The Union of Arab Chambers participated in the activities of the Fourth Arab Digital Content Forum, which was held between 5 and 7 October, organized by the Ministry of Transport and Communications in the State of Qatar, and under the auspices of the League of Arab States in cooperation with the Communications Regulatory Authority of the State of Qatar, and the organization of the Arab Communication and Information Technologies (AICTO), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), the Arab Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO), and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), where the conference was attended by more than 400 people.
It was emphasized during the conference by the speakers that the role of language goes beyond being a means of communication, as it represents the main component of the identity, which is the container that contains the nation’s culture and the carrier of its values, characteristics, history and traditions. The protection of the Arabic language is crystallized in exploring the mechanisms that help to remedy the lack of Arabic content on the network. Moreover, the Arabic content has become not only related to luxury or based on choice, but has become one of the imperative matters that must be focused on in order to enhance the Arabic language and for the Arabic language to be the main window for civilization and communication.
Speakers at the conference stressed that supporting digital Arabic content during crises is a necessity dictated by the nature of the challenges we live in today, and it is a task entrusted to all: institutions and individuals, in order to preserve Arab heritage and identity, and to communicate the correct information in a smooth language that everyone understands in a world that today depends on the word and digital knowledge, noting that the trend during the Corona crisis towards e-learning platforms, digital transformation and the increase in providing services through the Internet contributed to a significant increase in Arabic digital content, especially on service sites and e-sales sites.
In addition, the forum, over its three days, included five main discussion sessions focusing on the reality of Arabic digital content, the importance of digital Arabic content in health and during crises, future prospects for distance education in the Arab region, the role of Arabic digital content in smart cities, and the Arabic digital content, youth innovation and entrepreneurship, and the impact of artificial intelligence in promoting Arabic content.
It should be noted that the convening of the forum came within the framework of implementing the decision of the 18th session of the Council of Arab Communications and Information Ministers, which adopted a decision to organize the Arab Digital Content Forum annually, and also to implement the work plan of the Arab Regional Office of the International Telecommunication Union for the year 2015.
