Dubai: The information technology market in the Gulf is growing at a fast rate and is expected to be worth over $12 billion mark by 2011.

"The Middle East and Africa region are growing at a phenomenal rate. Projections are that the market will cross the $12 billion mark by 2011," Jyoti Lalchandani, International Data Corporation (IDC) vice-president and regional director for Middle East and Africa, told the Gulf News.

He said 40 percent of IT budgets in the region are going to be allocated towards new initiatives such as supply chain management, business management or consolidation of infrastructure.

He, however, warned that shortage of skills could affect the growth of IT in the region.

"The region is currently facing a shortage of skills in several areas such as networking, application and implementation, which is quite predominant in other parts of the world as well," he said.

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Dubai firm unveils details of $12-bn Saudi project

Limitless, the real estate development arm of Dubai World, the holding company of the Dubai government, has unveiled details of its $12-billion Al Wasl project in Saudi Arabia.

The master plan includes 55,000 homes for 200,000 people, offices, hotels, mosques, health and educational facilities, shopping malls, sports amenities and over 300 hectares of green, open space.

"In delivering Al Wasl, Limitless will apply its key strengths of creating distinctive, large-scale, balanced projects. Al Wasl, meaning 'connection', will bring together a tailor-made development that preserves traditional Saudi culture and a stainable, modern community that will create some 50,000 jobs," Limitless CEO Saeed Ahmed Saeed said in a statement.

Al Wasl is the first of several projects in the pipeline for Limitless in Saudi Arabia, where 50,000 new homes are needed each year.

The new development will include, among other things, 55 mosques, including seven grand mosques, eight shopping complexes, including world-class malls, several five star hotels and an environment-friendly internal transit system.

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Emaar in $600-mn Indonesian JV to develop mega-tourism project

The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) leading real estate developer Emaar has entered into a joint venture with Indonesia's Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC) for a $600-million mega-tourism and mixed-use project.

Emaar chairman Mohamed Ali Alabbar signed the agreement with BTDC president director I. Made Mandra, and chief of BTDC's investment coordinating board Muhammad Lutfi in the presence of Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Dubai.

The flagship Lombok project is envisaged as a world-class residential and resort community sprawling over 1,175 hectares.

The focus of the project will be to drive tourism to the region by offering a diverse leisure spread such as diving, snorkeling, hiking and surfing sports, for which Lombok is acclaimed globally.

There will be a seven-km natural waterfront supporting a marina, luxury residences, golf course and resorts to be operated by five-star hospitality chains.

"The joint venture lends momentum to our expansion plans for Indonesia, a key market where we have already been involved in developing eco-friendly homes in Ngelepen to rehabilitate the earthquake affected," Alabbar said in a statement.