Iraqi Government Officials and ICT Industry Leaders Agree on Roadmap to Upturn ICT in Education at Summit
Dubai, UAE, ICDL GCC Foundation, an activist in ICT skills, use and safety for-all, announced today that the inaugural Iraq Education and Technology Summit (IETS) which it partnered in the last two days was a great success. Organized by CWI Summits and supported by both Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MoHESR) and Ministry of Science and Technology, the Summit provided a suitable platform for high ranking government decision makers, lead by HE Ali Al Adeeb, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, to meet with international organizations from the private and public sectors. Participants shared their expertise and best practices to help integrate ICT in education with the aim to improve education in Iraq.
The Summit followed a unique agenda with expert speakers and panels as well as private one-to-one meetings between prospective organizations and high level government officials looking for suitable providers of solutions and services to help achieve the country's ambitious development plans.
On its part, ICDL, which has been active in spreading digital literacy in Iraq since 2007 through a partnership with UNESCO-Iraq Office, ESCWA (Economic & Social Commission for Western Asia), and the Iraqi Ministry of Education (MoE), showcased its own experiences and best practices in implementing nationwide digital skills initiatives that have been carried out over the past decade targeting the masses across the GCC member states.
As a side-line activity to the event, ICDL hosted a roundtable for the media in the presence of high-ranking officials from the Iraqi Ministry of Education, Ministry of Higher Education and UNESCO to showcase best practices from around the GCC region in promoting digital skills and cyber safety awareness programs in Iraq and trigger dialogue and questions between participants and journalists around it. In addition, ICDL hosted a lunch on the opening day of the Summit providing an ideal platform for all delegates to network with each other in an informal setting.
HE Ali Al Adeeb, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in his speech recognized that technology and education go hand in hand in today's world and stated: "this discussion will certainly help in advance the educational process in Iraq to keep pace with the most recent developments in education and modernity, specifically with the private sector. In addition, this conference will establish an approach for close corporation between the public and private sectors in Iraq that has never stopped progressing. Finally, we hope that this summit will be a gateway for accessing the latest developments in Iraqi ICT and education sectors."
Mr Jamil Ezzo, Director General of ICDL GCC spoke at the event and addressed the participants saying "Undoubtedly, modern economies do not only rely on reforms that call on increasing the adoption of ICT in the workplace and education, but also on building the national capacity and creating better job and investment opportunities". He also called on industry leader to support Iraq to fulfil its vision stay abreast of the technological advancements. He added, "From all accounts this Summit has been a tremendous success as it has enabled the right discussions to take place between decision makers from the Iraqi government and service providers. A clear path ahead has been identified with the acknowledgement that technology integration in education is a must and that a strong public/private sector partnership is critical to future success. We look forward to coming back together in 12 months' time to chart progress and move ahead."
© Press Release 2013
