Page 124 - SAMENA Trends - October 2019

REGULATORY & POLICY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

people, foreign intelligence and terrorist organizations. ” Turhan Serbia has signed a memorandum of understanding between the
pointed out that as the cyber world becomes more complex, op- Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications and Postal
ponents become more complex. In fact, it is no secret that there Services and the Information and Communications Authority.
are more organized attacks than personal attacks. Organized cy- During the visit of President to Serbia, a consensus was reached
ber pirates have emerged now. Unfortunately, these groups can in Belgrade to further strengthen the existing cooperation in the
attack the cyber infrastructure of state institutions and interfere field of electronic communication and postal services between the
with the private information of ordinary people. The problem has Information and Communication Technologies Authority and its
grown a lot with the introduction of quantum computers into our counterpart in Serbia, the Electronic Communications and Postal
lives. For this reason, the spread of quantum resistant cryptology Services Regulatory Authority (RATEL). The existing memorandum
algorithms and studies in our country is of great importance. Be- of understanding signed between the two institutions in 2013
cause, in terms of providing cyber security, full security cannot be in Istanbul was reviewed and revised according to changing
mentioned without “Domestic and National” products and solu- conditions. The text, which was updated to reflect the latest
tions. We should not only follow the requirements of the age, but developments, was signed by BTM President Ömer Abdullah
also take a step ahead and take precautions against threats. Be- Karagözoğlu and RATEL Chairman Dragan Kovačevıć. The areas
cause when the confidentiality, integrity or accessibility of the in- of cooperation in the Memorandum of Understanding; regulation
formation is impaired; loss of life, large-scale economic damage, of electronic communications markets, information technology
national security deficits or public order may be caused. We will and applications, regulation of postal services, and other issues
not give up the use of information technologies in the presence to be agreed upon. Within these areas, sharing of information,
of cyber pirates, he said. Deputy Minister Omar Fatih Sayan also documents, experience and experts between the two institutions,
made a speech. From artificial intelligence to profound learning, consultation on various issues and joint workshops, seminars,
from web technologies to virtual reality, from machine learning study visits are planned. The memorandum of understanding is
to the internet of objects, from information security to cyber se- an indication of the deepening of the cooperation between the
curity, voicing advances in many areas, Sayan said: As a country two countries in the field of electronic communication and postal
that is aware of this fact, we are confidently and firmly focusing services and the intention of the parties to improve their existing
our investments on information and communication technolo- friendship relations. It is also foreseen that the relations between
gies “. Sayan pointed out the importance of recent developments BTK and RATEL, which are already on the basis of mutual benefit,
in terms of showing what “domestic and national” technologies will gain momentum and be placed on a more solid ground.
mean. Deputy Minister Sayan invited the participants to work in (October 9, 2019) btk.gov.tr
the field of domestic and national technology in all areas of life.
(October 16, 2019) btk.gov.tr

United Arab Emirates

An interactive workshop on bridging the standardization gap, tiatives, to enhance the work of this vital sector in all societies
hosted by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) in and contribute to the achievement of SDGs launched by the UN
Dubai, has been concluded today. The workshop aimed to inform ‘Leaving no one behind’.” H.E. Al Mesmar assured that the im-
the participants of best practices in contributing to the global portance of this workshop comes from the importance of the role
standard-setting process of the International Telecommunication of the ICT sector in achieving a decent life for people. He added:
Union (ITU) and provide in-depth guidance that will have a pos- “The development and progress of countries today depend largely
itive impact on the development of the telecommunication sec- on the development of the ICT sector, as every industrial, com-
tors in less developed countries. Over a period of two days, TRA mercial and educational renaissance depends on the existence of
hosted 30 guests from 15 developing countries in the ICT sector. a modern communications infrastructure that can accommodate
During the workshop, an international ITU expert explained the smart services, Fourth Industrial Revolution, Artificial Intelligence
differences in the capacity of developing countries compared to and smart education. This requires countries to identify and de-
developed countries, in terms of access to international ICT stan- velop their true potential if they wish to keep abreast of devel-
dards, and the ITU recommendations in this regard. Commenting opments and take advantage of modern technologies, which can
on this workshop, H.E. Majed Al Mesmar, Acting Director Gener- be achieved through consultation and sharing experiences.” The
al of TRA, said: “Bridging the standardization gap is the theme workshop participants learned about the comprehensive stan-
of the ITU for this year, with the aim of understanding key gaps dard-setting approach within ITU-T, how to submit written contri-
that need to be overcome to improve developing countries’ stan- butions independently to the ITU-T study groups, and gained the
dards development, implementation and use capabilities, and to ability to understand the standardization process and the impor-
increase the capacity of developing countries in ICT standardiza- tance of Plenipotentiary Conference Resolution no. 123 and World
tion and contribute to the achievement of sustainable develop- Telecommunication Standardization Assembly Resolution no. 44
ment goals. At TRA, we are always keen to support all ITU ini- on “Bridging the standardization gap between developing and de-

124 OCTOBER 2019