ICT Minister Opens FDC Summit 2025
The Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat opened, today, the Future of Digital Countries (FDC) Summit 2025, one of the most prominent events dedicated to the ICT industry in Egypt, Africa, and the Middle East.
This year’s edition is held on April 28-30 under the theme “The Arch of Digital,” and joined by the State Minister for Health in charge of General Duties in Uganda Anifa Kawooya Bangirana, along with officials from the public and private sectors across the Middle East, Africa, and the United Kingdom (UK).
FDC Summit 2025 is taking place under the patronage of the ICT Minister. The organizing committee has invited the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the official Guest of Honor, with high-level engagement from the UAE Cyber Security Council and leading Emirati companies.
The Summit aims to foster regional and international cooperation by establishing strategic partnerships among governments, multinationals, and academic and research centers across the Arab and African regions to drive innovation and facilitate knowledge exchange within the digital industry.
In his remarks, Talaat emphasized that FDC Summit 2025 comes in light of the growing global trend toward greater reliance on cybersecurity solutions and digital ecosystems. He stressed that adopting technology has become an absolute necessity. Falling behind in this regard, he noted, would mean falling behind the progress of humanity. He also underlined the importance of remaining vigilant against the rising threats posed by cyberattacks.
The ICT Minister referred to the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology’s (MCIT) commitment to the optimal adoption of rapidly evolving technologies, such as generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), quantum computing, and blockchain. He explained that this commitment is paired with a thorough assessment of these technologies’ potential risks, stressing the importance of concerted efforts among all components of digital ecosystems, nationally, regionally, and internationally, given that cyberthreats transcend borders. In this context, he underscored that cooperation and solidarity among Arab and African nations are imperative to protect societies against cyber risks. He also highlighted the need to continue developing digital capabilities and strengthening cybersecurity systems.
Furthermore, Talaat pointed to MCIT’s ongoing efforts to expand the talent pool within the broader ICT sector, with a particular focus on cybersecurity. He explained that the Ministry is scaling up specialized cybersecurity training programs in scope and depth to increase the number of trainees and diversify skill sets, thus reinforcing the security of digital ecosystems.
Talaat also remarked that cybersecurity has become a cornerstone of national security and is no longer confined to the mandate of a specific ministry or entity. While the growing reliance on digital ecosystems presents considerable opportunities for national advancement, he clarified, it also requires increasing vigilance against the risks associated with cyberthreats.
For his part, Chairman of FDC Summit Tarek Shabaka stated that this year’s edition, held under the theme “The Arch of Digital,” reflects a belief that building the future can only be achieved through genuine regional and international partnerships, where expertise is shared and ambitions are aligned with capabilities.
Shabaka added that the summit introduces five main value-added domains, including digital transformation, AI and the Internet of Things (IoT), cybersecurity, data center and cloud, and satellite communication and telecom, featuring the FDC Research Forum, focusing on leveraging scientific research to support development, and FDC Stars, aimed at discovering and nurturing emerging talents while promoting innovation principles.
In a similar vein, the ICT Minister toured the exhibition held alongside the summit, which features the participation of over 50 companies from the Middle East and Africa, in addition to the dedicated pavilion for the UAE and another for UK-based companies.
On the sidelines of the summit, Talaat met with representatives from several UK-based companies and the British Embassy to discuss avenues for fostering cybersecurity cooperation. The meeting explored opportunities for collaboration with British companies to expand education and training programs in cybersecurity and reviewed MCIT’s initiatives to build digital capacities and raise cybersecurity awareness. Discussions also covered ways to enhance international partnerships, facilitate technology transfer, and promote local innovation in this field.
In a related context, the ICT Minister met with the CEO of Kaspersky Lab Eugene Kaspersky to discuss the possibility of establishing a technical support and research and development (R&D) center for the company in Egypt.
During the meeting, Talaat outlined Egypt’s competitive advantages, including a highly skilled IT workforce and robust government support, which bolster the country’s capacity to deliver cybersecurity services at the regional level.
The summit focuses on several key areas with a direct impact on economic development and the realization of government visions across various technological domains, like digital transformation, cybersecurity, and advanced technologies such as AI, IoT, robotics, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and blockchain. In addition, it covers the development of hyperscale data centers and infrastructure, R&D, innovation support, entrepreneurship, and startups.
FDC Summit 2025 hosts numerous international and local meetings, including of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation – Computer Emergency Response Team (OIC-CERT) Board, and the Cybersecurity Committee of the Federation of Egyptian Banks (FEB), and a training session on AI and big data organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA).
The summit also features several roundtables and panel discussions, with 75 international speakers and the signing of several cooperation agreements and initiatives with various Arab countries and Egyptian entities.
The opening ceremony was attended by Vice ICT Minister for Institutional Development Ghada Labib, Executive President of the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) Mohamed Shamroukh, CEO of the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) Ahmed Elzaher, Advisor to the ICT Minister for Technological Talents Development Hoda Baraka, Director of the National Telecommunication Institute (NTI) Ahmed Khattab, Sub-Governor for cybersecurity at the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Sherif Hazem, Head of the UAE Cyber Security Council Mohamed Alkuwaiti, Director General of the Oman's National Computer Emergency Readiness Team (OCERT) and Chairman of OIC-CERT Badar Al Salehi, and heads of government cybersecurity agencies from several