Abu-Ghazaleh Inaugurates ICANN Meeting in Dubai

Abu-Ghazaleh Inaugurates ICANN Meeting in Dubai

We support continued efforts to internationalize ICANNs structures ? Abu-Ghazaleh

DUBAI --- April 2, 2008 --- The UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) hosted at the Dubai Grand Hyatt Hotel on April 1, 2008, the regional meeting for the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).

Mr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, Chairman and CEO of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAGorg) opened the three-day meeting, joined by an elite group of government representatives, policymakers, country code top-level domain (ccTLD) managers, service providers and others.

Abu-Ghazaleh emphasized his support for an independent private sector-led ICANN, stating ?business around the world looks forward to contributing to the discussions about a solid transition path for the organization toward that end.?

He also expressed his confidence that ICANN will be able to put in place methods to ensure the future stability and security of the Domain Name System (DNS), establish effective accountability mechanisms and strengthen relationships with the business community, as well as other stakeholders.

Abu-Ghazaleh stressed the significance of creating a structure and environment that remain flexible enough to encourage continued creativity and innovation on issues pursuant to ICANNs management needs. ?We support continued efforts to internationalize ICANNs structures, both through its presence in different regions, and the involvement of stakeholders from all around of the world. This outreach meeting in Dubai is an excellent example,? he elaborated.

It is worth noting that TAGorg serves on the Country Code Names Supporting Organization (ccNSO), the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) and the Asia Pacific Regional At Large Organization (APRALO), all three of which are ICANN-affiliated establishments.

Coinciding with the ICANN Regional Meeting, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh will inaugurate today the second meeting of the Multilingual Internet Initiative (MII) Board of the Arab Knowledge and Management Society (AKMS) which will be chaired by Ms. Samar Al-Labbad, Deputy Chair of TAGorg.

The MII is a joint partnership between AKMS and ICANN that was launched May last year, to start a constructive dialogue and raise awareness within the Internet community in the Arab region on technical aspects and policies related to domain names and numbers.