The International Telecommunications Union's, ITU, regional forum on Information and Communications Technology, ICT, measurement was held today in Dubai.

Aimed at enhancing the countries’ capabilities in the region to produce ICT related statistics on internationally agreed standards and national methodologies and indicators, the forum witnessed a significant presence of high-level officials and national experts in this field.

In addition, representatives of ministries, regulatory agencies, national statistical offices, service providers, regional and international organisations, as well as other relevant stakeholders attended the event, which was hosted by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority in coordination and collaboration with the ITU.

In his welcome speech, Majed Al Mesmar, Acting Director-General of the TRA, said, "In the UAE, we put exceptional importance on the global indexes in various fields, especially those issued by the ITU. Our wise leadership ensures that these global indicators are our compass to strengthen our efforts towards enhancing competitiveness, through deriving 70 national objectives, many of which are based on these global indicators, in addition to mobilising all government and national efforts to achieve these objectives by the UAE Golden Jubilee, within the UAE vision 2021. One example is our keenness to be ranked among the top ten countries in the global Network Readiness Index, and to be ranked first in the Online Service Index, OSI."

He added, "In the context of such a high interest in global indexes, and its emanating national objectives, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has delivered an open letter to the people of the UAE, which included, among many issues, an order from His Highness to form working teams at government levels, under the heading of ‘Executive Teams of the National Agenda’. These teams consist of 550 officials representing different sectors and levels, to work under his direct supervision in order to ensure the full achievements of these objectives in a timely manner."

He concluded by saying, "On the infrastructure level, and through analysing data and facts related to the national telecommunication network ability to accommodate the developments of smart cities and transition into the digital knowledge economy, efforts are being made in the UAE to adapt the telecom network with fifth-generation technologies, 5G, where national investments would reach around US$10 billion by 2020."

Brahima Sanou, Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau, highlighted the UAE’s achievements in the ICT Development Index.