Partnerships and Potential: Laying The Foundations for A Better Future

The World Bank recently reported a 92% increase in the amount of investment for public-private partnerships in Emerging Market Developing Economies (EMDEs) in 2015. This translates as $99.9 billion dollars, the highest figure ever.

Travelling as much as I do, I have seen this first hand and firmly believe in the power of public-private partnerships to drive growth and development.

On recent visits to Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, I was fortunate enough to meet with government officials, customers, partners and local Microsoft teams who all pride themselves on their innovative partnerships. Their commitment and the positive change they are making left me with a tremendous sense of enthusiasm for transforming businesses, organizations and lives.

Here are just a couple of the major trends I observed across these diverse countries that underline their incredible potential.

Belief in The Power of Public and Private Partnerships
Nigeria, full of innovation and ambition, is Africa’s largest economy. Speaking with the Executive Governor of Lagos, His Excellency Akinwumi Ambode, I was struck by his passion for public and private collaboration. We spoke about the huge potential for changing the way that the State of Lagos engages with its citizens, provides greater transparency across Ministry Departments and Agencies, reforms security and more.

Kuwait shares similar aspirations. As part of the Kuwait Vision 2035, the country aims to transform into a financial and commercial hub. Government officials understand that this involves a number of factors, such as attracting investment, boosting competition and establishing sustainable infrastructure. Our shared goal is to unleash creative minds to help build a cohesive society and realize Kuwait’s ambitions.

We are working with organizations such as the Public Authority for Industry (PAI), which aims to develop and promote industrial activity in Kuwait.

PAI is using our cloud platform to digitize and automat processes and interactions with its customers. This has transformed its productivity, significantly improving customer satisfaction and employee productivity.

Commitment to Empowering the Next Generation to Succeed
As a strong believer in the importance of supporting the next generation, I am always energized by efforts to improve learning experiences for students.

In Nigeria, there are 31 million students, 21 million in primary school, 9 million in secondary school, but only 600,000 in tertiary education – and this does not include another significant part of the young population who have never even seen a classroom. This is a huge challenge that must be addressed – not just to maintain Nigeria’s economic development but to give its young people the chance to realize their dreams.

Technology is already playing a part in the transformation of education here, with companies offering mobile e-learning and a digital literacy curriculum.

I am proud of our involvement, as we invest in supporting some of these organizations to develop the platform, prepare tomorrow's workforce through the Microsoft Employability portal and the Microsoft Virtual Academy to gain access to ICT skills.

With 70 percent of its population below the age of 30, Saudi Arabia also faces a considerable challenge in helping young people with the necessary skills and opportunities to carve out a career. This means giving them access to training with the right digital tools and platforms.

Partnering with companies who are equally committed to creating the right environment for people to learn and grow, we’re also offering cloud services to entrepreneurs.

We work with STC Saudi Telecoms, for example, to provide local businesses with infrastructure services, productivity suites and cloud services. The access to these services levels the playing field for aspirational entrepreneurs and gives them the chance to compete with larger organizations, to explore international expansion and to disrupt the status quo.

A Bright Future for the Region
Nigeria, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia face significant challenges, but I left these countries with respect for how these are being addressed. By looking at innovative partnerships and helping the next generation to succeed, there is much to be excited about.