Bosra's penetration ITC for development launched
Syria, Local, 4/1/2004

In the presence of Syria's First Lady, Asmaa al-Assad, a celebration was held on March 31st in Bosra, marking the launching of the Rural areas net ( Reef Net) center. The event was organized by the Ministry of Information and Technology in collaboration with the UN Development Program UNDP.

The ceremony held for that purpose was attended by the ministers of expatriates, education, culture, social affairs and Labor and tourism, several representatives of UN organizations and foreign ambassadors accredited in Damascus.

al-Bosra's center was inaugurated simultaneously with two other centers in al-Zabadani of Damascus countryside and Drekish of Tartous countryside. Plans are set to open other centers in Beit Yashout ( Lattakia ) and in Jabal al-Hoss area. A film was shown on the "Reef Net " project which aims above many other things at creating web sites that provide information of concern to the Syrian society and linked to their daily activities, reactivate economic transactions and help to create more job opportunities.

A presentation was made on the project's portal community on the Internet by Engineer Nour al- Munajid in which the presenter said that this part of the project aims at defining and improving available components so as to cope with development's requirements and fill the gap of information shortage in the rural areas. She explained that the project is composed of two components. The first includes general information pertinent to local social events while the second part provides special information needed for every and each local community, individually.

In a speech on this occasion, UNDP resident representative in Damascus Ali al-Za'tari said Syria has been and will continue to be a bridge linking cultures and civilizations, where information were intermingled and furnished for constructive efforts culminated in the inauguration of the penetration center in Bosra.

He said that the launching of the center is, but a clear evidence on the care accorded by the Syrian government to this issue and woman's active participation to this effect. He commended the efforts made by national and international experts in their efforts to integrate technology into the developmental processes.

He added that since 1992, the UN has advocated the need to use technology in development through the organization's numerous activities in several areas of the world. The aim, he said, is to attain the objectives of the second Millennium into strengthening the role of women at her work and home, alike, availing work opportunities and opening up to other cultures.

He said that the UN sees that Syria embarking on information technology is an accelerated process and that the Syrian government has prioritized projects linked to ICT, noting an example the project conducted jointly in collaboration between the UNDP and the Ministry of Higher Education to network university teachers altogether. He explained that the project started in the mid of 2002 and that work is underway on another component of the project through workshops, noting that what has been so far achieved would not be materialized without the efforts of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology.

In his speech on this occasion, the minister of communications and Technology said the initiative of Reef Net project was proposed by the ministry in the course of the strategy of communication and technology strategy for Social and economic development in Syria. He said that this initiative included two work programs and five national initiatives. Among these initiatives are the national initiative for the information society provides for encouraging penetration centers and local portal community, and encouraging Arab cultural, media, social contents on the Internet.

The minister continued that later initiatives to this effect was cherished by the Ministry of culture which joined the project and allotted necessary sites for penetration centers in some of its rural areas cultural centers, in Internet Cafes.

He also said that the general establishment for telecommunications provided special computers to the designated centers whose number tolls 20 to be all inaugurated within the few coming months. He added that similar positive response was shown by the ministry of social affairs and labor which will provide several ICT4DEV centers in its Rural areas development centers distributed all over the country.

The minister said that the constructive and fruitful co-operation between the ministry of communications and technology and its affiliated establishments, on the one hand and other ministries concerned, on the other and the UNDP will avail the establishment of some 40 centers in the Syrian rural areas during 2004.

Previous Stories:
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