Huawei has been operating in Serbia for 15 years, and we see a huge potential in the local market. Last year, we opened our Innovation Centre in Belgrade, with the goal of taking a key role in the digital transformation of the entire region.
Huawei is working together with operators and partners to expand 5G to various industries, achieving new business growth for all participating parties and building an open and diverse ecosystem that thrives on shared success.
Is our market ready for all the benefits of digital transformation, among other things for the application of 5G? Is Serbia more or less ready for 5G?
I am positive that 5G will undoubtedly change the world we know and make it better. Huawei’s 5G products are the world’s best. We have the highest level of maturity in terms of commercialization and we are continuously and steadily developing our technology. We have invested over $4 billion in the development of 5G technology over the past ten years.
To build a positive business cycle, we must work on four elements: technology, the ecosystem, standards, and the business model. The Serbian market is not much different from the rest of the world and more than ready for new technology.
Are you satisfied with the speed with which the business environment in Serbia is improving? How could Huawei help further the digitalization of Serbia?
I believe that Serbia has recently been creating an open business environment for the development of ICT infrastructure, and that in this digital era we could together make this market the leader of eastern Europe.
For the past year we have kept innovating to create value for our customers, to help fight the pandemic, and to support both economic recovery and social progress
We are also fully committed to CSR projects and providing social value in Serbia. We organize the Seeds for the Future project every year, where we choose the best IT students from Serbian universities. Traditionally, successful applicants fly to China for two weeks. They are first immersed in Chinese culture and after that they fly to Shenzhen, home to Huawei’s headquarters, for hands-on practice including classes and experiments.
We also launched the Thousand Dreams project to help the youngest with our consumer goods. This project has made it easier for kids to transfer to online education during the epidemic. Furthermore, we are opening ICT academies at the best local universities. This is a cooperative undertaking where we train people in areas like wireless networks and artificial intelligence.
How did Huawei cope with Covid19 over the last year? Did it affect your daily work with customers?
For the past year at Huawei, we’ve held strong in the face of adversity. We have kept innovating to create value for our customers, to help fight the pandemic, and to support both economic recovery and social progress. We also took this opportunity to further enhance our operations. As a result, our business performance was largely in line with our forecast.
As a member of the ICT community, we have been doing everything we can to support the ongoing fight against the pandemic. We are working closely with local governments, community organizations, international organizations and our customers and partners to protect the health and safety of the people we serve.