Today and tomorrow, 2-3 December, Cairo will host the first Swedish-Egyptian ICT Forum, organised by Business Sweden and the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the Embassy of Sweden in Cairo and the Egyptian Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT).
The event will take place at the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), Smart Village, Giza. Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Atef Helmy, the Swedish Government’s Senior Adviser for Trade Jonas Hafström, and Sweden’s Ambassador to Cairo Charlotta Sparre are heading the event.
The forum brings together Egyptian decision makers, key stakeholders and representatives of 12 Swedish ICT companies interested in enhancing their business in Egypt. Individual business meetings are scheduled for Wednesday 3 December.
Activities should focus on discussing partnership and develop further cooperation and concrete business opportunities between both countries. Panel discussions will cover issues related to public private partnerships, broadband and regulatory affairs, Smart cities and applications, and job creation in the field of technology.
The event is organised in light of the recent Egyptian announcement of the 2020 strategy to make Egypt a regional `internet hub. The strategy will focus on integrating ICT across all sectors to serve the Egyptian development priorities including preserving natural resources and the environment.
Sweden is among the highest ranked countries in the world in terms of connectivity, digital economy and e-governance and has a strong tradition in innovation particularly in the ICT industry. The Forum is as a start for future ICT focused initiatives where Sweden is positioned as a strategic partner in the development of ICT in Egypt.
Watani International
2 December 2014