Muscat: The International Semiconductor Executive Summit kicked off here on Tuesday. The event is hosted by the Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology.
The two-day event witnesses the participation of experts, specialists and CEOs of companies operating in this field from different countries of the world.
The summit covers a spectrum of topics, including investment opportunities in information and communication technology (ICT) in Oman and challenges of manufacturing semiconductors in the Middle East and North Africa.
During the event, meetings are held between participants, government and private institutions and leading companies in the fields of information technology, communications, and semiconductors.
The opening ceremony was held under the auspices of Dr Mahad Said BaOwain, Minister of Labour.
Dr Ali Amer al Shidhani, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology for Communications and Information Technology, said that the Sultanate of Oman's hosting of this summit confirms its determination to achieve digital transformation and build a knowledge-based economy to achieve the goals of Oman Vision 2040.
He added that the government has adopted the National Programme for Digital Economy, which aims to digitize the service and production sectors with advanced technologies, enhance the added economic value of the communications and information technology sector and increase the contribution of the digital economy to the gross domestic product (GDP) to about 10% by 2040.
Al Shidhani indicated that the programme is based on digital transformation and accelerating smart government, enhancing the digital society, encouraging technical innovation and digitizing businesses with emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT).
Al Shidhani underscored Oman’s interest in the semiconductor industry by attracting international companies specialized in this industry and training and qualifying national competencies. As many as 1.1 trillion semiconductor chips were sold globally in 2021 and the economic return for this sector is estimated between USD 500 to 600 billion annually.
On his turn, Dr Hisham Hadara, Chairman of Si-Ware systems (SWS) in Egypt, said that the Sultanate of Oman is distinguished by several factors in the field of semiconductors, such as its strategic location, infrastructure and an attractive investment and work milieu.
Further, Fahd Sultan al Abri, Director General of Sector Stimulation and Future Skills at the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, gave a presentation that reviewed digital investment opportunities in Oman. Those opportunities include data centers, cloud services, multimedia, content creation, information and communication technology services, and cybersecurity, in addition to the space sector and the field of assembly and distribution of semiconductors. He also touched on opportunities in experimenting and developing 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies.
Al Abri added that the Sultanate of Oman ranked 44th in the network readiness index out of 134 countries and 50th in the United Nations E-Government Development Index out of 193 countries. The number of fixed broadband subscribers per 100 households reached 72%. Oman also ranked 21st on the UN’s Global Cybersecurity Index out of 175 countries.
The summit includes working papers, visual presentations and discussion sessions on the importance of the environmental design system for the global semiconductor supply chain. The summit also touches on the challenges of semiconductor manufacturing and the role of semiconductors in leading the future global economy.
Moreover, a discussion panel was held on Wednesday with the participation of leaders of organizations and companies in the semiconductor field.
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