ICT
From The Report: Qatar 2020
View in Online Reader

The year 2020 presents exciting prospects for the Qatari ICT sector. Vodafone and Ooredoo have committed to roll out 5G in all densely populated areas, along primary roads and motorways, and at venues associated with the 2022 FIFA World Cup by the end of 2020. In anticipation of this, stakeholders will be closely monitoring the opening of Lusail City. Investors will also be looking for further opportunities from the Smart Qatar Programme, also known as TASMU, after the Ministry of Transport and Communications awarded 11 multimillion-dollar contracts under the programme at the annual Qatar IT Conference and Exhibition in November 2019. The flagship project to develop the TASMU Central Platform was awarded to a consortium of firms, of which Oooredoo was the main partner. This chapter contains interviews with Mohammed Ali Al Mannai, President, Communications Regulatory Authority; and Ghada Philip El Rassi, Board Member, MEEZA.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Transformative technology: 5G rollout underpins the country’s smart economy initiatives
OBG
plus

Qatar has positioned itself as a pioneer in ICT technology as the rollout of a 5G network across the country continues, bringing with it a host of exciting use cases for digital government and smart city initiatives. The country’s main telecoms companies, Vodafone and Ooredoo, reported stable performance in 2019 on the back of higher post-paid mobile revenue and fixed broadband services. They also reached significant milestones in 5G connectivity in Doha as network infrastructure expansion…

Analysis

Leading role: A new strategy to bolster the development of artificial intelligence
OBG
plus

As the latest policy piece in the government’s drive to create a knowledge-based economy built on leveraging the newest technologies, the National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategy was launched in October 2019. The strategy, developed by the Qatar Computing Research Institute at Hamad bin Khalifa University, is designed to identify economic opportunities and research potential in the burgeoning field of AI. It is based on six pillars: the race for talent, data access, employment, wealth…

Interview

Innovative services: Mohammed Ali Al Mannai, President, Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA), on utilising smart technology
OBG
plus

Interview:Mohammed Ali Al Mannai As the trend towards implementing smart technologies gains momentum, what is Qatar doing to ensure it successfully stays ahead of the curve? MOHAMMED ALI AL MANNAI: Qatar is well positioned to leverage smart technologies with its advanced fixed and mobile networks. In 2019 it ranked second among Arab countries and 33rd out of 121 nations worldwide on the World Economic Forum’s Network Readiness Index. All the main components for advanced internet connectivity…

Interview

Digital adaptation: Ghada Philip El Rassi, Board Member, MEEZA, on harnessing digitalisation to become a knowledge-based economy
OBG
plus

Interview:Ghada Philip El Rassi How are ICT firms working to bolster digitalisation in Qatar and beyond? GHADA PHILIP EL RASSI: Technology today is no longer seen as an assistant to daily business practices. It has now become a necessity and is the centre of every business strategy. Organisations that adopt digital technologies enable decision-makers to have access to all necessary information at all times, from anywhere and from the device of their choosing. We are working to harness the…