Palestine Technology Week opens in Gaza

The Palestinian Information Technology Association of companies (PITA) and Palestinian Telecommunication Group (Paltel) have launched the 11th Palestine Technology Week, “Expotech”, 2014 in coordination with the Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology and the Ministry of National Economy.

The exhibition’s theme this year is “smart cities” and it is being held in Ramallah and Gaza from November 9th to November 12th. A number of elite national and international organisations, as well as various international companies and experts, have been in attendance.

Expotech is promoted by PITA, which seeks to establish geographic unity between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. It also promotes effective participation and allows technology companies to exhibit their special talents and skills.

Palestine Technology Week included a technology conference in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; it addressed a number of important issues, including smart cities. It focused on the role of technology in reconstructing Gaza and rapid advancement in order to get rid of the traces and effects of the bloodshed and destruction left behind by the Israeli occupation.

The exhibition’s agenda also included a number of papers written by local, regional and international experts on the topic of smart cities and the solutions offered by ICT for their development. The papers also touched on matters related to this, such as municipality management and services.

Some of the most prominent issues for which the exhibition seeks solutions are the supply of water, electricity, sewage, roads, government service management and the management of financial transactions related to these services. In addition to this, the exhibition held a number of discussions between businesses and service providers related to information technology.

Expotech provided an opportunity to listen to the needs of the Palestinian market in terms of qualitative and quantitative requirements through the participation of beneficiaries and the financers of government and municipal projects. Educational sessions were also held, attended by foreign and international experts working in the field of IT and communications including programmers, engineers and public relations.