Page 10 - SAMENA Trends - September-October 2020

SAMENA COUNCIL ACTIVITY SAMENA TRENDS

SAMENA COUNCIL ACTIVITY

SAMENA Council to Hold Public-Private Policy Roundtables
"SAMENA Accelerator" Series of Stakeholder Meetings to Contribute Recommendations
on Accelerating Fiber Deployment and Sustainable Digital Economy in the Region

SAMENA Council and Huawei collaborated
roundtable on Digital Economy will help
identify key initiatives that can be taken
immediately to accelerate progress
on digital development in a digitally
inclusive manner, thus providing regional
policymakers and regulatory authorities
the confidence that the Private sector is
fully ready to play its part in fulfilling the
global goal of Universal Digital Access and
in furthering the Connect 2030 Sustainable
Development Agenda of the United
Nations.

In the wake of accelerated 5G developments
SAMENA Telecommunications Council the ITU, the private sector, and by the UN and given the anticipated role 5G may play
has announced that, with the collaboration Broadband Commission, highlighting the in advancing other industries and new
of Huawei Technologies Middle East, positive economic impact and fulfillment growth streams, thereby catalyzing new
a series of Public and Private sector of bandwidth demands posed by emerging economic development opportunities
policy-level roundtables will be held with digital communications technologies in across established and nascent market
industry stakeholders during the month of countries with low Fiber penetration. segments, both SAMENA Council, which
November, focused on addressing issues serves as a unifying voice for Telecom
and requirements for increased fiber Similarly, the second SAMENA Accelerator Operators as well as a sector-development
deployment in the region and to assist roundtable, focused on "Accelerating a partner to governments, and Huawei,
policymakers in accelerating a sustainable Sustainable Digital Economy", to be held which is a leading Technology Provider
digital economy. later in November, will drive inspiration as well as a Member of the Council, view
from and build on the key messages and Fiber deployment as a guarantor of future
The first one-day, by-invitation-only decisions expressed in the Declaration digital communication advancements
SAMENA Accelerator roundtable on of the G20 Digital Economy Ministers and reliability, and which will drive
building "Fiber-optic Connectivity Meeting of July 2020; including the future digital economic growth, foster
Corridors for Digital Economy", to be held fact that digital technologies must be digital ecosystems, and support new
on November 19, 2020, will bring together harnessed to realize opportunities of the opportunities for nations and their citizens
ICT policy and regulatory leadership 21st century for all and that it is highly in their personal and societal strides.
from within the region and beyond, to important that the region's digital economy
discuss the SA-ME-NA region's Fiber and policy-making sustain progress on the Bocar BA, CEO and Board Member of
deployment challenges, including a myriad implementation and fulfillment of the 2030 SAMENA Council, expressing his views
of investment and deployment issues; Agenda for Sustainable Development. on continuing to bring Public and Private
to build the case for accelerating Fiber Recognizing the criticality of universal, sector decision-makers on the SAMENA
deployment as a future-proof conduit of secure, and affordable connectivity, for Council's platform to participate in the
digitization and economic growth; and to which expansion of ICT infrastructure is a subject-specific policy-level roundtables,
recommend policy initiatives in areas where pre-requisite and the fundamental enabler has stated that "These SAMENA Digital
expedited policy decisions and regulatory of development of the digital economy, the Economy Policy Accelerator roundtables
enablement can positively make a prevailing policy-level consensus among are the next step in SAMENA Council's
difference in the proliferation of Fiber-optic the region's policymakers underpins advocacy efforts to conjoin knowledge-
networks in the region. The Fiber-focused the need for developing frameworks exchange with practical methods to
roundtable will build on recommendations that can help accelerate and measure accelerate the region's digital economy,
already issued to UN Member States by the digital economy. To this effect, the and Fiber infrastructure is proving to be

10 SEP-OCT 2020