5 - General and Targeted Strategic Policies Table 5.1: Work Programs to Develop ICT Sector Strategies and Policies Main Program Executive Programs Aims Following up on the latest developments in general and targeted policies on the regional and international levels Ensuring Egypt’s effective participation in decision making forums and work groups concerned with policy, standards Table 5.1: Work Programs to Develop ICT Sector Strategies and Policies and recommendations in the ICT field on the regional and ICT and Postal Sector international levels Policy Development Program Developing existing ICT and postal sector policies and practices at the national level through analysis of relevant international experience Monitoring developments in the ICT environment to ensure ICT general policy and national strategy conform to the needs of the sector. And to deploy these policies Policy, Research and and introduce them to all levels locally Strategic Planning Determining areas for ICT research and studies, in Development cooperation with concerned entities, particularly techno- Program social research and comparative studies indicating political Analytical Studies and Research Program and social trends and their relation to ICT. The output will be of use to decision makers and provide reliable material on Egypt and its ICT sector for international studies. It will also facilitate monitoring of the progress of the sector in the field of sustainable development Determining and analyzing ICT sector challenges Determining future strategic goals for the ICT sector in Strategic Planning cooperation with concerned departments Program Establishing a mechanism to monitor and evaluate the work program and preparing periodic progress reports Drafting relevant sub-strategies 38 39 The National ICT Strategy for 2012-2017 was formulated with special attention to the following considerations: Drafting policies with the greatest flexibility to respond to the increasing demand for communications services through continuous development of ICT infrastructure. This can be facilitated by market studies determining the priority needs of consumers and the business sector and at the same time be aware of the challenges faced by the consuming sectors for this kind of service Drafting the most comprehensive policies possible, enabling Egypt to excel in using ICTs for development. This can be achieved by providing ICT infrastructure in marginalized areas, encouraging inter-company use of ICTs, increasing ICT access for Arabic speakers, and providing support for SMEs, which can play an important role in ICT service exports and the production of Arabic digital content Drafting policies that have quantifiable objectives and whose progress is easy to monitor MCIT will review the policies of the strategy and make modifications as and when required, in accordance with government policies and priorities, in response to relevant developments in the ICT field. The policies contained in the strategy are divided into two types, as follows: General Policies: These policies apply to all projects and programs for the ICT sector due to their importance both to Egypt and the international community. They relate to issues that have a clear and direct impact on the success and effectiveness of ICT sector activities. These policies cover: Digital identity management Green ICT Empowerment of people with disabilities Access to information Mobile applications for development Targeted Policies: These policies apply to a limited number of programs in certain fields. They relate to areas of particular importance at the current time that will also help boost future development of the ICT sector. These policies cover: Arabic digital content Cloud computing e-Commerce Manufacturing of tablet computers Open-source software