As digital transformation accelerates across the United Arab Emirates (UAE), cybersecurity has become essential to national resilience, economic development, and digital trust. Organizations across the UAE are investing in cloud services, AI, smart infrastructure, financial technology, energy modernization, and digital public services. These initiatives create significant opportunities, but they also heighten the need for reliable cybersecurity infrastructure, skilled professionals, and stronger coordination between the public and private sectors.

Fortinet is focused on expanding support for UAE customers and partners, aligning with national cybersecurity priorities, and investing in capabilities that help organizations secure digital transformation and protect critical infrastructure.

That strategy was reinforced last December when Ken Xie, Founder, Chairman of the Board, and CEO of Fortinet, met with His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Hamad Alkuwaiti, Head of Cyber Security for the UAE government. The discussion reflected a shared view that cybersecurity must be treated as a foundation for digital growth rather than a secondary technology requirement. It also underscored the importance of public-private collaboration as cyberthreats become more automated, persistent, and increasingly tied to the infrastructure that supports modern economies.

This ongoing collaboration was formalized through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Fortinet and the UAE Cyber Security Council. The MoU outlines areas of cooperation to advance national cybersecurity capabilities, support data sovereignty, and strengthen digital transformation across the UAE. It also discusses the intent to establish a local UAE data center and a FortiGuard Center of Excellence to support localized threat intelligence, cybersecurity skills development, startup enablement, and policy collaboration.

Fortinet’s UAE Cybersecurity Strategy

Cybersecurity requirements in the UAE are evolving rapidly. Organizations are modernizing networks, moving workloads across hybrid and cloud environments, integrating AI-powered tools, and connecting more users, devices, applications, and operational systems. As these environments expand, security must align more closely with where customers operate, where data is stored, and where policies are defined.

Fortinet’s investment strategy is designed to directly address these needs by bringing cybersecurity capabilities closer to UAE customers while supporting national priorities in data sovereignty, workforce development, innovation, and economic diversification.

The potential creation of a local data center in the UAE reflects this approach. As organizations prioritize data residency and regulatory compliance, local infrastructure can support secure services and advance the UAE’s aim to establish itself as a trusted center for cybersecurity and digital innovation.

Why Public-Private Partnerships Matter in Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity cannot be addressed by any single organization, sector, or technology provider alone. Threat actors operate across borders, share tools, exploit common vulnerabilities, and rapidly move from reconnaissance to exploitation. Effective defense requires a coordinated ecosystem that includes government agencies, cybersecurity vendors, academic institutions, service providers, enterprises, and law enforcement partners.

Public-private partnerships are vital because governments provide national strategy, regulatory direction, and public-sector visibility, while private organizations contribute technical expertise, threat intelligence, operational experience, and innovation at scale. When these strengths align, countries are better positioned to enhance preparedness, accelerate response, and build durable cyber resilience. Fortinet’s collaboration with the UAE Cyber Security Council reflects this model.

Supporting Cybersecurity Skills Development in the UAE

The cybersecurity skills gap remains one of the most persistent challenges facing organizations worldwide, and it is especially critical in countries experiencing rapid digital growth. As governments and enterprises expand digital services, they need professionals who can secure hybrid networks, protect cloud environments, monitor threats, investigate incidents, and manage increasingly complex security operations.

Fortinet has consistently invested in cybersecurity education and training, and that commitment is central to our UAE strategy. The MoU with the UAE Cyber Security Council outlines potential initiatives, including training labs, “Train the Trainers” programs, university engagement, and professional certification pathways for approximately 10,000 national trainees. These programs would help expand the local cybersecurity workforce by developing professionals who understand UAE industries, regulatory standards, business goals, and the country’s evolving threat landscape.

Advancing Data Sovereignty and Digital Trust

As cloud services, AI adoption, and digital operations continue to expand, data sovereignty is an increasingly critical consideration for organizations across the UAE. Organizations need confidence that their security infrastructure meets local regulatory requirements, protects sensitive data, and enables innovation.

Fortinet’s collaboration with the UAE Cyber Security Council supports this priority by focusing on capabilities that strengthen secure growth, including local infrastructure, advanced threat intelligence, and cybersecurity skills development. For customers and partners, this means access to global cybersecurity expertise delivered with greater local relevance and alignment with the UAE’s digital trust agenda.

Fortinet’s Long-Term Commitment to the UAE

Fortinet’s growth in the UAE reflects a long-term commitment to advancing the country’s digital development through local investment, trusted partnerships, and integrated cybersecurity innovation. Our collaboration with the UAE Cyber Security Council demonstrates how that strategy works in practice: combining Fortinet’s global cybersecurity expertise with the UAE’s national vision for digital trust, cyber resilience, and secure economic growth.

As the UAE continues to emerge as a global hub for digital innovation, Fortinet is committed to securing that progress through local investment, partner enablement, skills development, and sustained public-private collaboration.