Press Release
Palestinian Minister of
Trade: “We are looking for business partners, not charity”
H.E. Maher Al-Masri, Palestinian Minister of Trade, assured the audience at a dinner reception held by the Palestinian Delegation to GITEX 2001, that the Palestinian IT private sector is looking for mutually beneficial business cooperation with Arab and other partners, not for charity aid. He added that the Palestinian IT sector is now ready for this kind of partnership, despite the current hardships faced by the Palestinian people.
He said that even after a year of intifada, the business sector is still producing, especially in the IT sector. “After the development of the telecommunications infrastructure, an essential foundation for the development of the IT sector, that has taken place in the last few years, we are looking forward to real investment and partnership with the Arab world, because we are confident that exciting business opportunities exist in Palestine, particularly given the independence of IT from borders and physical restrictions”.
He assured the audience of the full support of the Palestinian Authority (PA) for the IT sector, manifested in the creation of laws and regulations supporting the development of the sector, including a new law on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) to be approved. He said that “the PA puts IT as first priority since it is seen to be one of the sectors key to future Palestinian development”. The Minister noted that the Ministry of Trade had formed a committee to follow up the issue of IPR and the PA have made many efforts to improve the IT sector in various other areas, including education. He pointed out that the sector has experienced a high growth rate since the establishment of the PA in Palestine, particularly in recent years, with 25-30% annual growth from 1998.
The Dinner Reception at which the Minister spoke was attended by the Palestinian Consul in Dubai, Saleem Abu Sultan, and a number of guests from the Arab world and elsewhere.
Andersen (previously Arthur Andersen) was honoured with a gift at the dinner as the main partner of the Palestinian participation in GITEX 2001. The Islamic Development Bank was also honoured with a gift in appreciation of its support as main supporter, through the Al-Aqsa Fund for Palestine. The speakers expressed appreciation to DWTC and DIC for their support of the Palestinian Delegation to GITEX Dubai 2001.
The reception included a presentation by Mr. Omar Sahili, IT expert from Palestine on the IT sector and its possibilities for potential investors and business partners. Mr. Sahili discussed Palestine IT’s “People and Potential”, detailing what is offered in the areas of Human Resources, infrastructure, legal environment and financial services, and education.
For more information on GITEX exhibitors, and IT sector facts and
figures, and to arrange interviews, please contact:
Amanda
Scothern or Amjad Malki, Palestinian Delegation Press Team
Ph
in Dubai (10-19 Oct): +971 (0)50 585 9942, (Ph in Palestine: +970/2 2 2409105/7)
e-mail:
amanda@ellamtam.com,
malki@ellamtam.com
GITEX website: www.gitex.com
Contact for comment:
Dr.
Mashhour Abudaka (Executive Director,
PITA)
Ph:at
GITEX, Dubai: +971 50 585 9788 e-mail:
abudaka@pita-palestine.org
Dr.
Samir Abdullah (General Director,
Paltrade)
e-mail: sabdullah@paltrade.org
Omar Sahili
(PITA Advisor & IT Sector Manager, DAI Inc.)
Ph at GITEX, Dubai: +971 50 585 9798 e-mail:
Omar_Sahili@dai.com