Arab Forum activities of E-government launches Sunday in Sharam Al-Sheikh
Under the patronage of Egyptian Prime Minister
Sharam Al-Sheikh City will witness on Sunday the launch of the Arab Forum of the ongoing E-government under the slogan “the Road to Sustainable Development” which will be under the patronage of the engineer Shareef Ismael, Prime Minister of Arab Republic of Egypt. This forum will be held from 23 to 25 of April in the Maritim International Conferences Hall with a joint effort between Akhbar Al-Youm Foundation and Nouf Expo Company from Kuwait in addition to the Arab Organization for Administrative Development (ARADO) which is one of the specialized organizations of the Arab League. The Forum brings together many of the leaderships of EGovernment programs and Information Technology and communications from Arab Countries in addition to specialized Arab and International foundations and companies. It is worth mentioning that Yasser Al-Kadi, Minister of Communications and Major General Khaled Fouda governor of South of Sinai as well as a gathering of senior Arab officials will participate in the opening of this forum.
Communication
‘The Arab forum for the ongoing EGovernment’ aims at setting stable scientific standards in order to expand the application of the foundations of ongoing or smart E-government in various Arab countries in order to achieve Arab communication in this regard. This Forum also builds on the success achieved by the forum of EGovernment which is organized by Nouf Expo in Kuwait where its new session which will be held in next November will be the fifth consecutively.
The organizers have spared no effort to convey this outstanding experience to the Arab World through the window of the Arab Organization for the Administrative Development which is one of the specialized and relevant organizations starting from Egypt with basic contribution from Akhbar Al-Youm as it is the exclusive media partner and marketing partner.
The forum has also an official and outstanding support which is represented by His Excellency the Prime Minister Shareef Ismael and many other supports on the part of Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in the Arab Republic of Egypt which is represented by His Excellency the Minister Yasser Al-Kadi ,and the support of both the High Authority for Tourism and the Egyptian Postal Authority.
Platform for convergence
In this context, the General Manager of Nouf Expo, Yusuf Khalid Al-Marzouq, said: “The organization of the forum in Shaam Al-Sheikh stems from the fact that it is a place distinguished by tourism of international conferences, being a safe haven to organize such a forum that brings together the governments of the region with major international companies. The organization of the forum outside of Kuwait also confirms the implementation of the Nouf Expo’s strategy of regional expansion, after it has successfully achieved its local strategic objectives.”
Marzouq added: “We aim to make this forum an Arab platform that enhances the opportunity to learn about the latest international technologies and the latest innovations and scientific solutions developed to help governments of the region in providing smart and innovative services to their people. Arab countries today need to launch their sustainable development programs based upon what is available by the new opportunities provided by information and communication technology (ICT) in various fields. Nouf Expo ensures that all the conferences and Forums that it organizes are keen to deal with the issues and activities that affect the growth and development of societies that would bring about development and prosperity. Information technology and E-government programs represent today a true window of hope for the desired change in the Arab world, and this is what the ‘Arab E-Government Forum’ seeks to achieve at the current and the subsequent sessions.”
Important step
Leading Egyptian journalist Yasser Rizk, Chairman of Akhbar Al-Youm Institution, and the Editor-in-Chief of the Al-Akbar newspaper expressed his appreciation for the cooperation of all parties to ensure the success of the forum, in the belief of its importance in supporting the development of mechanisms of governmental work in Arab countries. He expressed his hope that the Forum will produce strong recommendations and new ideas through working papers that can uplift the Arab technological thinking to keep pace with the rapid global developments in this field. He added that the participation of Dar Akhbar Al-Youm in organizing the Forum stems from its deep belief in the importance of supporting joint Arab action efforts in all various fields, especially in the technological field, pointing out the faith of Dar Akhbar AlYoum in its social and national role which motivates it to support any effort that achieves Arab interests. He praised the close cooperation between the Akhbar Al-Youm Institution and the partners who participated in the organization of the forum, stressing his confidence that this cooperation will lead to the success of the Forum and achieve its objectives.
Community participation
The Director General of the Arab Organization for Administrative Development, Dr Nasser Al-Qahtani, stressed the importance of technology in achieving the aspirations of the Arab peoples.
He said: “Advanced technology is considered one of the most important channels to depart from the cycle of challenges that plague our countries, both in Egypt and in all other sister Arab countries. We recognize that we must use all the means of modern technology through egovernment programs in activating programs of modernity and sustainable development to advance our societies towards the horizons to which we all aspire.”
The Director General of the Arab Organization for Administrative Development said that preparations are currently under way to prepare for the forum so as to make it at the level of the prominence of such an event. He pointed out that the Forum enjoys excellent media patronage from Dar Akhbar Al-Youm, the AlIdara Al-Youm (Management Today) Magazine and a strategic participation by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, represented by the Minister Engineer, Yasser AlQadhi, as well as by the Supreme Commission for Tourism and the Egyptian Postal Authority and many other governmental companies and Agencies, by which participation contributed to enriching the topics of the forum.
Qahtani added: “The Arab Organization for Administrative Development, through holding the ongoing ‘Arab E-Government Forum’ aims at supporting E-government in Arab countries, which through advanced electronic and mobile services seeks to improve the relationship between citizens and their governments. Its main objective should be focused on providing services that are more efficient, accessible and responsive to people’s needs.
An effective e-government can also help to enhance participation in decision-making and make institutions more transparent and accountable. All this is in line with the principles and objectives of the Arab Vision for 2030, and contributes to its implementation.”
Customer satisfaction
Essam Al-Saghir, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Egyptian Post, said that the participation in the Forum comes as part of the strategic plan of the Egyptian Postal Authority, in being keen to utilize the latest technological applications and provide all services, whether postal, financial or governmental, in accordance with international standards. He pointed out that the Egyptian Post is currently utilizing the latest postal systems, such as tracking shipment routes and calculating its cost through its different rates through the website.
The National Post Authority has developed a ‘call center’ to make it an interface that reflects the interest that the Egyptian Post takes in its customers, in order to improve the service delivery and ensure customer satisfaction when dealing with mail. The Chairman of the Authority explained that the new call center employs 55 employees trained at the highest level to receive complaints and inquiries from customers. Moreover, the center employs the latest technology systems in customer relationship management (CRM).
The development is still ongoing and the future is full of new projects that contribute to the development and improvement of the services provided so that every citizen will receive all services in a decent and accessible manner. The activities of the Forum will be accompanied by an exhibition of technologies and services provided by Arab and international companies from the providers of telecommunication solutions and services. Some of the successful Arab and international experiences in the field of developing egovernment programs will be presented through the forum sessions, with the participation of 12 countries, which are: Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, Sultanate of Oman, Palestine and Morocco.