From Mansoura to the Gulf: Young Egyptian Minds Support the Growth of Saudi Company Alqemam

Mansoura is historically a “victorious” city eight centuries ago, it marked the end of the campaign of the French King Louis IX, who was captured and imprisoned in Dar Ibn Luqman.

But it seems the story hasn’t ended there. In the age of Artificial Intelligence, the youth of Mansoura and the Delta region continue to impress us by serving as an export base for specialized digital services targeting a market with a population of over 60 million: Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi company Alqemam uses Mansoura as a headquarters for producing digital solutions and platforms for its clients from governmental entities in Saudi Arabia. Not only that, but it also plans to increase its client base in other markets, including Kuwait and Oman.

All this productivity relies on nearly 200 Egyptian engineers in Cairo and Mansoura, according to statements by Engineer Ahmed Abdul Salam, CEO of Alqemam Saudi Company in Egypt.

Abdul Salam revealed the company’s future expansion plans during his interview with the “Ta3heed” newsletter.

Following is the transcript of the interview:

When did the company start its activity in the Egyptian market? And why did it specifically choose Egypt for outsourcing technological services?
Alqemam is fundamentally a Saudi company, and we have been present in the Kingdom for more than 16 years.

Following our significant expansion amid the technological renaissance witnessed in Saudi Arabia, it became necessary to invest in our team to be able to provide more products that align with our growth and expansions.

We found what we were looking for in Egypt, especially given the availability of suitable technical competencies among the youth.

Therefore, we established two branches for the company in Cairo and Mansoura.

We have been relying on the team at the Mansoura branch for approximately more than 16 years, while the Cairo branch is about 8 years old.

Over these years, hundreds of young Egyptian technology specialists have worked with us; many of them are currently working in other companies in the market.

This highlights the developmental role in youth capacity building played by Alqemam, alongside its role in adopting Egypt as an export base for technological services.

 Abdul Salam: 200 Specialized Egyptian Engineers in Mansoura and Cairo

What is the number of engineers and specialists for Alqemam in Egypt?
We currently have over 200 engineers in Egypt, and we rely on them to produce more than 40 diverse digital products, 28 of which are registered as a trademark for Alqemam with the Saudi Ministry of Commerce.

What is the nature of the services provided by Alqemam?
We build digital platforms primarily targeting our clients, which are government entities in Saudi Arabia. Most of the building of these products takes place through our headquarters in Egypt.

The company produces technology products and sells them in the form of licenses along with professional services in Saudi Arabia. Consequently, the services we offer have high added value.

We Develop Over 40 Digital Products from Our Premises in Egypt

What is the number of the company’s governmental clients in Saudi Arabia?
We have many clients in Saudi Arabia, which is our main market.

We provide our services and products to over 204 governmental entities in Saudi Arabia across multiple sectors, including: the municipal and housing sector, development authorities, and the Ministry of Interior.

Why did you choose Mansoura city to be the headquarters for exporting technical services?
There are several reasons for choosing Mansoura city to be a main center for exporting technical services, perhaps the most important of which is its location in the Delta region.

This helps the company utilize human competencies in nearby governorates, in addition to the great stability of specialized engineers.

The employee turnover rate in the governorates is much lower than in Cairo, which is a major attraction factor for us and similar companies.

Furthermore, there are important centers for preparing and qualifying talents, such as specialized colleges, Creativa Center, and the Information Technology Institute (ITI).

We started with about 15 engineers in the Mansoura branch, and now the number of engineers in the Mansoura branch exceeds 170 specialists.

We are Developing an AI-Powered Search Engine for Our Clients

What is the company’s vision for future expansion in the Egyptian market in terms of human resources and new products?
We plan to expand the building of more digital products related to smart city management, GIS, and AI solutions.

We are also working on developing our own AI search engine to meet the needs of our governmental clients, which is linked to an increase in the number of technical products we are developing.

We also plan to expand our client base by penetrating new markets in the Gulf region, such as the Sultanate of Oman and Kuwait, in addition to increasing our expansions in Saudi Arabia.

Explain more details about the company’s AI engine?
We are currently working on developing the “Qimam” AI engine.

It will be integrated into the solutions provided to our clients as a digital assistant with more than 14 features.

The smart search engine analyzes customer data without the need to process the data on external servers, which provides privacy in handling client data while simultaneously offering them advanced and intelligent services.

Saudi Arabia is growing rapidly in the technology sector. How does this reflect on your company?
Saudi Arabia is one of the markets experiencing growth in the digital economy.

It is also one of the best countries in regulating the sector and strongly supports local content creation, but it sets precise standards to ensure product quality and safety.

Therefore, it is a huge investment opportunity, but not all companies have the ability to meet the requirements for service provision in Saudi Arabia due to the meticulous standards that guarantee the best quality delivery.

Therefore, we plan to enter new sectors in the Kingdom, and in response to these plans, we need to increase the size of our team in Mansoura and Cairo.

We expect to double the number of engineers and specialists in Egypt over the next three years to keep pace with our future expansions.

What are the main challenges facing the company in the Egyptian market?
Improving the efficiency of the communications and internet infrastructure is the most important point.

The better the communications network, the greater the productivity and our ability to hire more engineers and specialists, especially since a large part of the team works from home in cities and governorates outside Mansoura.

The other point is the continuity of qualifying and training human cadres, as technological solutions grow at an accelerating pace, and thus human cadres must be constantly updated and highly prepared.