IBM Services, the services and consultancy arm of IBM, has launched two IBM Data Centres in the UAE, one in Abu Dhabi and the other in Dubai, to provide cloud managed services to enterprises and help accelerate their journey to hybrid cloud.

The local data centres will help organisations shift to a hybrid cloud model, and benefit from having the flexibility to move select critical workloads to a secure local cloud environment, hosted in the UAE while keeping mission critical data on-premise.

This will not only omit the need to invest in additional physical space for local data residency but help organisations abide by their data sovereignty requirements and restrictions. Organisations will also be able to integrate this local cloud environment with their existing IT infrastructure and different cloud environments.

Today, most companies are only 20 percent along their cloud journey, renting compute power to cut costs. According to IDC, 90 per cent of enterprises will embrace integrated hybrid cloud tools and strategies to support different applications and use cases by 2024.

IBM works with its clients in the region to help them in their cloud transformation journey and leverages its leadership in hybrid cloud for the enterprise following the $34 billion acquisition of Red Hat, the world’s leading provider of enterprise open source software solutions.

“IBM has reshaped its portfolio to deliver what clients need, investing heavily in hybrid cloud and the emerging technologies that optimise business workflows in the cloud, such as AI, blockchain, analytics and cybersecurity,” said Hossam Seif El-Din, vice president, Enterprise & Commercial, IBM Middle East and Africa. “Through our  data centres and with our recent acquisition of Red Hat, we are helping organisations accelerate their move to hybrid cloud and interconnect different clouds, creating unified systems designed for increased consistency, automation and predictability,” he added.