At the Global Ultra-Broadband Forum (UBBF) 2023, organized by Huawei with the support of the UN Broadband Commission, global carriers, partners, standards organizations, regulators, and vertical industry leaders gathered to discuss how to build productivity-centric ultra-broadband target networks in the era of intelligent connectivity of everything. The discussions also covered ways to comprehensively improve UBB network performance to fully unleash the network potential.
Under the theme “Connecting Intelligence for New Growth,” the forum brought together experts and insiders to share industry technology insights, get hands-on experience with innovations, and engage in in-depth talks with industry stakeholders aimed at building UBB target networks to accelerate the transition to an intelligent world. The forum included innovative visions shared by regional leaders such as Mr. Bocar BA, CEO & Board Member of SAMENA Telecommunications Council, HE Eng. Mohamed Ben Amor, Director General, AICTO, and other industry organizations and regional leaders.
The deeper application of digital technologies in the real economy is driving massive productivity gains, rapidly becoming a core engine of growth for the digital economy. Further, digital technologies, such as cloud, AI, 5G, and UBB, are constantly evolving and are now being seen in enterprises and homes through new digital services. This has made digital transformation faster for enterprises and brings better intelligent entertainment, life, and work to the masses. The adoption of these new services is also compounding advances in digital productivity. Recently, the demand for immersive and intelligent services has risen dramatically due to the increase in the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into our daily lives. As a result, UBB networks face new challenges and opportunities.
On the sidelines of UBBF, a panel discussion under the theme “10 Giga Digital Infrastructure for Accelerating a Robust & Sustainable Digital Economy”, discussed policies and actions required to accelerate ultra-broadband, i.e., 10-Gigabit network development across the Middle East & Central Asia. The panel addressed the policy requirements, the stakeholders needed to be involved, ways to accelerate open collaboration, and joint efforts in the ultra-broadband.
Featuring Cevat Yerli, CEO, TMRW Foundation; Alex Lee, Managing Director UAE, China Mobile International; Mohammed Bin Ali, Acting Director, Telecommunications Directorate, Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunication, Bahrain; Lin Yanqing, Principal Consultant, Industry Policy Public & Government Affairs, Huawei Technologies, the panel also highlighted the benefits of 10-gigabit digital infrastructure for the region’s digital economy and sustainable development goals (SDGs).
A 10Gbps network is a solid foundation for a 10-Gigabit city, while high-quality 10Gbps enterprise campus networks can efficiently connect enterprise offices, production units, and business branches. By using Wi-Fi 7 technologies to provide 10GE wireless access to APs and 10GE wired access to rooms, enterprises can truly unleash their productivity.
Some countries in the Middle East are leading in the Gigabit era and are paving the way in the 10 Giga era. To accelerate this progress, governments will play an essential role in driving this process by releasing telecom infrastructure guidelines and industrial standards for wiring, fibre to the premises, fibre to the telecom infrastructure, and fibre to the rooms. They should also foster better cooperation among telecom, infrastructure providers, developers, and municipalities.
At the forum, the 10 Gbps City Initiative was jointly released by the UAE Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), Omdia, etisalat by e&, MTN South Africa, Huawei, and others. This initiative calls for the construction of fully connected 10 Gbps cities to provide ubiquitous network experience, accelerate the digital-intelligent transformation of industries, and boost digital productivity. Riyadh in Saudi Arabia is among the global cities that have released their 2030-oriented digital economy strategies and are actively exploring ways to implement 10 Gbps City and 10 Gbps Society to unleash the new momentum of the digital economy.
An intelligent world built on enhanced connectivity will require extensive digital infrastructure. Providing efficient connectivity between offices, production units, and business branches is the foundation of a 10-gigabit city. In addition to delivering 10GE wireless access to access points, Wi-Fi 7 also provides 10GE wired access to rooms. “Huawei believes that ultra-broadband networks are the most essential infrastructure for communities and businesses in the intelligent era. The company aims to create an impact beyond just simple Internet; it seeks to forge an intelligent world built on enhanced connectivity. This requires extensive availability of the digital infrastructure—whether it’s fibre or cloud – as well as expansive digital space for supporting the billions of new connections,” the company said.
