As part of the government's efforts to realize its vision of e-government and e-commerce, an information technology (IT) strategy must be evolved to help the national economy, urged Sheikh Humaid bin Ahmed Al Mualla, UAE Minister of Planning.

A strategy with policies and specifications must be developed for e-governance by incorporating the latest technologies, the minister told delegates in his welcome address at an e-government conference yesterday.

"I urge all of you to identify and implement the state-of-the-art e-government and e-commerce view, tools and solutions to begin the transformation," he said,
Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in his introductory address emphasized that the UAE qualifies eminently to enter the IT era due to its modern infrastructure. The country is trying to be a pioneer in using the latest technology to benefit the national economy, he added.

The two-day conference is being organized by the General Information Authority (GIA), a government body set up in 1982. The aim of the GIA is to provide consulting on computerization, IT training to federal and local government.

GIA is proposing IT cyber crime law, which will help in conducting business with minimum risk.

The UAE minister for planning is the chairman of the board of GIA. The conference is being sponsored by Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Tatweer and Cosmos Software.