RIYADH, 28 February 2004 — Riyadh Governor Prince Salman will inaugurate a high-profile telecommunications conference here tomorrow. The five-day Riyadh International Telecommunications Conference will take place at two separate venues and focus on recent developments in this industry.
An exhibition running alongside will be inaugurated at the Riyadh Exhibition Center, according to Khalid Al-Gari, the conference project manager. The conference is organized under the auspices of the Ministry of Communications and IT, the Saudi Communications Authority and the Saudi Telecom Company (STC). Saudi Research and Publishing Co. is among the sponsors.
The conference comes during a boom for the Saudi telecom sector, Al-Gari said. While the annual growth rate of fixed telephone lines stands at seven percent, the mobile phone sector has registered a staggering 80 percent growth, far greater than the Gulf-wide 35-40 percent, he added.
The conference will be followed by a three-day program of keynote presentations, with STC and other key players in the telecom industry presenting solutions to the communication needs of the Kingdom.
Topics include telecom policies and regulations, future technology challenges, the telecommunications business and the future of wireless technology.
Speakers include Deputy Minister for Technical Affairs at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Dr. Fawaz Al-Alamy, the deputy governor of the Communications and Information Technology Commission Abdullah Al-Dharab, STC President Khalid Al-Molhem, Dr. Ihsan Bu Hulaiga of the Shoura Council, and Carlo Maria Rossotto, an economist at the World Bank.
On behalf of the STC, Saud ibn Majed Al-Darweesh, vice president of STC, will give a presentation on “Operational Challenges for GSM Operators in the Kingdom.”
