts in the United Arab Emirates.
Huawei is also set to open its second Middle East data center in Saudi Arabia, the first being the Abu Dhabi “disaster recovery” data center.
Along with building partnerships with digital infrastructure players in the region, Huawei also deepened its relationship with UAE airline Emirates after the two companies met in Dubai to discuss shared technology development. and commercial synergies in September.
Emirates and Huawei first established a strategic partnership in early 2020, a move that expanded the Emirates app’s user base by making it available on Huawei’s smart device AppGallery.
Then, in May this year, the two companies signed an agreement encompassing marketing collaborations on joint projects and promotional activities, aimed at expanding their reach in each other’s home market.
As part of another strategic deal for Huawei’s presence in the region, the company last week signed an agreement with Flat6Labs, a venture capital firm focused on the MENA region.
The deal will see Huawei launch its “Spark” program in Egypt, a business accelerator program designed to foster innovation in digital technologies. Under the new agreement, selected Egyptian startups will benefit from free access to Huawei’s latest technologies, as well as funding and investments from Flat6Labs.
In the end, it would be oversimplifying the facts to say that Huawei is reviewing its European ambitions, because despite its difficulties with 5G, the company is still heavily invested in the data center, mobile device and connected vehicle markets.
Read more: Volkswagen and Huawei negotiate self-driving unit deal
Nonetheless, the overall narrative is one of greater integration and high-level cooperation in the MENA region against an uphill battle for political approval in Europe.
For all PYMNTS EMEA coverage, subscribe daily EMEA Newsletter.
New PYMNTS Study: How Consumers Use Digital Banks
A PYMNTS survey of 2,124 US consumers shows that while two-thirds of consumers have used FinTechs for some aspect of banking, only 9.3% call them their primary bank.
https://www.pymnts.com/earnings/2022/partnerships-credit-platform-expansion-help-drive-marqetas-tpv-up-53-in-q2/partial/
