Mobile phone growth is boosting economies all round the globe

Taking his place alongside global industry leaders, MTC Group's Managing Director and Deputy Chairman, Dr. Saad Al Barrak, will deliver two major speeches covering topics from innovations in the industry, trans-national cooperation and the ever-increasing impact of mobile communications on national economies.

The forum runs from June 26 to June 28. Dr. Al Barrak's ideas on where the e-government revolution is leading will be given at a session on June 27, addressed also by Mohamed Omran's CEO of Egypt's Information Technology Industry Development Agency, Ali Farmawi VP of Microsoft and other high level panelists.

The session will explain how Arabs can leverage US capacity and experience to create a strong and vibrant ICT Sector, key steps to fostering e-government revolution in the Arab world, and the role Arab ICT infrastructure can play to better enable US foreign policy to focus not only on promoting elections but also checks and balances.

"With the number of mobile subscribers worldwide at more than 2 billion and with 1,000 new subscribers being added every minute, mobile telecommunications has become an integral part of the global economy," said Dr. Al Barrak. ""It is my firm belief that governments, industry players, and IT companies across the board need to work together more closely in providing integrated mobile services that transcend borders."

The following day, June 28, Dr. Al Barrak, will open a session on "ICT Matters: How to play with the Big Boys." The MTC chief's theme will be the digital revolution and the impact of technology on competitiveness. Dr. Al Barrak has more than 18 years' experience with International Turnkey Systems (ITS) and has played a leading role in MTC's ambitious and profitable expansion strategy. The company is present in 20 countries across the Middle East and Africa, making it the 2nd mobile operator in the world in terms of geographic footprint, with a customer base of over 21 million.

The ICT Matters session will also address the profound shifts in how trade is conducted between the US and the Arab World, as well as the initiatives that need to be adopted to meet the specific needs of the US and Arab worlds.

On the spread of state-of-the-art technology, Dr. Al Barrak said, "MTC was the first in the region to launch 3G services and today there are 72 million subscribers in the world. We went further to be one of the first in the region to launch HSDPA, which is the next generation of 3G, and we will be in Houston to share more innovations and to see how we can implement this new technology throughout our region."

Last year the US Arab Economic Forum was attended by more than 1,000 people from over 35 countries. Speakers included Colin Powell and HRH Prince Saud Al Faisal among many other world figures. The USAEF 2006 is organized and planned by the American Middle East Economic Affairs Committee and co-presented by the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social service, as well as the American Arab Chamber of Commerce and Greater Houston Partnership.

It will be attended by top leaders to of industries ranging from energy to technology to financial services and healthcare, while exploring stronger US Arab relations and enhancing human capital.