ITIDA collaborates with Gitex Technology Week to promote regional cooperation in IT and telecoms

The Global Information Technology Report 2007-2008, issued by the World Economic Forum in cooperation with INSEAD, underlined the substantial progress Egypt has made in ICT readiness in comparison to neighbouring countries over the last six years. The report findings ranked Egypt as the most competitive in prices of telecom services in the region and worldwide, highlighting costs of mobile communications.

Dubai World Trade Centre organiser of Gitex Technology Week will work with representatives from ITIDA (Information Technology Industry Development Agency) to demonstrate the significant potential of the Egyptian telecom and technology sectors at the leading trade event, in October this year.

'Egypt is increasingly attracting international technology businesses that are looking to build on our competitive positioning to service the wider regional market. At the same time, many Egyptian companies are developing a reputation for the excellence of their technology offerings. As one of the world's premier business development platforms for IT, Gitex Technology Week will be among the most important platforms for us to take these messages to the market,'

said Dr. Hazem Abdel-Azim, the new Executive President of the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA).

This year's Gitex Technology Week will cover the entire field of technology with dedicated trade events and networking initiatives. For the first time, a digital gaming arena will be set up as part of the Consumer Electronics segment. In addition, Gitex Majlis, an executive business programme for CEOs and senior business professionals will provide a networking forum, executive lounge and preferred priority seating at seminars, workshops and keynotes.

Egypt was among the largest national pavilions at the last edition of the show, and organiser Dubai World Trade Centre has worked alongside many Egyptian exhibitors to build their feedback into the positioning of the new edition.

Egypt has always had a strong presence at Gitex Technology Week. The country's IT sector is one of the success stories of the Middle East region, and Egyptian companies have acknowledged that Gitex Technology Week provides a vital networking and business development platform. This year, there is a 7 percent increase in the number of companies representing Egypt at Gitex Technology Week.

Abdulla Qassem, Senior Vice President at Dubai World Trade Centre, said: 'Egypt's IT industry is one of the fastest growing in the region, and Gitex Technology Week has become a key platform for Egyptian companies and government agencies to demonstrate their industry knowledge.'

'Year-on-year there has been an increase in the number of Egyptian companies participating at Gitex Technology Week, this year's show is set to be the largest and most innovative in our history. We strongly believe that Gitex Technology Week will assist Egyptian companies in achieving their long-term business and marketing goal by providing better access to influential buyers and decision makers,' he added.

One of the highlights for this year will be the Gitex Technology Week Global Conference, a programme which has been expanded to include 35 tracks of interactive discussion, featuring some of the world's thought leaders on new generation technology. For the first time, Gitex Technology Week is supporting dedicated developer sessions, to facilitate the creation of original technology and programming within the Middle East, and Egyptian companies are expected to make a major contribution.

2008 will also see the launch of Gitex Ditigal Game World. Taking place simultaneously at Gitex Technology Week and Gitex Shopper & Consumer Electronics Expo the event will cover all aspects of gaming. Gitex Technology Week will provide a platform to discuss the business-to-business potential of this innovative market, including special sessions on online retail sales and interactive advertising whilst regional teams will battle it out in a series of organised games and online tournaments, held at Gitex Shopper.

Gitex Technology Week opens 19 - 23 October 2008, from 10am - 7pm daily. The event is open to trade and business professionals only and takes place at Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.