10 nominees announced for AIF’s Innovation Prize for Africa 2016

African ingenuity this year showcases breakthroughs in malaria and other public health burdens, smart solutions for farmers and dynamic power initiatives …

GABORONE, Botswana, May 9, 2016/ -- The African Innovation Foundation (AIF) (www.AfricanInnovation.org) today announced the top 10 nominees for its landmark programme, the Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA). Now celebrating its 5th year under the theme “Made in Africa”, IPA is the premier innovation initiative in the African continent, offering a grand share prize of US$150 000 and incentives to spur growth and prosperity in Africa through home-grown solutions. “In the past five years, I’ve seen innovation grow from a mere buzzword to a sturdy path for African growth in multi-disciplinary industries across the continent. As Africans, we have the talent, potential and clout to solve our own problems with ingenuity too, and IPA is testimony of this,” said Pauline Mujawamariya Koelbl, IPA Director at the helm of this initiative since its launch in 2011. The IPA has seen tremendous growth in applications and increasing interest from both innovators and innovation enablers over the years. To date, IPA has attracted more than 6 000 innovators from 50 African countries, making it a truly Pan African initiative. IPA 2016 attracted a record 3 600 plus innovators and received 985 successful submissions from 46 African countries. African ingenuity this year showcases new breakthroughs in malaria and other public health burdens, smart solutions for farmers and dynamic energy initiatives. AIF will host the IPA 2016: Made in Africa awards ceremony and its first ever Innovation Ecosystems Connector on 22 and 23 June 2016 in Gaborone, Botswana. This premier innovation event has been endorsed by H.E. Lieutenant General Seretse Khama Ian Khama, the President of Botswana, who will preside at the Awards Ceremony. Collaborating partners include the Ministry of Infrastructure, Science and Technology (MIST), and the Botswana Innovation Hub (BIH). Visit our event website to learn more about planned activities and partnership opportunities http://event.innovationprizeforafrica.org/ Listed below are the top 10 IPA 2016 nominees. Prior to the final announcement at a special gala ceremony on 23 June 2016 at the Gaborone International Conference Centre (GICC), the expert panel of IPA judges (see http://innovationprizeforafrica.org/ipa-jurors/) will once again deliberate through live pitching sessions and one-on-ones with each nominee to select the top three winners. For fuller details of the 10 nominees, their innovations and related images, please see: http://innovationprizeforafrica.org/2016-finalists/ Tackling malaria and other public health burdens Dr. Eddy Agbo, Nigeria: Urine Test for Malaria (UMT) Urine Test for Malaria (UMT) is a rapid non-blood diagnostic medical device that can diagnose malaria in less than 25 minutes. Africa has the highest number of malaria cases worldwide; more often than not, when fever is detected, anti-malaria medication is administered. However, the inability to quickly diagnose and commence malaria treatment can lead to various complications including kidney failure, build-up of lung fluid, aplastic anaemia and even death. UMT uses a dip-stick with accurate results in just 25 minutes. The technology detects malaria parasite proteins in the patient’s urine with fever due to malaria. The UMT is simple and affordable, and a potential game changer in managing malaria across Africa. Valentin Agon, Benin: Api-Palu Api-Palu is an anti-malaria drug treatment developed out of natural plant extract. It is significantly cheaper than available anti-malarial drugs, and has great inhibitory effects on 3D7 strains of plasmodium falciparum the causative agent of malaria. Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 88% of malaria cases and 90% of malaria deaths reported globally (WHO: 2015) with some African governments spending up to 40% of their public health budgets on malaria treatment. Api-Palu manifests as a fast rate of malaria parasite clearance from the blood following short term treatment, with relatively lower doses. It is available in tablets, capsules or syrup. The drug has been approved in Benin, Burkina Faso, Tchad, and Central Africa Republic because of its therapeutic and non-toxic effects. Dr. Imogen Wright, South Africa: Exatype Exatype is a software solution that enables healthcare workers to determine HIV positive patients’ responsiveness to ARV drug treatment. According to WHO, 71% of people living with HIV/AIDS reside in Africa. Until now, governments’ response has been to ensure access to treatment for all. However, a growing number of people on ARVs are resistant to drug regimens, leading to failure of the therapy, exacerbating the continent’s HIV/AIDS burden. Exatype processes the highly complex data produced by advanced “next-generation” DNA sequencing of the HIV DNA in a patient’s blood. Through a simple report, it detects drugs that are resistant to the patient, then highlights the need to avoid these to ensure successful treatment. Exatype has the potential to contribute towards effectively managing HIV/AIDS in Africa, and also holds promise in helping detect drug resistance for other disease burdens such as Tuberculosis (TB) and malaria. Dr. Kit Vaughan, South Africa: Aceso Aceso is an imaging technology, capable of performing full-field digital mammography and automated breast ultrasound at the same time, dramatically improving breast cancer detection. Annually, there are more than half a million cancer deaths in Africa and these numbers are expected to double in the next three decades. If diagnosed early enough, the cancer can be treated successfully. However, because 40% of women have dense tissue, their cancers cannot be seen on X-ray. Furthermore, a false negative finding can have devastating consequences. Aceso is a single device that can acquire dual-modality images – full-field digital mammography and automated breast ultrasound - at the same time. This world first system is protected by international patents and has been successfully tested in two separate clinical trials with 120 women. Design architecture and learning platforms Dr. Youssef Rashed, Egypt: The Plate Package (PLPAK) The Plate Package (PLPAK) is a robust software solution that assesses the architecture of building plans or technical drawings, determining structural integrity of the end design. PLPAK applies the boundary element based method to analyse and view practical design on building foundations and slabs. This enables engineers to represent building slabs over sophisticated foundation models easily, building information modelling techniques and eliminating human error.  With the rapid growth of African cities, there is increased demand for infrastructural developments to support the growing population. The infrastructure system in Africa, especially building architecture, tends to go untested due to huge associated costs in verifying structure integrity, and can lead to the collapse of buildings with many deaths. PLPAK addresses this through its low-cost, easy to use but world class tool. Godwin Benson, Nigeria: Tuteria Tuteria is an innovative peer-to-peer learning online platform that allows people who want to learn any skill, whether formal or informal, to connect with anyone else in proximity who is offering that skill. For instance, a student needing math skills can connect online with someone in their vicinity offering remedial classes in mathematics. The tutors and the learners form an online community that connects them, and once a fit is established, they meet offline for practical exchange. Both tutors and learners are thoroughly vetted to ensure safety, accountability and a quality learning experience. Globally, conventional methods of education and learning are transitioning from centralized to distributed, and from standardized to personalized. Such trends have resulted in better learning outcomes. Tuteria fits in well with this model, and has been highly recommended by the IPA judges for the African continent. Smart farming solutions Olufemi Odeleye, Nigeria: The Tryctor The Tryctor is a mini tractor modelled on the motorcycle. By attaching various farming implements, it can carry out similar operations as a conventional tractor to a smaller scale. Farming for most small scale farmers in the continent is tough, laborious and characterized by low productivity. Small scale farmers are constrained by the costs involved in switching to mechanized agriculture and use of heavy equipment. However, through inspired alterations to a motorcycle’s engine, gearing system and chassis, this innovation has made it possible to mechanize agriculture in Africa for small scale farmers in a way that was previously inaccessible. Additionally, the Tryctor is easy to use and cheaper to maintain as 60% of its parts and components are locally sourced.  The IPA judges were captivated by the clever adaptation of a motorized solution that is ubiquitous in Africa, largely for transportation to a solution for mechanized farming for small scale farmers. Samuel Rigu, Kenya: Safi Sarvi Organics Safi Sarvi Organics is a low-cost fertilizer made from purely organic products and waste from farm harvests, designed to improve yields for farmers by up to 30%. Rural farmers in sub-Saharan Africa pay huge costs for fertilizer, which is often produced abroad and imported. Owing to such high costs farmers can only afford the cheap, synthetic, and acidulated fertilizer varieties. In many areas where the soil is inherently acidic, use of acidulated fertilizers can lead to long-term soil degradation and yield loss, at about four percent per year. Safi Sarvi costs the same as traditional fertilizers, can reverse farmers’ soil degradation and lead to improved yield and income. The product uses biochar-based fertilizer which can counteract soil acidity, retaining nutrients and moisture in the soil. Additionally, the carbon-rich fertilizer removes carbon from the atmosphere by at least 2.2 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per acre of farm per year. Dynamic energy initiatives Andre Nel, South Africa: Green Tower Green Tower is an off-grid water heating and air conditioning solution based on solar power that uses advanced thermos-dynamics to create up to 90% savings in electricity consumption.  Water heating and air conditioning systems can account up to 60% of energy consumption in a home or building. There are a number of heating and cooling systems in the market, but few that have demonstrated consistency in efficiencies regardless of weather conditions. The Green Tower improves efficiency of a solar heat pump with solar thermal collectors, low pressure storage tanks and heat exchangers. With Africa’s middle class rapidly growing and demand for energy outstripping supply, this initiative has the potential for large scale roll out. Green Tower can conserve limited energy resources, diverting them from heating and cooling systems to more productive industries. Johan Theron, South Africa:  PowerGuard PowerGuard enables consumers to determine the maximum amount of power supply required for daily operations. Consumers can thus reduce their power demand, especially during peak times, leading to a more efficient power supply, and helping to reduce power cuts. PowerGuard addresses electricity fluctuations, and power delivery and supply challenges by reducing the peaks, relieving pressure on the electricity network. Consumers can set their own maximum peak power usage needs. This technology substantially reduces load shedding and power rationing, diverting power to more productive industries. Africa faces a high demand for grid power, but with limited resources and an aging infrastructure, the existence of a smart grid can help reduce the pressure on existing infrastructure while moving the continent slowly towards renewable energy. Walter Fust, Chairman of the AIF Board was impressed by the level of submissions for IPA 2016: “As we celebrate the five year IPA journey, our mission to engage, inspire and transform is evident in the IPA process – from the growing registrations, to the level of talent and ingenuity we see in the nominees, as well as the enthusiasm from our expert judges in seeing these innovations at work to solve some of Africa’s intractable challenges. Now while we await announcement of the winner, we call on all innovation enablers to join hands with us to unlock the potential of these nominees.” Next stop: Which of these top 10 nominees will impress our judges most, and win IPA 2016?  Stay tuned to learn more about who is scripting Africa’s growth story through innovation! Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of African Innovation Foundation (AIF).

AUC STUDENTS AND FACULTY WIN AWARDS FOR OUTSTANDING RESEARCH IDEAS AT AUC RESEARCH DAY

 

May 8, 2016, Cairo – At AUC’s first Research Day, fourteen AUC students and seven faculty members were awarded with a cash prize and certificate for the best outstanding research. The awards and closing remarks were given by Prince Turki Al Faisal, chairman of the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies. More than 100 students and faculty members presented a diverse array of innovative and creative research taking place at the university at AUC Research Day, which was held on March 30. AUC student Omar Gaballa, rhetoric and composition, Academy of Liberal Arts won first place for his research idea, titled, “Life Sustaining Yet Lethal: Food.” In the graduate students category, Mariam Makramalla, international and comparative education, Graduate School of Education, won first place for her research titled, “Culture Contextualization of Mathematics Instruction. As for faculty members, Ghada Elshimi, associate dean of undergraduate studies, Academy of Liberal Arts, won the first place among research ideas presented by faculty members, titled “Transformational Learning: Identity Insights.”

The idea of conveying a message in a particular research area is what inspired Yasser M. Khaldi and Mark H. Sedrak, who introduced engineering solutions to the chronic infrastructure problems that exist in urban slums throughout Egypt, to participate at AUC’s Research Day. “Without AUC’s academic facilities and resources we wouldn't have had the opportunity to present at Research Day,” said Khaldi. “As loyal students, we have to give back to the community by sharing diverse, unique research.” 

Khaldi and Sedrak designed infrastructure facilities and network designs such as transportation, water and sewage lines for the district of Al Sharabia located North of Cairo. “For the drainage network design, we located points in the district where catch basins can be installed in order to reduce water accumulation in the streets in situations of excessive rain,” explained Sedrak.

In addition, Khaldi and Sedrak presented a traffic plan and analysis study for the area of Al Sharabia. “In order to provide efficient designs to meet the traffic demand in this district, we forecasted the number of vehicles in different routes,” said Sedrak. “One of the main problems with Egypt’s infrastructure system is that it doesn’t offer alternative ways to access different communities, which is what creates traffic congestion.” 

Committed to improve Egypt’s educational system, Mariam Makramalla addressed the importance of modifying Egypt’s educational system with classroom pedagogies that fit with responsive teaching techniques. “I think there is an urgent need to introduce new methods that encourage the process of analytical and critical thinking,” she said. “This research is significant as it offers an alternative way of instruction that is different from the traditional curriculum.”

For Makramalla, winning the competition proved that she was capable of communicating her research to others outside her discipline of study. “I feel incredibly motivated to speak about my research,” she said. “I plan to use the cash prize to fund my participation in the International Education Conference at the Lebanese American University.”

Also looking into development in Egypt, Hani Sewilam, professor of mechanical engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering; director, Center for Sustainable Development presented his research about desalinated water and food production, titled “Desalinated Water for Food Production in the Arab Region.” Sewilam  explained that with 85 percent of Egypt’s water resources being used to irrigate agriculture, this research is vital because there is water scarcity in the country. “I presented a unique method to desalinate and produce water for irrigation. I proposed the use of solar energy to produce electricity, which in turn is used to desalinate water and produce irrigated agriculture.”

AUC’s Research Day motivates students and faculty members to be at the same level of commitment and participation, noted Sewilam. “It is research initiatives like this day that are valuable,” he stated. “It encourages faculty members to promote their work after working long nights conducting research. Being part of this experience is an added value to any AUC faculty member because it attracts donors, funds research and shows our community at large that we have produced valuable research that contributes to the sustainable development of Egypt and beyond.”

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Leading New ICT, Building a Better Connected Morocco

 

--- Huawei ICT and Cloud Congress Morocco 2016 Embarking in Casablanca  

Cairo, Egypt. May 9th, 2016 -- Huawei, the leading global ICT provider, plans to announce its global IT strategy and landmark footprint in its marketing campaign, Huawei ICT and Cloud Congress Morocco, from May 10th to 11th, 2016. In the theme of "Leading New ICT, Building a Better Connected Morocco", Huawei will share with its industry insight, open cloud strategy and global practice in the Cloud-enabled ICT transformation and how to thrive in the digital era.

The global economy is undergoing massive change driven by digital transformation. Tuning into the survey and analysis of Global Connection Index (GCI) released by Huawei, the leading new technologies including Cloud, Big Data, the Internet of Things (IOT), and Software-Defined Network are key enablers for the national ICT development and economy prosperity. No matter for the governmental sectors or the industry domains, there are the apparent requirements to shift their ICT system from the supporting system to the mission-critical production systems that support efficient production, operation and strategy orientation. To succeed in this new era, Huawei has been engaged with the ICT transformation by embracing these new technologies, focusing on the opportunities across the cloud-pipe-device ICT architecture.  Catering to the digital capitalization trends and better experience demands from the end users, Huawei has launched its All-Cloud strategy, advocating full cloudification to build efficient networks and agile competitiveness.

More important, externally Huawei announced its ambitious goal to establish the Open Cloud Ecosystem since last year, aligning with the common interests from the customers and partners to thrive in the new ICT era while building a better connected world. Huawei believes embracing new ICT is not only about technology and architecture, it also means being part of a strong, new ecosystem that integrates ICT infrastructure providers and industry partners to create greater value. Huawei will focus on IT infrastructure, software platforms, and enterprise cloud services when creating the open cloud ecosystem. This ecosystem will enable its partners to jointly expand the industry size in the digital era and achieve mutual success.

The open cloud strategy and unremitting efforts bring about remarkable progress, especially over the recent of couple years in its global market including the North Africa countries such as Morocco, Egypt and Algeria. Nowadays, Huawei IT products and solutions have been widely used by more than 100,000 enterprises from over 150 countries and regions around the world, which has created a new benchmark and landscape for its cloud-enabled ecosystem engagement. Together with all the stakeholders, Huawei will jointly enable Morocco to be the regional ICT competence hub and promising economy development zone.

Bearing in the mind of its global philosophy “Make IT Simple, Make Business Agile”, the Congress will focus on the theme of Leading New ICT, Building a Better Connected Morocco. Industry giants, opinion leaders, multi-sector government officers and Huawei partners will be together to discuss the latest industry trends, explore digital transformation opportunities and address the common consensus in empowering cloud-centric digitalization while building a better connected Morocco.

On the grand occasion, Huawei will unveil and showcase its latest version, future-oriented cloud computing products and solutions, including the high-end FusionSphere, FusionCloud, OceanStor, Data Center Facilities and Converged Resource Pool. The products and solutions that Huawei is showcasing at Huawei ICT and Cloud Congress Morocco 2016 are all based on its long term commitment to provide customers with open, converged and innovative technologies that enable them to simplify their traditional IT infrastructure, improve business agility and create greater value.

 

قيادة تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات الجديدة، نحو مغرب متصلة بشكل أفضل

إنطلاق مؤتمر هواوى لتكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات والحوسبة السحابية - المغرب 2016" فى الدار البيضاء

 

القاهرة، مصر. 9 مايو 2016. تخطط شركة هواوى الرائدة فى مجال تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات على مستوى العالم للكشف عن إستراتيجيتها العالمية لتكنولوجيا المعلومات وبصمتها البارزة فى حملأتها التسويقية لمؤتمر هواوى لتكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات والحوسبة السحابية - المغرب يوما 10 و11 مايو، 2016. ستعرض شركة هواوى رؤيتها المتعلقة بهذه الصناعة وبإستراتيجية الحوسبة السحابية المفتوحة والممارسات العالمية فى مجال التحول المعلوماتى عن طريق إتاحة الحوسبة السحابية وكيفية تحقيق النجاح فى العصر الرقمى تحت عنوان "قيادة شكل جديد من تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات نحو مغرب متصلة بشكل أفضل."

 

يشهد الأقتصاد العالمى تغيراً هائلاً مدفوعاً بالتحول الرقمى الذى يتجه نحو إستكشاف وتحليل مؤشر الأتصال العالمى الذى أطلقته هواوى والذى يتضمن التكنولوجيات الجديدة الرائدة مثل الخدمات السحابية والبيانات الضخمة (Big Data) وإنترنت الأشياء (IOT) والشبكات المعرفة بالبرمجيات حيث تعد كل هذه الخدمات ركائز أساسية لتطوير تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات ولتحقيق الأزدهار الأقتصادى على المستوى الوطنى. توجد متطلبات واضحة لتغيير نظام تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات سواءً بالنسبة للقطاعات الحكومية أو للمجالات الصناعية من نظام دعم نظم الإنتاج لنظام نظم إنتاج المهام الحرجة التى تدعم كفاءة الإنتاج والتشغيل والتوجه الأستراتيجى. وللنجاح فى هذا العصر الجديد، فقد ركزت هواوى على تحويل تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات من خلال تبنى هذه التكنولوجيات الجديدة والتركيز فى الوقت ذاته على الفرص التى تتيحها بنية تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات التى تعتمد على نظام الأجهزة السحابية. كما أطلقت هواوى إستراتيجية All-Cloud التى صممت خصيصاً لتتناسب مع إتجاهات تعزيز القيمة الرقمية ومع متطلبات المستخدمين للحصول على تجربة أفضل وتبنت نشر نظام الحوسبة السحابية الكاملة لبناء شبكات فعالة ولتشجيع التنافسية الذكية.

 

والأهم، فقد أعلنت شركة هواوى فى الخارج منذ العام الماضى عن هدفها الطموح لتأسيس نظام الحوسبة السحابية المفتوحة بما يتوافق مع المصالح المشتركة للعملاء والشركاء لتحقيق النجاح والتقدم فى عصر تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات الجديد وبناء عالم متصل بشكل أفضل فى الوقت ذاته. وتؤمن هواوى أن مسألة تبنى تطوير تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات الجديدة لا تتعلق فقط بالتكنولوجيا والبنية التحتية، بل تتعلق أيضاً بأن نصير جزءاً من نظام جديد وقوى يدمج مقدمى خدمات البنية التحتية فى مجال تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات مع شركاء المجال لخلق قيمة أكبر. وسوف تركز هواوى على البنية التحتية لتكنولوجيا المعلومات ومنصات البرمجيات والخدمات السحابية للشركات عند إنشاء نظام الحوسبة السحابية المفتوحة الذى سيمكن الشركاء من توسيع حجم الصناعة فى العصر الرقمى وتحقيق النجاح المتبادل.

 

وقد نتج عن إستراتيجية الحوسبة السحابية المفتوحة والجهود الدؤوبة الأخرى تقدماً ملحوظاً للشركة خلال السنوات القليلة الماضية بشكل خاص فى السوق العالمى، بما فى ذلك دول شمال أفريقيا مثل المغرب ومصر والجزائر. بينما تستخدم المنتجات والحلول التى تقدمها هواوى  فى الوقت الحاضر على نطاق أوسع من قبل أكثر من مائة ألف شركة فى أكثر من مائة وخمسين بلداً ومنطقة حول العالم وهو ما خلق معايير ومساحة جديدة لإتاحة نظام الحوسبة السحابية والمشاركة فيه. وستقوم شركة هواوى بالأشتراك مع جميع الجهات المعنية ذات الصلة بتمكين المغرب لتصبح مركزاً لكفاءات تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات ومنطقة تنمية إقتصادية واعدة فى المنطقة.

 

سيركز المؤتمر على موضوع "قيادة تكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات الجديدة نحو مغرب متصلة بشكل أفضل" آخذاً فى الأعتبار التوجهه العالمى القائم على جعل تكنولوجيا المعلومات أكثر بساطة والأعمال أكثر ذكاءً حيث يجتمع عمالقة هذه الصناعة وقادة الرأى والمسئوليين الحكوميين من قطاعات متعددة وشركاء هواوى ليناقشوا أحدث إتجاهات الصناعة ولأستكشاف فرص التحول الرقمى وللوصول إلى توافق مشترك فى تمكين الرقمنة المعتمدة على الحوسبة السحابية المركزية وبناء مغرب متصل بشكل أفضل فى الوقت ذاته.

 

ستزيح هواوى فى هذا الحدث الكبير الستار عن أحدث النسخ من حلول ومنتجات الحوسبة السحابية المستقبلية الخاصة بها، بما فى ذلك المنتجات المتطورة التى تشمل FusionSphere، وFusionCloud، وOceanStor، وData Center Faciliies وConverged Resource Pool. وتقوم جميع المنتجات والحلول التى تعرضها شركة هواوى فى مؤتمر هواوى لتكنولوجيا المعلومات والأتصالات والحوسبة السحابية فى المغرب 2016" على إلتزامها طويل الأجل بتزويد عملائها بتكنولوجيا مبتكرة مفتوحة ومتقاربة تمكنهم من تبسيط البنية التحتية التقليدية لتكنولوجيا المعلومات الخاصة بهم وتحسين إدارة الأعمال وخلق قيمة أكبر.

 

 

 

AUC TO DISCUSS RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY

WHAT

Lecture, “Religious Tolerance and Cultural Diversity in the East Mediterranean Area,” organized by the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at The American University in Cairo (AUC).

The lecture presents a critical reflection on the relationship between religion and politics from the perspective of culture. It discusses the usage of culture as a mediating element towards a reintegration of the differentiated discourses of religion and politics with a focus on religious tolerance and cultural diversity in the Mediterranean region, which is an area of major importance for the multiple exchanges informing the interaction between the western and the Arab world.

WHO

Pavlos Kavouras, professor and head of the Department of Ethnomusicology and Cultural Anthropology, University of Athens.

WHERE

Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Abdulaziz Alsaud Hall, Tim Sullivan Lounge, AUC New Cairo

WHEN

Wednesday, May 10, 2016; 3;30–4:45pm

سيسكو تستعرض حلول الأمن الإلكتروني لدعم التحول الرقمي خلال مؤتمر ومعرض الكويت لأمن المعلومات

 

• الشركة تعقد جلستين مهمتين تركزان على أهمية الأمن في القطاعين العام والخاص بالكويت
• سيسكو تستعرض حلولها الأمنية الشاملة المركزة على التهديدات، والتي تمكّن الشركات من إدارة المخاطر ودعم فرص النمو

الكويت العاصمة، الكويت، 9 مايو 2016: أعلنت سيسكو عن مشاركتها في مؤتمر ومعرض الكويت لأمن المعلومات، والذي يقام في فندق راديسون بلو تحت رعاية الجهاز المركزي لتكنولوجيا المعلومات يومي 11 و 12 مايو الجاري. وبصفتها الراعي الرئيسي للفعالية، ستعرض سيسكو مجموعة حلولها الأمنية الموجهة لمكافحة التهديدات، والتي تمتد لتشمل الشبكات والبيانات والمؤسسة بكاملها قبل وخلال وبعد الهجمة.

وسيتحدث السيد سامر اللحام، مدير عام شركة سيسكو الكويت، خلال حفل الافتتاح ليسلّط الضوء على مشهد التهديدات الأمنية وتركيز سيسكو على الحلول الأمنية المتكاملة والتي تركّز على التهديدات بشكل أساسي. وتلعب الشركة دوراً حيوياً في المؤتمر من خلال تخصيص جلستين تركزان على أهمية الأمن في عالمنا الرقمي وما يشهده من تغيرات متسارعة. يتحدث ناجي العقيلي، مدير الأمن لدى سيسكو الكويت، عن "أمن الاقتصاد الرقمي" الساعة العاشرة من صباح 11 مايو، بينما يتحدث وسام الشريف، مهندس النظم الاستشاري الساعة 9.30 صباح يوم 12 مايو ليلقي الضوء على موضوع "الأمن في كل مكان".

وفي الوقت الذي تعمل فيه مزيد من الدول والمدن والشركات للاستفادة من التقنيات الرقمية في دعم الابتكار، فإن نموّها سيكون مرهوناً بقدرتها على حماية منصاتها الرقمية. ويقدّر تقرير سيسكو السنوي للأمن 2016 تكلفة الجرائم الإلكترونية على قطاع الأعمال بحوالي 2.1 تريليون دولار عالمياً بحلول العام 2019، أي ما يضاهي أربعة أضعاف التكلفة المقدرة عام 2015. وبحسب دراسة عالمية أخرى أجرتها سيسكو، تواجه المؤسسات عدداً من التحديات الصعبة في مجال الأمن الإلكتروني:

• قالت 32% من المؤسسات أن سياساتها للأمن الإلكتروني غير قادرة على مواكبة التغير في قطاع الأعمال.
• تفتقر 27% منها إلى المقاييس المناسبة لتحديد مدى فعالية الأمن الإلكتروني لديها.
• ترى 26% من المؤسسات أن استثماراتها في الأمن الإلكتروني غير كافية.
• تطبق 24% من تلك المؤسسات سياساتها للأمن الإلكتروني بشكل غير فعّال.
• لا تعرف 21% من المؤسسات نقاط ضعفها الرئيسية في الأمن الإلكتروني.

في تعليقه على الأمر قال سامر اللحام، مدير عام سيسكو الكويت: "في دولة الكويت يعمل الجهاز المركزي لتكنولوجيا المعلومات، وعبر شبكة الكويت للمعلومات، لمساعدة المؤسسات الحكومية والقطاع غير الحكومي على تبادل المعلومات بشكل أكثر أماناً وأقل تكلفة للعمليات الحكومية. تتمثل الحاجة الملحة في المستقبل الوشيك في استفادة الشركات من التقنيات الرقمية دون ان تتغاضى عن أمن البيانات الحساسة. تركّز سيسكو على تحقيق مفهوم الأمن في كل مكان لتطبقه في البنية الامنية ومركز البيانات وإنترنت الأشياء والشبكات المؤسسية بما فيها الشبكات اللاسلكية. فهي تدافع عن البنية التحتية لتقنية المعلومات قبل وخلال وبعد الهجمة، وتسمح للمؤسسة بالتركيز على تنمية أعمالها، وسنستعرض كل تلك الجوانب ضمن فعاليات المعرض."  

من الجدير بالذكر أن سيسكو استثمرت مبالغ ضخمة في عمليات التملك المتعلقة بالأمن الإلكتروني إلى جانب تطوير الابتكارات الداخلية التي من شأنها مساعدة المؤسسات في التغلب على الهجمات الضارة. وانطلاقاً من إدراكها للتغير السريع في المشهد الأمني، تلعب الشركة دوراً محورياً في تلبية احتياجات العملاء للإمكانات الأمنية المتكاملة، وستقوم خلال مؤتمر ومعرض الكويت لأمن المعلومات بإقامة العروض الحية التي توضح استخدام حلولها الشاملة للدفاع ضد التهديدات، والتي تناسب المؤسسات التي تتبنى التحول الرقمي وكيفية مساعدتها في تحقيق إمكانات أفضل للكشف وتحديد السياق والسيطرة عبر البنية التحتية لتقنية المعلومات.

يتواجد خبراء الأمن من سيسكو في جناح الشركة رقم 14 و 15 و 16 للقاء العملاء والشركاء وتبادل الخبرات العالمية وقصص النجاح.  

نبذة عن شركة سيسكو:

تعمل شركة "سيسكو"، الرائدة عالمياً في مجال تقنية المعلومات والمدرجة في بورصـة الأوراق المالية "ناسداك" تحت الرمز (NASDAQ: CSCO، على مساعدة الشركات في استغلال الفرص المستقبلية من خلال إثبات أن تحقيق الإنجازات المذهلة يكون عبر تمكين الاتصال الشبكي لما هو غير متصل. لمتابعة أخبار سيسكو، الرجاء زيارة  http://thenetwork.cisco.com .