Citrix Systems, Inc. , a leading provider of virtual computing solutions that help companies deliver IT as an on-demand service, today announced plans to significantly grow its Middle East presence with three new offices in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman.

Citrix’s Saudi Arabian office, located in Riyadh, will commence operations on January 1, 2011, followed by offices opening in Doha, Qatar, and Muscat, Oman, throughout the year. Middle East and North African (MENA) operations will continue to be led from the regional head office in Dubai, UAE. The network expansion reinforces Citrix’s commitment to better serve the region’s enterprise and government customers, as well as extends support to its channel partner community throughout the Middle East.

Milos Hrncar, Area Vice President of Eastern EMEA region at Citrix Systems said, “Technology is underpinning the Middle East’s dynamic economic growth and this is an incredibly exciting time for the region. Companies across all sectors are beginning to realizing the benefits of virtualization and cloud computing, and we recognize the need to have a network of local bases to operate most effectively. Starting 2011 with our new office in Riyadh reinforces Citrix’s optimism for the year ahead and our commitment to supporting customers and partners throughout the region.”

The Middle East is at the forefront of predicted market growth, with technology spending forecast by IDC to increase by 11.3 percent through 2012 and investment in virtualization and cloud computing set to continue to rise. Citrix has enabled customers throughout the region, across oil and gas, financial services, healthcare, telecommunications and public sectors, to adopt Cloud and Virtualization solutions. Its Middle East market leadership was reinforced recently by award of the Cloud Vendor of the Year title at the Arabian Computer News’ Arab Technology Awards, GITEX Technology Week 2010.

The Middle East expansion strategy will be led by Nehme Mouchantaf, Citrix Regional Director for KSA, Qatar and Oman. Nehme Mouchantaf previously headed the Networking and Solutions Department at Mindware, the largest IT Distributor of Citrix Systems in the region.