TRA and the Internet society reassess MENA’s Internet Infrastructure

Oman’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), and the Internet Society (ISOC) gathered regional leaders in Oman to discuss the readiness of the Internet’s infrastructure in the region and review proposed guidelines on the safety and confidentiality of services provided over the Internet.

This was the third and last policy meeting held across the Middle East this year to discuss the building blocks, regulations, and legal frameworks needed to develop an open and secure Internet across the Arab countries. The Internet Society will hold a high-level ministerial meeting to present the research findings and relevant policy guidelines that could be endorsed and taken into consideration by government officials in drafting their national plans. The first will tackle the state of Internet infrastructure in MENA, and the second will address the security of Internet infrastructure.

In addition to highlighting the role of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), discussing encryption techniques and reviewing the latest updates on cloud services and data centers, the workshop in Oman also addressed a number of important Internet issues such as upgrading the current Internet Protocol to allow for the rapid growth of connected devices and how the Middle East can upgrade its current Internet infrastructure to become more globally connected.

The workshop was inaugurated by H.E Dr. Hamad Bin Salim Al-Rawahy, the Executive President of the TRA, while Engineer Mohammed Al-Kindi, the executive manager of TRA’s Regulatory and Compliance Unit, welcomed guests by stating the event comes within the context of enriching the cognitive, technical and consultative aspects for all stakeholders as part of the ongoing endeavors to cope with digital transformation. He expressed the aim to move to new horizons and innovative business models that are based on creative digital technologies to invent products, services and applications, including the foundation of a solid base to create a sound legal and regulatory environment whereby all the challenges are identified and addressed.

Al-Kindi extended words of thanks and praise to all attendees and hailed the continuous cooperation between TRA and ISOC, wishing success to the workshop and the future meetings.

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