Cairo

His Excellency Ambassador Mohamed Khair Abdel Qader, Secretary General of the Arab Federation for Digital Economy, stressed the importance of enhancing Arab digital sovereignty in light of the major technological transformations witnessed by Arab and Islamic countries. This came during his speech at the “Modern Trends in Change Management and Institutional Leadership” conference, which was held in Cairo in the presence of a group of experts and specialists.

Ambassador Abdel Qader pointed out the need to review the mechanisms for producing Arabic digital content to be able to compete globally, while preserving Arab and Islamic values, customs and traditions. He explained that these mechanisms should aim to limit the spread of immoral and uncultural content on international platforms, stressing that the Arab world needs authentic content that reflects its identity and takes into account its specificities.

He added: “We are not calling for distancing ourselves from global technological applications or dispensing with them, but rather we are calling for coexistence with them in a smart way. The world has become a small village, and we are an integral part of it. Therefore, we need to establish rules, laws and ethics that govern the use of artificial intelligence and Internet of Things applications in the Arab region.”

The Secretary-General touched on the unprecedented technological boom the world is witnessing, noting that the digital revolution, digital transformation and artificial intelligence technologies are redefining all components of the business world and scientific, commercial and industrial activities. He stressed that the increasing use of technology in our daily lives must be invested in improving the performance of institutions and driving economic growth.

Mohammed Khair pointed out that digital transformation should be designed to improve the quality of life and enable easy access to services, in a way that supports economic growth in Arab countries. However, he warned that technological developments sometimes exceed Arab capabilities to process and absorb, which requires focusing on developing joint Arab policies and strategies to address digital challenges in the region.

It is noteworthy that the conference discussed many topics related to change management and leadership of institutions in light of rapid technological developments, with the participation of an elite group of experts, academics and specialists in the field of technology and digital economy.