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Al-Ahram Weekly 4 - 10 March 1999 Issue No. 419 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 4 - 10 March 1999 Issue No. 419
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Travel Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters COMDEX exhibition
By Shaimaa LabibTHE IMPACT of rapid global information technology (IT) on the Middle East computer industry will be the focus of discussions by software manufacturers participating in a major IT exhibition entitled "COMDEX Egypt 99" due to be held in Cairo from 13-16 May.
"Spurred on by continuous growth projections for the Egyptian IT market, the event has attracted high-profile industry corporations and has doubled in size compared to last year's event, which was also held in Cairo," said Karen Storey, the exhibition's sales manager. "Around 70 per cent of the total available exhibition space has been contracted or reserved. Exhibitors from 10 countries have already contracted for the event, which will include British and Taiwanese pavilions," Storey said.
The United Kingdom's Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will be providing financial aid to British companies participating in the official UK pavilion.
"There is strong interest from the UK industry in the Egyptian IT market and we are inviting interested British exporters to join in the exhibition," said the DTI group coordinator, Mark Birchall.
Lead sponsors for COMDEX Egypt 99 are Microsoft Egypt and Compaq, while Sakhr Software is sponsoring one function at the exhibition, which is the new COMDEX Shopper event. All three sponsors have made major investments in the fast-growing Egyptian IT market and each sees professional trade fairs as key marketing tools.
COMDEX Egypt 99 has a powerful business lobby which has the official support of the Egyptian Ministry of Public Business Sector, Egypt's Information Decision Support Centre (IDSC) and Intel, the world's leading processor manufacturer. It is also backed by the Egyptian Software Association, the Egyptian Software Alliance and MobiNil -- Egypt's first private mobile phone company, which has signed on as the event's official telecom sponsor.
According to Stefan Kemball, a DTI official, the exhibition's opening day plenary session will examine "whether the Arab world can become an information superpower in the face of Western technological competition. Industry leaders will participate in the discussion to present their opinions and provoke added debate."
