Future of ICT markets in the Arab world is the focus of the Jordan ICT Forum 2004

"The Jordan ICT Forum 2004 will set the agenda for future development and growth of the region's ICT market through promoting a path of a regional cooperation and synergy" said Dr. Zu'bi. "Over the past few years, the ICT markets in the region have seen tremendous changes, substantial growth and development, and today they offer significantly enhanced investment opportunities. Technological development, legislative change, and expansion of the capabilities of human resources have all played a key role in convincing global and regional investors that investment opportunities are available in our dynamically growing market."

The Ministry of Information and Communications Technology will play an active role in the Jordan ICT Forum and will present Jordan's National ICT Policy and Strategy, which will play a crucial role in further driving the development of the Jordanian ICT sector over the next three years. The Ministry team will also showcase Jordan's National Broadband Network project, the Jordan e-Government Program, and the Jordan Education Initiative at the Forum.

The Ministry will also unveil new investment opportunities in the postal sector and will share with the ICT leaders Jordan's upcoming liberalization plans in the Telecom sector.

"The international and regional participation at the Forum will play a key role in enabling us to have a broader idea on the requirements of foreign investors, identifying the opportunities and highlighting the obstacles in order to overcome these challenges." Said Marwan Juma, chairman of int@j. "The Jordan ICT Forum 2004 will enable local, regional

and international ICT stakeholders to share knowledge and establish new business leads via networking with the decision makers and market leaders who will be attending the Forum."

The Forum is organised by the Information Technology Association - Jordan (int@j) and the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (MoICT). Fastlink, the Platinum sponsor of the event and also the sponsor of the regional press visit to Jordan, Microsoft Corporation and Batelco Jordan have also stepped up to support the event through Gold sponsorships with Intel Corporation as the Silver sponsor. The Forum is also supported by Cisco Systems, Jordan Telecom as the official sponsor of the press center, Royal Jordanian Airlines as the official career which is granting special discount on tickets for participants in the Forum, Aramex International as the official courier and Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) as the international sponsor of the Jordan ICT Forum 2004. The Forum is partially funded by The AMIR Program/ US Agency for International Development.

Key speakers from Cisco Systems, Microsoft Corporation, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), MIT Entrepreneurship Center, Digicel Carribbean Limited, Bearing Point, Intel Corporation, Sun Microsystems and Sakher Software CO. In addition, prominent representatives from leading regional and local ICT enterprises will be addressing many of the topics set for discussion, and will share their vision and expertise on the development of the region's ICT offerings.