GSMA AND the TELECOMMUNICATIONS REGULATORY AUORITY OF the UNITED ARAB EMIRATES TO ESTABLISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS POLICY CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE

Initiative Will Offer Governments Comprehensive Understanding of International Best Practices and Emerging Regulation Models

Dubai: The GSMA and the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) today announced a ground-breaking partnership to establish a Centre of Excellence for Mobile Telecommunications Policy and Regulation in the Middle East and North Africa. The Centre of Excellence will provide regulators and policymakers from across the region with practical tools and best practices with the goal of creating an environment that encourages competition and investment in telecommunications in the UAE and across the Middle East.

Mobile is one of the most dynamic sectors in technology and regulatory authorities face a growing skills and knowledge gap as they work to keep pace with new developments in the industry, said Anne Bouverot, Director General, GSMA. Together, we will leverage insights and knowledge of the market to develop a structured and scalable capacity building programme that will help inform regulatory decision making. We're excited to be collaborating with the TRA to launch this Centre of Excellence here in Dubai.

In his turn, H.E. Mohamad Al Ghanim, Director General of the TRA said, We are also very proud to be the first Centre of Excellence in the region to meet the emerging demands of ICT sector. In order to streamline efficient and effective regulation of the ICT sector in this ever-changing environment, we have collaborated with the GSMA to establish a capacity building centre of excellence that will facilitate the development of skills and will enhance the knowledge base of industry and regulatory professionals.

The Centre of Excellence will offer regulators and policymakers a comprehensive understanding of contemporary regulation theory and emerging regulatory practice models, as well as business and technology trends relevant to the mobile communications sector in the region. The Centre's curriculum will initially comprise 10 courses on fundamental policy topics including spectrum management, mobile sector taxation, competition, mobile privacy and socio-economic development, among others.

In later stages of development, the programme will offer additional modules to address emerging issues or specific content requirements, such as courses on the Internet of Things, mobile identity, mCommerce and mGovernment. In the future, the partnership could be extended to the creation of a one-year Masters course with an UAE academic institution, which would be accredited by UAE academic authorities.

The Centre of Excellence will be located at the UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority's state-of-the-art facilities in Dubai and courses will be delivered either on-site or via online facilities. The GSMA and TRA expect to begin offering courses in the first quarter of 2015.

-ENDS-

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide. Spanning more than 220 countries, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world's mobile operators with 250 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and Internet companies, as well as organisations in industry sectors such as financial services, healthcare, media, transport and utilities. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Expo.

For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at www.gsma.com. Follow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA.

Media Contacts:

For the GSMA:

Sara Bosco

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Charlie Meredith-Hardy

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CMeredith-Hardy@webershandwick.com

GSMA Press Office

pressoffice@gsma.com

LINK:	http://www.gsma.com/newsroom/gsma-telecoms-regulatory-authority-uae/...
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