Telecommunications Regulatory Authority to display 12 innovative projects at GITEX 2016

UAE, September 3, 2016 - The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) is set to showcase a range of innovative information and communications technology (ICT) projects that aim to serve various life needs as part of its participation in GITEX 2016. The TRA aims to provide a complete view of ICT - a vital link for various sectors - and its role in social development.

At GITEX, which will be held from October 16 to 20, 2016, the TRA will display its most recent innovations – including 12 projects employing the most advanced technologies for various purposes, including human and social development, health, education, and security, among many others. These projects help improve people’s quality of life and enable them to experience happiness, satisfaction and comfort – all while hastening the nation’s smart transformation process.

H.E. Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori, TRA Director General, said: “GITEX week is a platform to display distinctive government initiatives which shape and add value to various services for society. It is an ideal venue to exchange experiences and provides valuable insights on recent practices in other sectors. GITEX presents an opportunity for development and a serious effort to help push our smart transformation initiative, promote a competitive spirit in innovation and excellence, and serve the society.”

H.E added: “As usual, the platform of the TRA is being held under the banner of smart government of the UAE and will include a large number of entities coming from the Federal government—showcasing the embodiment of the principle of a single government that provides services in a complementary manner to various audiences. Visitors to the podium will be able to view what other sectors provide in various areas of intelligent switching.”

Mohammad Al Kitbi, Acting Deputy Director General for Support Service Sector at the TRA, stated that they have completed preparations for participating at the region’s biggest ICT platform. The TRA’s presence in GITEX’s latest edition aims to spread the innovation culture in the IT sector, utilize all technological capabilities to improve people’s daily life, as well as communicate with all segments of society and motivate them to adopt a smart lifestyle, he explained.

The TRA’s booth at GITEX will present a smart engineering building model through a virtual reality device and will demonstrate ways to operate green buildings that run on clean energy, in a bid to reduce consumption of non-renewable energy sources and improve health by reducing pollution and carbon dioxide emissions.

The TRA will display the ‘Our Future’ project, which helps high school graduates to choose a suitable undergraduate course based on the country’s current demand for human resources and the students’ personal abilities. The TRA will also showcase IT gadgets for sports to help trainers and trainees improve their skills using sensors embedded in their clothing, which allow them to check the accuracy of players’ movements benchmarked against global sports personalities.

The virtual reality technology section at the TRA’s booth will also feature a game area for GITEX visitors to play with virtual reality capabilities and help them train on correct behaviours during disasters and crises. A simulation of earthquakes and fires allows a gamer to use all available methods to act on real circumstances, monitor behaviours and guide people on the correct and safe response. 

The TRA will also display the second phase of the ‘Taghtia’ initiative which aims to measure the quality of network coverage in developing areas of the country to address consumer complaints concerning weak signals and fulfill their expectations. It will also showcase a new initiative which classifies the quality of ICT services in the country’s most visited tourist attractions through a set of standards that evaluate the services in tourism-related venues such as hotels and shopping malls, in addition to ‘Erteqa’, another index which classifies operators’ service centers according to specific standards and evaluates the provided services. All of these initiatives aim to increase customer’s happiness and satisfaction through integrated services.

The TRA will also present the Drones for Good Award and the UAE Artificial Intelligence and Robotics for Good Award, which aims to encourage innovation through an open competition for anyone who could create innovative services to improve people’s quality of life using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and robots. The award gives AED 1 million for the winner in each competition for the national category and USD 1 million for international winner.  The TRA is currently accepting entries from participants interested in the competitions. 

The TRA will feature augmented reality techniques such as reading a book in a projector and browsing through the book’s pages without lifting or moving them physically through an ‘Optic Center’ which if for Khalifa University. As well as, The Mohammed Bin Rashid Smart Learning Program, Future Schools Lab Project and the Future Jobs Program, a software programme which simulates the reality of a desired job, allowing a student to experience working, but in virtual reality, will also be exhibited. The latter programme aims to help a student understand the real nature of work and the efforts involved before embarking on a degree, as well as guide the student accordingly on the appropriate field following an evaluation.

The TRA is participating under the smart government umbrella with various government entities. Participants will be able to exchange experiences and meet with TRA authorities as well as connect to the TRA’s IT services. 

GITEX Technology Week is the largest regional IT exhibition held in Dubai every year and the most widely recognized market for ICT, receiving more than 120,000 visitors from around the world.