Arab League Calls for Increasing Investments in Arab Communication Sector

Arab League Calls for Increasing Investments in Arab Communication Sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Arab League Calls for Increasing Investments in Arab Communication Sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Arab League Calls for Increasing Investments in Arab Communication Sector

Arab League Calls for Increasing Investments in Arab Communication Sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Arab League Calls for Increasing Investments in Arab Communication Sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Arab League called for pumping investments in the communications and information technology sector to develop infrastructure and raise the level of capabilities offered by communications networks.

The decision aims to enhance fifth-generation networks, bridge the digital gap between cities and remote areas in the Arab region, and complete digital transformation processes.

Director of the Communications and Information Technology Development Department at the Arab League Khaled Wali explained that technological development continues to impose its burdens on the communications and information technology sector in the Arab world.

He reiterated the importance of the communications and information technology sector as a significant driver of economic and social development, and a vital link between its various sectors, especially in light of the coronavirus epidemic.

Wali pointed out that information and communication technology is crucial to preserving public health and achieving social and economic stability globally, stressing the importance of digital transformation for all sectors.

The Director noted the importance of increasing citizens’ confidence in modern communication technologies, paying attention to information security in providing services and enacting laws and legislation protecting users from cybercrime.

Meanwhile, the Arab League congratulated Egypt for choosing the new administrative capital as an Arab digital capital for 2021. It also applauded Oman for choosing Muscat as the Arab digital capital for 2022.

It commended Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Egypt, which achieved progress on their international ranking for the global cybersecurity index.



Food Shortages Bring Hunger Pains to Displaced Families in Central Gaza

16 November 2024, Palestinian Territories, Khan Younis: Palestinians line up to receive a meal from the World Food Program and The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Khan Younis. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
16 November 2024, Palestinian Territories, Khan Younis: Palestinians line up to receive a meal from the World Food Program and The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Khan Younis. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
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Food Shortages Bring Hunger Pains to Displaced Families in Central Gaza

16 November 2024, Palestinian Territories, Khan Younis: Palestinians line up to receive a meal from the World Food Program and The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Khan Younis. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
16 November 2024, Palestinian Territories, Khan Younis: Palestinians line up to receive a meal from the World Food Program and The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Khan Younis. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa

A shortage in flour and the closure of a main bakery in central Gaza have exacerbated an already dire humanitarian situation, as Palestinian families struggle to obtain enough food.
A crowd of people waited dejectedly in the cold outside the shuttered Zadna Bakery in Deir al-Balah on Monday.
Among them was Umm Shadi, a displaced woman from Gaza City, who told The Associated Press that there was no bread left due to the lack of flour — a bag of which costs as much as 400 shekels ($107) in the market, she said, if any can be found.
“Who can buy a bag of flour for 400 shekels?” she asked.
Nora Muhanna, another woman displaced from Gaza City, said she was leaving empty-handed after waiting five or six hours for a bag of bread for her kids.
“From the beginning, there are no goods, and even if they are available, there is no money,” she said.
Almost all of Gaza's roughly 2.3 million people now rely on international aid for survival, and doctors and aid groups say malnutrition is rampant. Food security experts say famine may already be underway in hard-hit north Gaza. Aid groups accuse the Israeli military of hindering and even blocking shipments in Gaza.
Meanwhile, dozens lined up in Deir al-Balah to get their share of lentil soup and some bread at a makeshift charity kitchen.
Refat Abed, a displaced man from Gaza City, no longer knows how he can afford food.
“Where can I get money?” he asked. “Do I beg? If it were not for God and charity, my children and I would go hungry".