Page 52 - SAMENA Trends - June-August 2021

REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

REGIONAL NEWS

Abu Dhabi Ranks Among Top 3 Fastest 5G Capitals Worldwide

United Arab Emirates (UAE) capital Abu Dhabi ranks best in world class talent and global tinue to harness all our resources to
among the fastest capitals globally in the 5G net- conglomerates from across sectors facilitate the business sector as well
work index with the fastest median download speeds showcasing the significance of an as individual customers in the UAE
(421.26Mbps) in the first half of 2021, according to advanced state-of-the-art telecom to benefit from 5G technology and
the latest data from Ookla®, a global leader in fixed infrastructure contributing to UAE’s contribute towards economic growth
broadband and mobile network testing applications, economic growth and leadership on and prosperity.” Another noteworthy
data and analysis. This recent achievement is yet an- a global platform.” Eng. Hatem Dow- achievement recorded in the UAE was
other feather in the UAE’s cap as not only Abu Dhabi idar, CEO, Etisalat Group, said: “This both Abu Dhabi (421.26Mbps) and
has emerged among the top three fastest 5G capitals remarkable achievement for the UAE Dubai (417.07 Mbps) median down-
in the world, but is also home to the fastest mobile reflects the ongoing efforts of Etisalat load speeds featuring in the special
network on earth on an overall basis. Majed Sultan Al and its investments to build one of the ‘Global 5G Benchmark Report’ that
Mesmar, Director General of the Telecommunications most advanced 5G networks in the focused on major cities globally mea-
and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), region and the world. The deployment suring 5G performance and avail-
said: “This global achievement is a testimony to UAE of 5G across industries and sectors ability in the first half of 2021. This
leadership’s vision and commitment in bringing the leads the way to digital transforma- ranking is attributed to the long-term
country to the forefront taking a lead in the ICT sec- tion in UAE, pushing it to the forefront planning and investment of both op-
tor while being the most advanced country in digital with a network that is future ready for erators in the rapid deployment of 5G
innovation. 5G is a huge leap forward and a powerful the next generation of mobile tech- sites and jointly working with regula-
catalyst for digital transformation bringing new op- nologies. “The continuous support tory authorities to assign the needed
portunities to various industries and the country. The and wise leadership of the UAE has spectrum to cater for the demand of
availability and access to the super-fast speeds on played a critical role throughout Eti- high capacity in cities. An end-to-end
5G is a huge accomplishment that reflects the con- salat's journey and the development participation and preparation from
tinuous efforts of both operators and their innovative of the telecom sector, setting a great both operators supported the ear-
approach during today’s extraordinary times ,Hence, motivation for us to continue deploy- ly adoption of new technologies and
I would like to thank the service providers in the UAE ing the latest innovative technologies enabled swifter customer experience
(Etisalat and Du) for their efforts in deploying 5G and enriching the digital experience of enhancements as well as meeting re-
networks, which contributed to this achievement.” customers while transforming com- quirements of international standards
“With the UAE leading as the fastest fixed network munities.” Fahad Al Hassawi, CEO of from the International Telecommu-
in MEA and fastest mobile network globally, this fur- Emirates Integrated Telecommunica- nication Union (ITU)/ 3rd Generation
ther highlights the country’s readiness to attract the tions Company (EITC), said: “As we Partnership Project (3GPP). With
continue our relentless efforts to ex- vertical and horizontal city expan-
pand the 5G network across the UAE, sion in the UAE, high mobile indoor
we are proud to celebrate this mile- penetration enhancement enabled
stone achievement made possible the deployment of in-building solu-
with the support of all stakeholders. tions and small cells for better mobile
du aims to upgrade the telecommuni- availability anytime, everywhere. The
cations sector and develop digital in- 5G network also made it possible to
frastructure in line with the directives experience and access data heavy
of UAE leadership to consolidate the applications in the country. This
position of the UAE as a global center transformed the telecom network to
for technology, innovation and busi- a state-of-the-art infrastructure, sup-
ness. “5G technology, and its enor- porting emerging technologies such
mous potential, is key to pioneering as IoT, cloud, big data, AI, robotics and
the digital economy and keeping pace AR/VR supporting transformation in a
with the requirements of smart trans- digitally disrupted and fully connect-
formation, as it supports a variety ed world. Both operators Etisalat and
of solutions, applications and other du were continuously involved in fo-
technologies that enable better ser- cused studies on network readiness
vices to residents and business com- and handsets to provide a seamless
munities. Our mission at du is to con- customer experience.

52 JUN-AUG 2021