Following is a true perspective of  the IT industry in Egypt, based on our personal experiences as an Egyptian software house and an IT consultant office since 1988.           

             When we first entered the field, we like many others, out of passion and desire to create and challenge, were full of hope and dreams to become a middle eastern or Arabian Bill Gates .. As only a very few of us were skilled programmers who dealt with these new expensive machines (PCs at that time), and we were able to write different scripts and machine languages to the extent that some of us were working on developing our own operating systems.           

            But now every thing has changed. Programmers are multiplying by the day, also many very skillful but in a different sense. The new generation of programmers are tested and certified by the tool Creators, like Microsoft, that is why the creator prefers to call them developers and not programmers ! The concept has changed dramatically in the last decade, where the industry is monopolized and only a handful of companies are mass producing all operating systems and applications. More over, they impose their desired specs on the hardware companies, to the point that most hardware could only be compatible with those companies' software.  

            We, long time ago, had a better chance to compete with the world, especially if our government at those times, knew how to invest it's human resources, like India did. We had a better chance, we were more skillful and creative, and especially in Arabizing applications which could have made us the pioneers, and at least you wouldn't find the poor Arabic instructions you have now on all MS applications. So now it's a different story, you have to meet certain standards using only approved developing tools.. And can now guess the rest !  It's "Globalization" !. 

            But it's never too late, again, our government has to support the local IT industry in a different way that might contribute in the immerging of new Egyptian software and should also help promoting them abroad and internationally. We also have to stop implementing US standards in managing our IT resources. These standards are meant to block any attempt to create revolutionary tools or even ideas that can be a success outside its boarders and that might even compete with market tycoons ..   

            Unfortunately, we heard many voices promising prosperity in the industry but nothing concrete till now. The current system encourages only the reselling business, that inflates our economy and makes us even more consuming in a market for international products and services. We'll never emerge to a higher standard in the IT business unless we invest and capitalize in the production of systems and unique software, besides sponsoring the trained, eager and skilled personnel..           

 

IT consultant

Omar Nassef