The Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) signed contracts for at least eleven projects for its TASMU Smart Qatar Program during QITCOM 2019, the largest Information and Communication Technology showcase and event in Qatar.
The TASMU Central Platform contract was awarded to a Consortium where Ooredoo is the main partner. The contract was signed by Shaikh Nasser Bin Hamad Bin Nasser Al Thani, Chief Business Officer at Ooredoo. Other partners of the consortium included Microsoft, as the global technology enabler; PWC as the consulting firm; TATA as system integrator; Malomatia as IT service provider; Dell, Cisco, Atos as technology infrastructure enablers and security partners; S Software as business process management; and PayCare as digital payment enabler.
The Central Platform will be the main foundation of the TASMU Smart Qatar Program, connecting all projects and sectors, to activate integrated smart solutions. As the backbone of the TASMU programme, the central platform will cater to all sector requirements and standards. It will empower alliances and data sharing to spur innovation, create a comprehensive data repository housing all the data collected from its attached projects, and build on existing digitisation progress and Qatar’s evolving national digital infrastructure.
The first and second wave of TASMU projects that will be implemented in 2020 includes: real-time crowd and transportation management, intelligent road signage, national food security analytics, digital shipping guide, virtual physician consultation services, mobile clinics, active living index, among others.
Tasmu Coders
The Tasmu Coders Hour of Code programme, an initiative of MOTC in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, was also launched on the sidelines of QITCOM 2019.
Tasmu Coders aim to encourage young people to engage in coding. The initiative includes Hour of Code, Codefest and Girls Can Innovate.
Codefest is a national competition designed to create a platform for young minds to tap into their ICT knowledge and skills. The goal of the competition is to foster and promote interest in digital technology among school children, in line with TASMU’s vision of a Smart Qatar.
The annual competition is to be the culminating event for the Hour of Code initiative, a series of events in different schools aimed at promoting coding as a key skill of the future.
Girls Can Innovate is aimed at stimulating innovation and creativity in girls, 15 to 22 years old, to produce digital solutions to problems facing their communities in specific areas. The competitions, held in September and October, were focused on seven categories: Fintech Applications, E-agriculture, E-health and Smart water management, Digital Services, Road Safety, and Rural Productivity. The winners of the September and October competitions competed for the QITCOM Girls Can Innovate prize by presenting their projects to a panel of judges at QITCOM.
The competition comes as part of the International Girls Day 2019 celebration, an initiative launched by the International Telecoms Union (ITU) to enable girls around the world to leverage their interest in ICT and pursue studies and careers in the STEM fields.
New LEDD Drive from LEDD Technologies
LEDD Technologies launched their new enterprise cloud backup solution, LEDD Drive also on the sidelines of QITCOM.
LEDD Drive allows data on any device to be securely backed-up on cloud and recovered from any device. This solution has built-in Artificial Intelligence (AI) that also allows users to easily organise and analyse their stored data. Media files can be streamed directly from the cloud, and an intelligent search engine with Optical Character Recognition (OCR) can search images for text.
LEDD Drive is the latest in the portfolio of cloud and enterprise solutions that LEDD Technologies is serving the Qatar market.
MOTC Awards Cybersecurity Accreditation to Protiviti Member Firm Qatar LLC
MOTC issued its first certificate of accreditation for service providers in Qatar providing information security advisory services on the sidelines of QITCOM 2019.
The Accreditation Program is part of the National Information Security Compliance Framework (NISCF) which aims to validate and assure security within ICT programmes, systems and services, and encourage alignment with good practice for protecting digital infrastructure and data.
The Accreditation Certificate was awarded to Protiviti Member Firm Qatar LLC, designed for service providers who deliver information security consultancy and implementation services to public and private Sector.
Better Connections
QITCOM 2019 also witnessed the launch of the sustainability and development phase of Better Connections, a programme which provides IT facilities to migrant workers. The program has established 1,676 ICT facilities equipped with more than 16,000 computers in migrant workers accommodations and has exceeded its target of 1,500 ICT facilities by over 10%.
As part of the expansion phase, MOTC signed two MOU with Qatar Foundation and Waseef Asset Management.
The second phase will run for three years, and technical support will be provided to IT facilities set up during the initial phases. In addition, 1,000 new pieces of digital content will be created and introduced through Hukoomi. This content will be compiled and translated in at least five most spoken languages of migrant workers in Qatar.
The programme will provide training for up to 50,000 workers, enabling them to transfer digital knowledge to their colleagues in an on-going learning process. Additionally, brand new smart phones will be offered to participants at affordable prices to enable them to make use of technology and be part of the ongoing digital evolution in Qatar and the world.
The Better Connections programme, is proudly supported by various partners including Vodafone, Microsoft, Reach Out To Asia (ROTA), Social and Economic Survey Research Institute (SESRI), and Alhaya Enviro, among others.
For more information about the recently-held QITCOM 2019, visit qitcom.qa.