Dubai eGovernment to host the first Middle East eGovernment Summit in Dubai

The event will bring together senior decision-makers from the region's governments, including GCC e-government teams, and organisations from across the region and the globe.

The event will discuss crucial topics related to e-governance, such as the Future of eGovernment in the Middle East, Business Integration in eGovernment, Better Return on IT in eGovernment Operations, Public and Private Sector Partnership as Strategy for eGovernment, Improving Content Management Capabilities to Exceed the Expectations of Citizens and Internal users. In addition, there will be e-government Country Focus Reviews.

"The hosting of the first Middle East eGovernment Summit will lead to an exchange of ideas and pooling of resources as the region's governments step up measures to adopt e-governance," said Salem Al Shair, Director eServices, Dubai eGovernment. "E-Government is a system whose success is closely linked to the exchange of experiences between various countries. This summit will present the right forum to gain new insights and open doors for interaction that will help individual governments to speed up their e-government programmes."

The first Middle East eGovernment Summit 2004 follows a series of successful e-government roadshows organised by ITP Events in different countries in the region in the past. Among those attending the event will be IT directors, CEOs, CIOs, HR managers and all those with an interest in the growth of e-government in the Middle East.

The different sessions of the Summit will be moderated by officials and experts from the GCC countries, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan. In addition, there will be experts from Canada, Singapore, the United Kingdom and other countries presenting papers on various aspects of e-governance.

"The presence of foreign experts, including those from Europe, will enable the participants to measure their progress against developed countries. The case studies presented by these speakers will provide direction for some of the region's e-governments and pinpoint their drawbacks," added Al Shair. "It is a well-known fact that much of the Middle East is well behind the global benchmarks in e-governance. This forum can help them move along the right track."

"Having reached an advanced stage of development, Dubai eGovernment is now poised to move to the next level. The first Middle East eGovernment Summit will reinforce our standing as pioneers in the region, and help us share our expertise with the rest of the countries, with special reference to the cultural and historical profile of the region," Al Shair added.