Gemalto, the world leader in digital security, in its bid to improve its West African coverage, has opened a regional office in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. The move is part of the Group’s strategy of being a global player with a local presence, as demonstrated by its 85 offices in 44 countries worldwide.

“Gemalto is playing a key role in the digital revolution taking place in Africa, and has already demonstrated its position as a major player in the field of telecommunications, banking services and governmental programs,” noted Eric Claudel, President of Africa & Middle East for Gemalto.

According to him, “the new expertise and engineering hub will allow the implementation of an inverted innovation process, repurposing existing solutions to meet the needs and specificities of the local market. It also aims at designing Côte d’Ivoire’s products of tomorrow, in line with its president’s priority to turn it into an emerging country by 2020.”

The new information and communication technologies market in Côte d’Ivoire accounts for nearly 10 percent of the GDP of the country, which has a cell phone penetration rate of more than 90 percent. The new location will therefore work towards fostering the digital development of the local economic fabric, leveraging on skill transfer and the pool of engineering excellence available in the country.

The move also adds to Gemalto’s presence in Africa through its offices and partnerships, in particular in South Africa, Gabon, Ghana, Morocco, Burkina, Kenya and Nigeria.