Opening event for Arab Strategy Forum concludes with new roadmap for region

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, with the US-based Charles Edison Fund, served as one of the key highlights of the two-day event that was held at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai.

The agreement will lead to the establishment of the 'Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum - Edison Innovation Centre Dubai' for enhancing the region's knowledge landscape. Encouraging innovation capabilities and promoting region-wide development, the centre will host incubators for nurturing entrepreneurial concepts and include well-outfitted facilities for fostering education.

The event also saw the release of The 'Arab Knowledge Report 2009: Towards Productive Intercommunication for Knowledge' by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation. Providing insights into ways for upgrading the region's capabilities, the report is the outcome of a collaborative endeavour between the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation and the United Nations Development Programme's (UNDP) Regional Bureau for Arab States. It is also the first of a series of reports that throws light on the status of knowledge in the Arab region.

Dr. Sulaiman Al Hattlan, CEO of the Arab Strategy Forum, said:

"We are proud to have successfully concluded the first in a series of region-wide seminars that will culminate in the Arab Strategy Forum. We are particularly proud that Dubai has served as the launch-pad for an event that is poised to move on to other countries across the region."

"The release of the Arab Knowledge Report 2009 as well as the signing of an MoU for the establishment of a centre to augment the knowledge capabilities of the region have set the tone for our future events across the region. We are grateful to all the industry experts, intellectuals, researchers, and policy makers for contributing to the thought-provoking and incisive discussions at the event."

Following the release of the Arab Knowledge Report, Adel Al Shared, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation, and Adel Abdullatif, Chief of the Regional Programme Division at the Regional Bureau for Arab States, United Nations Development Programme, led a media briefing on the content of the report.

The first of the sessions held at the Arab Strategy Forum, moderated by Dr. Al Hattlan, discussed the topic 'Knowledge Gaps and Enabling Environments for the Knowledge Society in the Arab Region: Where are the Flaws?'. Panellists included H.H. Sheikh Khaled Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman, Bin Zayed Group, UAE; Dr. Kamal Abdellatif, Professor Philosophy, King Mohamed V University, Morocco; Dr. Turki Al Hamad, academician and author, Saudi Arabia; and Dr. Mudhi Al Humoud, Minister of Education and Higher Education, Kuwait.

The second session on Day-1 focused on 'Foundations and Mechanisms of Action for Building the Knowledge Society in the Arab Region'. Moderated by Tayeb Kamali, Vice Chancellor, Higher Colleges of Technology, UAE, this segment drew the participation of Dr. Mahmoud Abdel-Fadil, Professor of Economics at the Faculty of Economics and Political Sciences, Cairo University, Egypt; Dr. Ghaith Fariz, Director-Arab Knowledge Report, United Nations Development Programme, and Dr. Aziz Al-Azameh, Professor, Central European University, Hungary.

Day-2 of the event featured four workshops on 'Innovation: the Road to Knowledge Society'; 'Transfer or Indigenisation of Knowledge'; 'Information and Communications Technology: The Bridge for Intercommunication and the Reform Axis of the Modern Knowledge Society', and 'Education and Formation of Knowledge Capital: Have Arabs built their Required Knowledge Capital?'

The Arab Strategy Forum is renowned for bringing about definitive changes in the region's thinking and in shaping the policy of government and business organisations. In its new format, the Arab Strategy Forum aims to enable the creation of opportunities for change, and will be underpinned as in the past by bespoke knowledge and research on the Arab world.

Launched in 2001 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Arab Strategy Forum serves as a knowledge platform that offers a unique combination of unparalleled network, debate-driven sessions and custom-made knowledge products. It aims to provide participants with the tools needed to shape viable action plans for the region.