The TRA Plans for the WTSA and WCIT to be held for the first time in the Middle East in 2012
ABU DHABI,Dubai, United Arab Emirates - Monday, December 26th 2011 [ME NewsWire]
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has recently held productive meetings with high level attendees from the Arab region in order to develop a unified platform amongst Arab nations in preparation for two significant international events set to take place in the United Arab Emirates in 2012. The UAE will welcome the World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT) and the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA) next year. The conferences are considered to be significant international events responsible for setting the regulations and policies governing telecommunications at the international level.
These international events, hosted by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), set regulations that that aim to establish general principles for operating national and international telecommunications. The regulations are designed to facilitate intra-connection and global operation of infrastructure and telecommunications in order to support operational competence for technical facilities and enhance the efficiency and availability of international telecommunications.
In preparation for its upcoming role, the TRA has organized meetings which will facilitate the regional information and knowledge exchange to bring forth a viable platform to its international industry peers. Commenting on the event, H.E. Mohamed Nasser Al Ghanim, TRA Director General said: “We are proud of the UAE’s success in the expected hosting of these two major international conferences next year. As part of the TRA’s objective to improve services and safeguard ICT users in the UAE, it is of paramount importance to the Authority to carry out our due diligence and bring cohesive, well prepared concepts to these international events. As the leading regulatory authority in the region, a key component to our success in our operation has always been our thought leadership and careful planning in order to deliver on our objectives.”
The Arab Work Team was commissioned for the preparation of the WCIT and the WTSA. These two preparatory meetings were hosted by the UAE’s Spectrum Management and International Affairs of the TRA Telecommunications Regulatory Authority. The meetings were held during 11–15 December 2011 in Dubai.
The first meeting of the Arab Team for the WCIT was chaired by Eng. Tarik Al Awadi, Executive Director of Spectrum and International Affairs, TRA. The meeting was attended by nine Arab countries, in addition to participation of Mr. Ibrahima Sanou, Secretary of Development Sector, ITU, Geneva; Mr. Ibrahim Al Haddad Secretary of the Arab Regional Office in Cairo; Mr. Mahmoud Mubarak Sayyar, General Director, Telecommunication Technical Office, Bahrain; and Ms. Riham Al Mayet, representative of Telecommunication Management, Technical Secretariat at the Arab League.
“Early and sufficient preparation is undoubtedly the key for outstanding success. Holding these preparatory meetings comes as a result of goals to make this important event successful and to contribute to the standing of Arab countries in the international telecommunications sector and for the UAE in particular. Moreover, the highly competent Arab Team commissioned with the preparation for the WCIT, and the Arab Team commissioned with the preparation for the WTSA convened in order to reach a common Arab standpoint regarding important items on the agendas of these two conferences,” Al Ghanim added.
The Arab meeting was held over a period of three days; participants discussed various topics, foremost of which was addressing the purpose of the coming WCIT, and the importance of thorough preparation for such an event. In this regard, Mr. Richard Hill, the expert at the ITU, provided a detailed presentation about the WCIT and the benefit of early preparation. The meeting then discussed some important articles and other basic regulations of the International Telecommunication Regulations that need to be well-perceived by the Arab countries, in addition to identifying an initial stand and opinion towards it.
The third meeting of the Arab Team for Standardization Affairs commissioned for the preparation of the WTSA was chaired by Dr. Shareef Jneinah from the Arab Republic of Egypt. Nine Arab countries, as well as representatives of the Technical Secretariat of the Arab League, the Technical Bureau of Telecommunications, and the Arab Regional Office of the ITU attended the meeting.
The Arab Team has made a considerable effort and has worked seamlessly towards increased communication, continuity of work, and has followed the news and developments of the ITU. The team has worked on reaching a mutual stance of the Arab Group and will defend it in the coming conference in order to serve the interests of the Arab region,” Al Ghanim concluded.
A Gulf-Countries meeting, considered the first for the preparation of the WCIT and the WTSA, was held during the last day of the event, on December 15, 2011. The meeting was held with the presence and participation of the General Director of the ITU Arab Regional Office, and the General Director of the Telecommunication Technical Office, Kingdom of Bahrain. The GCC countries participated in this meeting which further highlighted the purpose of unifying the stance of the GCC countries regarding the agenda. The GCC countries always participate in the coordination efforts at the regional level and in particular for important international conferences of the ITU, such as the International Radio Communication Conference, the World Telecommunication Development Conference, the Plenipotentiary Conference, and other events and activities in the ITU.
The UAE is set to host these international conferences as per the approval of the ITU Council’s resolution No. 1335 which was taken during its last meeting in Geneva, last October.
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Contacts
Huda Al-Mutawwa
Director of corporate communications
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Tel: 009712 – 6118250
Email: almutawa@tra.gov.ae
