UAE Hosts 52nd Arab ICT Permanent Committee Meeting In Abu Dhabi

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) hosted the 52nd session of the Arab ICT Permanent Committee in Abu Dhabi from Monday to Tuesday. The meeting was part of the preparations for the meeting of the Council of Arab Ministers of Communications and Information, which will take place on Thursday.

Mohammed Al Ramsi, deputy director general for the telecommunications sector at the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TRDA), represented the UAE during the two-day meeting, where delegations from various Arab countries participated.

"This meeting follows the remarkable success of the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-23) held in the UAE from 20 November to 15 December 2023. It stands as an Arab and Emirati success story worthy of pride, marked by active coordination and continuous consultation," Al Ramsi said, as per WAM.

"The Arab team excelled in delivering numerous joint contributions, operated cohesively in fostering dialogue, achieved understandings and secured consensual solutions among regional groups. Simultaneously, it succeeded in garnering substantial gains for the Arab region at large," he added.

Humaid Al Basti, senior officer of government relations and international cooperation at TDRA and head of the UAE delegation in attendance, also spoke about the importance of the topics discussed during the meeting.

He pointed out that the topics resonated with the aspirations of the Arab societies and reflected "a wise understanding of the rapidly changing reality and innovative technologies," adding that these subjects "largely embody the hope for a paradigm shift towards the digital economy and digital government, ultimately serving the people of the region."

The agenda of the 52nd session of the Arab ICT Permanent Committee consisted of collaborative efforts in the field of communications including cybersecurity issues, results of the WRC-23, Arab Strategy for Communications and Information, criteria for ITU positions and committees candidacy, coordination among ICT organizations in the Arab region, Arab Digital Capital 2024 initiative and Arab Forum for Digital Arabic Content.

Last month, Al Ramsi was named chairman of 2023's World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) after being endorsed as a candidate for the chairmanship of the 39th iteration of the conference, which was held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt in 2019.

Happening before the meeting of the Council of Arab Ministers of Communications and Information is the gathering of the Executive Bureau of the Arab Telecommunications and Information Council of Ministers, which is chaired by the UAE, on Wednesday.