Part of the Com World Series, the Middle East Telco World Summit is due to open its doors on Monday, with an expected 2,500 participants from 80 countries, and 70 different oeprator companies represented.
The event has been going on for over 15 years, and has seen the emergence of the Middle East as a powerhouse of telecommunications for emerging markets. This year's conference is focusing on Middle Eastern operator groups' strategies to move beyond the region and become global players. It is no surprise then that Etisalat is a strategic operator partner of the event. The company's global presence may not yet be as broad as that of for instance Zain (also present at the event), but it is definitely making a strong mark on high growth emerging markets such as West Africa.
The conference programme covers all the key strategic issues in the market (from network developments to regulation, value-added services and marketing strategies), and also incorporates two brand new elements this year: The Saudi Arabia Focus Day dedicated to the Middle East’s fastest growing market and the two day Telecoms HR Summit set to analyse the changing role of HR managers during the current economic downturn.
I will be at the event for the first time this year and I am looking forward to witnessing the debates in this exciting market. I am curious about the general mood in the region following the city's economic difficulties. Judging from the response to next week's event, I would guess that the city's busy events industry won't be severely affected by this.
