Communication technologies leader Samsung Electronics officially opened new research and development centers in the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Kharkiv on Friday, May 17, where the company will develop next generation software for many of its handheld devices.
Korean Ambassador to Ukraine Kim Eun-joong and
Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, along with Samsung officials, attended the
event at the company’s 101 Tower office in Kyiv, where Azarov cut the ceremonial
ribbon to signify the facilities’ opening.
Samsung’s Kyiv R&D center, already open for some
time, currently employs about 1,100 information technologies professionals.
Company officials at the Friday event said another 900 would be added by the
end of 2014.
Following a brief press conference, Samsung employees
gave Azarov a tour of the offices, showcasing for the prime minister the
company’s latest mobile devices, some of which currently use technologies
developed at the Kyiv R&D center.
Chang Young Kim, head of digital
media & communications for the R&D center and executive vice president
of Samsung Electronics, said that by increasing R&D investments in Ukraine,
the company aims to “create a research center number one in the CIS and
Europe.”
“We will
do everything possible to make the maximum contribution to the development of
the IT-industry in Ukraine… and become the most respected and reliable corporate
citizen of this country,” he said.
Outside of its own research and development, Samsung also
plans to establish an IT training center, where it will be able to train some
200 students each year in the field of IT. Moreover, the company will offer internships to
120 university students at its R&D facilities.
Besides the training and educational programs, Samsung
plans to continue a number of projects aimed at increasing the level of
computer literacy of students and teachers in Ukraine’s educational institutions.
The nation-wide project “Samsung towards knowledge” has
been held in conjunction with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine
for the past seven years.
One of the world’s leaders in
communication technologies, Samsung Electronics recently conducted successful first tests of its
fifth-generation communication technologies, promising that users will be able
to connect to 5G in 2020.
In 2012, Samsung Electronics allocated
about $10.7 billion to its R&D centers, which is three times more than in
2011.
Kyiv Post staff writer
Christopher J. Miller can be reached at [email protected], or on Twitter at @ChristopherJM.
