ITU Telecom World 2012 hosted by TRA concludes today

The ITU Telecom World 2012, which started at Dubai’s World Trade Center on the 14^th of this month, will come to a conclusion today following five days of high-level meetings, discussions, workshops and other activities and networking events held by the 120 delegations, 85 ministers, presidents of telecommunication companies, and numerous experts who took part in this key international event. The event addressed key issues in the field of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) including affordability and availability of internet access to everyone, cyber security, new innovations, and e-Health, with the objective of stimulating socio-economic development, improving productivity and sharing the benefits of ICTs amongst the world’s population. 

Hosted by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority TRA of the UAE, ITU Telecom World is the first of three pivotal events organized by the International Telecommunication Union ITU that will take place in the UAE this year as the World’s telecommunications capital. The International Telecommunications Union ITU is the United Nations’ specialized agency for ICTs. 

The Dubai Convention Bureau, a division of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, the Dubai World Trade Centre, as well as Etisalat and du, acted as strategic partners of the TRA, while the unique national pavilion of the TRA at the event also featured both operators. The participation highlighted the important role the UAE now plays in the global telecommunications arena as well as the advances the UAE has made in this field, in particular the introduction of 4G LTE technology- a first in the region. 

H.E. Mohamed Nasser Al Ghanim, Director General of the TRA, said: “We will continue to work hard to raise the profile of the UAE and its people in the global ICT map. I thank His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and His Highness Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, for the support and attention they paid to this international event. The UAE, and Dubai especially, has received messages of praise and congratulations from all over the world for the success of this conference. We in turn have to thank our strategic partners at the Dubai Convention Bureau the Dubai World Trade Centre for the invaluable collaboration and support they provided, without which this would not be possible.” 

The UAE, through the TRA, will also be hosting the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly WTSA from 20-29 November, an event held every four years at the international level to discuss issues relating to international telecommunications standards. A one-day Global Standards Symposium GSS will be held on the 19th of November and will be dedicated to the private sector. The third and final ITU event will be the World Conference on International Telecommunications WCIT held from 3-14 December 2012. This landmark conference will review the current International Telecommunications Regulations ITRs, which serve as the binding global treaty outlining the principles which govern the way international voice, data and video traffic is handled, and which lay the foundation for ongoing innovation and market growth. The ITRs were last negotiated in Melbourne, Australia in 1988, and there is broad consensus that the text now needs to be updated to reflect the dramatically different information and communication technology ICT landscape of the 21st century.