July 20, 2009

Increased categories of transactions in mobile banking is expected to be the next big thing in the UAE banking sector and software companies are gearing up to tap into the opportunity, a senior executive of a software firm told Emirates Business.

"UAE banks have been quite active in making investments toward upgrading technologies and introducing new services. At present, the kinds of transactions in mobile banking are limited. But very soon we are expecting to see much more happening on the direction of transaction banking on mobiles and we are looking forward to it," said Nilesh Sarker, Assistant Vice-President - Banking and Finance, Raqmiyat, UAE-based systems integrator.
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New software to automate all WPS cycles and help streamline the timely payment of wages to employees.

July 03, 2009

Raqmiyat, a leading UAE-based systems integrator, has announced the launch of ‘Raqmiyat - WPS Connect’, a new solution designed to work with the UAE Central Bank’s ‘Wages Protection System’, which is an initiative by the Ministry of Labour along with the Central Bank of UAE. The new software provides an interface for banks and exchange houses to connect to the Central Bank’s WPS system based on stipulated file formats, which will facilitate automation across all WPS cycles and help streamline the timely payment of wages to over 4 million blue collared employees in the UAE. The WPS system is designed to enable the Ministry of Labour to monitor payment of wages and create a complete database of the labour workforce.
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Small- and medium-sized firms in the Middle East are still buying enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications and upgrades despite the economic downturn.

July 02, 2009

But large companies are holding on to their existing software, according to industry experts.

Research company IDC said the market for enterprise application software, including software licence and maintenance revenues, was worth $402 million (Dh1.47 billion) in the GCC, Levant and Egypt in 2008. Low single-digit growth is expected this year.

Saudi Arabia accounted for the largest share of the market at 34 per cent, and the UAE came second with 32 per cent. Enterprise application software includes ERP, customer relationship management (CRM), supply chain management and operations and manufacturing management.

The ERP market has clearly been hit by lower IT budgets, said Ranjit Ranjan, Senior Research Manager at IDC Middle East, Turkey and Africa. Read More..

New software to automate all the WPS cycles and help streamline the timely payment of wages to employees

May 31, 2009

Raqmiyat, a leading UAE-based systems integrator, has announced the launch of ‘Raqmiyat - WPS Connect’, a new solution designed to work with the UAE Central Bank’s Wages Protection System, which is an initiative by the Ministry of Labour along with the Central Bank of the UAE. The new software provides an interface for banks and exchange houses to connect to the Central Bank’s WPS system based on stipulated file formats, which will facilitate automation across all WPS cycles and help streamline the timely payment of wages to over 4 million blue collared employees in the UAE. The WPS system is designed to enable the Ministry to monitor payment of wages and create a complete database of the labour workforce.

Aside from fully automating the WPS cycles, reducing manual intervention, mitigating the risk of errors and enhancing overall productivity, this software also comes with unique features such as automatic file transfer utility, auto database update utility and pre-processor utility. This software is offered in two modules, bank module wherein the bank acts as a bank of employer and the agent module wherein the bank or exchange house acts as a disbursement agent. Read More..

21 per cent growth projection for GCC IT spend in 2009 prompts leading systems integrator to expand its teams in the region

February 19, 2009

Raqmiyat, a leading UAE-based systems integrator, has announced its aims to address the growing demand for IT outsourcing in the GCC region in 2009, as many regional industries identify IT outsourcing as a solution to current challenges such as shortage of qualified staff, inflation, cost per unit, and the telecommunications costs. According to IDC, IT outsourcing spend in the GCC is projected to grow by 21 per cent, to reach a total of USD 503 million in 2009. In line with this, the company has announced its plans to expand its GCC-based teams as it recognises extensive growth opportunities in the region due to the current economic downturn.

Businesses in the Middle East are increasingly depending on outsourcing to remain competitive, due to the current economic crisis. Many companies have identified outsourcing as a remedy for increasing costs, a tool for flexible management of resources, achievement of customer satisfaction and reduction of cycle times. The increase in outsourcing is an inevitable development, and as companies want to stay ahead of the competition, one of the most efficient ways to achieve this is to focus on quality internal resources and outsource non-core resources to a capable partner. As a pioneering player in the regional IT outsourcing market, Raqmiyat is currently looking into further strengthening its team and resources, and expanding its present range of key outsourcing services. Read More..

Raqmiyat offers unique ‘SaaS’ based solutions for SMBs in the Middle East

January 29, 2009

The global ‘Software-as-a-Service’ (SaaS) market is projected to hit USD 10.7 billion by 2009, according to IDC reports. Owing to the current credit crunch and economic downturn experienced in the Middle East, Raqmiyat, a leading UAE-based systems integrator, announced that it is offering its unique solutions on the ‘Software-as-a-Service’ (SaaS) model for the SMB market in the Middle East. ‘SaaS’ is a software usance model where the application is hosted by the vendor or service provider and made available to customers across the internet. The model eliminates the need to install and run the application on the customer's own computer, thereby alleviating the customer's burden of additional costs for software maintenance, ongoing operation and support.

Raqmiyat’s capacity to identify unique business opportunities amidst the challenges of the global economic turmoil has led it to venture into the ‘SaaS’ market, with high expectations that the movement of all regional SMBs towards cutting back on its expenses will usher in increased demand to adopt the ‘SaaS’ based solutions. The ever-increasing growth of broadband technology in the region is expected to further boost the popularity of ‘SaaS’ solutions among SMBs, thereby making the Middle East a highly viable market for this type of software deployment. In addition to SMBs, the government sector also poses a great potential for the ‘SaaS’ market, as more public services take on a technology-driven approach to maximise efficiency. Read More..

Leading systems integrator to deploy up to 100 IT personnel to serve as Outsourcing Centre for customers in the Middle East

November 30, 2008

Raqmiyat, a leading UAE-based systems integrator, has announced the opening of a new state-of-the-art ‘Software Development Centre’ at the DLF IT Park - Chennai, a SEZ (Special Economic Zone) facility, and the largest infotech hub of Chennai, as part of the company's ongoing expansion program. The new facility is a purpose-built workspace that perfectly balances design aesthetics with an interactive environment required for IT/ITES professionals. Raqmiyat will train and deploy up to 100 IT personnel in its new development centre, serving as a major software and technological development and Outsourcing Centre for customers in the Middle East. The company has invested close to AED 10 million towards the set-up of the centre, which is now operational.

The new ‘Software Development Centre’ is designed to synchronise new-age workspace needs with intelligent planning, and is in line with the company’s plans to strengthen its outsourcing resources and services in the critical fields of managed services, hosting and infrastructure services, information systems, software applications, and network and desktop management services. Read More..

Company underlines advantages of unique ‘Software as a Service’-based Enterprise Resource Planning solution for SMB market

October 22, 2008

Raqmiyat, a leading UAE-based systems integrator, is currently showcasing its ‘GEMS’ - a unique enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution for the SMB sector at ‘GITEX 2008’. Along with the traditional application delivery model, Raqmiyat has also introduced a new business model - ‘Software as a Service’ (SaaS) model, at the event. The company has revealed that its participation at the event this year is focused on underlining the advantages of this solution, which includes reduced costs and efforts dedicated to software maintenance, ongoing operation and support, amidst projections that ‘SaaS’-based solutions will comprise 30 per cent of the software market and will be worth USD 10.7 billion by 2009, according to IDC reports.

SaaS is a software distribution model in which applications are hosted by a vendor or service provider and made available to customers over a network, typically the Internet. Raqmiyat has added one more delivery model based on SaaS, which now offers a state-of-the-art, open system, fully integrated, industry standard software that will effectively manage customers, partners and employee relationships, in addition to financials, operations, logistics and eCommerce business activities in one single integrated solution. Providing unparalleled web-based integration for critical business processes covering point of sale to finance and accounting, GEMS has been implemented in a large number of organisations with diverse business operations in the UAE as well as in other GCC countries. Read More..