Riyadh, December 9, 2020, SPA -- One of the ICT sector’s most significant events for spectrum policy kicked off yesterday with words from Eng. Abdullah bin Amer Al-Swaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Houlin Zhao, Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU); Dr. Mohammed bin Saud Al-Tamimi, Governor of the Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC); and Mario Maniewicz, Director of Radiocommunications Bureau, ITU. The webinar was opened by Minister Eng. Al-Swaha, who highlighted the need for a global standard in spectrum management, "It is so critical for us to come together as the greatest thinkers and doers in the world in the spectrum arena. Digital infrastructure was the backbone for our resilient economies to succeed in a post-COVID world and spectrum is the lifeline." Secretary General Zhao thanked CITC for their support in facilitating such an important and timely event, "We at ITU recognize CITC as one of the most developed regulators in the world and Saudi Arabia as one of the largest ICT markets in the Middle East." He went on to say, “I call on all ITU members, governments and the private sector, to join us and make the most of this historic moment as the deployment of technologies like 5G promise to improve people’s lives on a scale never seen before.” CITC Governor Dr. Al-Tamimi gave his thoughts on the roadmap to a global, digital society, “The way to unlock our digital future is to make spectrum data, AI, and blockchain databases accessible to spectrum users through good governance." To achieve this, he added, “Based on our National Frequency Spectrum Strategy 2025, CITC will release over 10 GHz of spectrum for commercial and innovative use over the next five years." Dozens of industry experts from over 20 countries will give their thoughts on the latest spectrum innovation and best practice for policy makers. --SPA 15:14 LOCAL TIME 12:14 GMT 0007 www.spa.gov.sa/w1464922