The Iraq Telecoms Conference Proves to be a Success in Gathering the Iraqi Telecommunications Industry with the Ministry of Communications

The 8th annual Iraq Telecoms Conference gathered over 150 senior telecoms industry experts with the Iraqi Ministry of Communications to discuss and debate the future of Iraq's Telecommunications industry. Held on the 7-9 October at the Sheraton Istanbul Atakoy, the two day strategic conference programme featured 30 internationally renowned speakers including keynote addresses from senior Iraqi Ministers. End Quote

(1888PressRelease) October 22, 2013 - The first Ministerial keynote address was the eagerly anticipated 'Telecommunications Connecting Iraq & Supporting Rapid Growth' Session. The session was opened by H.E. Dr Torhan Mudher Hassan Al Mufti, Minister of Communications, Iraqi Government, who announced that 4G technologies will now be Iraq's primary focus. This means that plans to develop 3G connectivity throughout the country are no longer a priority, with the Government choosing to take the ambitious step of investing in the much more advanced and expensive 4G technology. The Minister of Communications also highlighted major policies to encourage the growth of the private sector and addressed plans to privatise the Ministry of Communications, summarising the address by saying "Iraq is aiming to encourage an increased role for the private sector and lower the cost for the consumer".

The conference programme explored the telecommunication needs of Iraq's oil and gas industry and discussed the strategies being used by Iraq's operators, spectrum and to integrate Wimax, GSM and LTE. Special sessions reviewed the types of the international contracts required to optimize Iraq's telecommunications growth. Commenting on the growth and progress of the industry, the Iraqi Ministry of Communications' Mrs Elham al Safer, the Director General of Planning and Follow Up Directorate, stated "Major facilities damaged during the wars were replaced, substantial new investments have been undertaken by both the private and public sectors, and impressive growth has been achieved, especially in mobile services." She concluded by saying that "Removing regulatory impediments will be the first line of action to accelerate and extend the reach of services".

The Iraq Telecoms 2013 closed with a ministerial panel session discussing the future of the Iraqi telecommunications industry, providing delegates with a summary of the two day event and the opportunity to discuss key issues and new policies. The session was concluded by Dr Torhan Mudher Hassan Al Mufti who stated "CWC's Iraq Telecoms conference is of huge importance to the Iraqi telecommunications sector for bringing together all the major players in the industry" he continued by saying "every year CWC delivers an even better and very high quality conference."

The CWC Groups Vice President, Nawar Abdulhadi concluded the conference by stating "This year we managed to unite suppliers with buyers and matched industry challenges with solutions, bringing together the operators to explore how to best develop, optimize and monetize their assets alongside their service providers in Iraq".

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