More than 500 international delegates from across the globe will converge in Beirut to take part in Arabcom 2009, one of the biggest telecom summits in the Arab World.

Held under the patronage of the Lebanese Telecom Minister Jebrane Bassile, the Arabcom Telecom summit will kick off on May 28 at Habtoor Grand Hotel Convention Center & Spa, Beirut.

Under the theme, 'Broad band and beyond - Strategic partnership for growth in the region,' Arabcom aims to provide a comprehensive review of the region’s telecommunications industry as well as help in laying out a strategic roadmap for its future development, said Arabcom Group, the organisers.
 
'The conference comes at a time when the telecom industry is poised for a 'healthy rebound' thanks to growing use of broadband and wireless, said Katia Tayar, founder and president of Arabcom.

It's boom time for the telecom sector in the Arab world, Tayar said, especially with the ICT and mobile penetration rates at an all-time high.

With a 300 million population in 22 countries, the Arab World is witnessing strong growth in telecom subscriber numbers and also rising competition.

'The ICT penetration has reached 5 per cent in many cases and 150 per cent in some others, which makes the Telecom and ICT a huge promising growing field,' Tayar pointed out.

'Lebanon Mobile Telecom penetration has reached 28 per cent of the population with just two operators,' she added.

The Arab World is under pressure to deliver quality telecom and ICT services especially with the introduction of new licences and regulations.

With the launch of the Telecom Regulatory Authority (TRA) in Lebanon in 2007 the sector started witnessing a promising future. The TRA is set to privatise and liberalise the market and soon introduce new telecom services, as well as sell new licences in several fields.

Key issues

The most important annual telecom summit since 1998, Arabcom, will spotlight issues that are key to the development of the telecom sector and discuss the latest technologies, business models, network deployment and case studies.

The summit helps exhibitors to meet clients, partners and prospects face to face, shorten the sales process and generate more leads and reach the right decision makers. 'No other event can provide so many potential clients in one place,' she added.

The high-profile event will attract telecom ministers, regulators,  investors, operators industry leaders and professionals from across the globe. The Arab Telecom Ministers' annual conference will run parallel to the exhibition.

Developing sustainable solutions for telecommunications infrastructure in the Arab world, Telecommunications and corporate responsibility strategies, gaining a strong position in the global market and successful launch of operations both regionally and globally are the issues the conference will touch upon, Tayar noted.

The highlights of the Arabcom sessions are:

*Ministers of Telecom Panel : Keynote speeches
*Ministers / Operators – Investors Round tables
*Successful Case studies presented by world CEO speakers coming from China - Korea – Singapore - Australia
*S2- Regulators Panel : Promoting Investments
*S3- Broadband session : Building effective networks to address developing needs
*S4- Liberalization, Privatization, Investment session
*S5- Developing new services & Business Models session

Regional telecom giants such as Etisalat, Batelco, du, Zain, Qtel, Omantel, Orascom, Saudi Telecom (Jawwal), Mobily, Mobinil, Vodafone Egypt, Wataniya Telecom, Al Madar Telecom, Alfa, Asiacell,  Umniah, Maroc telecom and Syriatel will take part.

For further details, visit www.arabcom.com. The event is free for operators and government delegates. The timings are f