Microsoft sets sights on cloud business in Bangladesh

MICROSOFT is targeting to get huge business through its cloud solution segment in Bangladesh, especially from the private sector, as the country has been advancing digitally for the last few years.

The global software giant has been doing business in the cloud segment in the country since 2016 and has attached more importance to it recently, said Sonia Bashir Kabir, managing director for Microsoft Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan and Laos.

She was speaking to The Daily Star on the sidelines of the Microsoft Cloud Innovation Summit at the Bangabandhu International Conference Center in Dhaka.

“We are seeing huge business prospects in Bangladesh as there are 16 crore people in the country and they are generating huge data,” Kabir said.

“Data is the currency and in order to capture the business, Microsoft is offering intelligent solutions.” As there are restrictions from the government on hosting government data outside of the country, Microsoft is concentrating only on the private sector, she said.

At the summit, there were two sessions: one on the manufacturing sector and the other on the financial services industry of Bangladesh, according to a statement.

Experts and top officials of Microsoft said cloud is the ultimate solution to making business more productive and customer-friendly while empowering organisations’ employees.

They discussed ways of business transformation using Microsoft’s distinct cloud solutions: Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Microsoft Azure.

More than 350 participants, including developers, business and tech leaders from manufacturing and financial services industries, local Microsoft partners, along with the leaders and cloud experts from Microsoft Asia and the Pacific took part in the event. Sook Hoon Cheah, president of Microsoft South East Asia New Markets (SEANM), said their mission is to empower every person and every organisation on the planet to achieve more.

“Technology is an equalizer that breaks barriers and inclusively empowers people and organisations. At Microsoft, we live our mission by making our enterprise-grade technologies and solutions accessible to anyone.” Zaid Alkadhi, chief marketing and operations leader at Microsoft SEANM, and Dzahar Mansor, national technology officer of Microsoft Malaysia, spoke on the occasion.

The summit also featured an exposition zone with participation of Microsoft partners: AAMRA Technologies, Corporate Projukti Ltd, eGeneration Ltd, Bangladesh Export Import Company Ltd (IT Division), and Toggi Services Ltd.