ICT Week 2004, The arab conference for development conference was opened on the 21st of September in the presence of :
- The ministers of  Telecommunication, Economy & Administrative Reform
-  Arab Ministers and their representatives
-  Al Iktissad Wal Amal Group
-  Professional Computer Association
-  Promofair

In the 3 days that followed the opening ceremony, many sessions took place:

On the second day: Wednesday 22 September

•        Session I: Telecommunications Regulation in Lebanon
   Telecom experts agree that privatization, with its power to enlarge the market and reduce the debt, cannot go forward without independent regulatory body. The government passed the Telecommunication Act, Law 431 in July 2002. This stipulated that the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA) would be establishd within three months of that date, but the government has failed to establish it!

Session's Chairman: Mr. Ebrahim Al-Haddad, Arab Unit Telecom Development Bureau, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

•        Session II: The Telecommunications Boom in the Region
   The Arab telecom sector promises significant development and growth pushed by the liberalization and the privatization of telecom markets in addition to the deployment of the latest technologies. This discussion panel will discuss the policy, industry and technology trends in telecom, which will drive business in the coming year.

Session's Chairman: HE Jean-Louis Cardahi, Minister of Telecommunications

On the third day: Thursday 23 September

•        Session III: National outlook to Develop ICT Industry
   The ICT industry has grown in the Middle East and the Arab World to become one of the major vectors for economical growth. Today some Middle Eastern countries are taking leading positions in term of ICT initiatives among the international community while others are lacking. What are the challenges and the opportunities.

Session's Chairman: HE Karim Pakradoni, Minister of state for Administrative Reform

•        Session IV: Legal Framwork (Panel discussion)
   All the countries have recognized the importance of a supportive regulatory environment by undertaking new policy initiatives and legislative reforms. This panel discussion outlines the obstacles, challenges on legal framework and gives actionable recommendations.

Session's Chairman: MP Ghenwa Jalloul, Head of the ICT committee in the parliament

•        Session V: Open Source (Panel Discussion)
   2004 is a year of accelerating change and IT complexity. Will "open source" solve the integration problems? What advantages and disadvantages will "open source" bring for business and users?

Session's Chairman: Mr. Gabriel Deek, Professional Computer Association

On the last day: Friday 24 September

•        Session VI: Countries Initiatives and Market Opportunities
   Building and implementing initiatives aims at enhancing ICT capabilities to bridge the digital divide and develop the economy. A clear roadmap is necessary! This panel discussion will give an outlook on the initiatives in many Arab countries including National e-Strategies aim to best position countries to compete in a global economy, to join the information society and to guide public and private sectors into the 21st century. This planning workshop shall bring together the various stakeholders for a participatory joint discussion of the current status of National e-Strategies Projects as well as of priority implementation programs, in preparation for subsequent workshops leading to the development of the National e-Strategies Implementation Plans.

Session's Chairman: Dr. Walid Moneimne, Senior Vice President, NOKIA

•        Session VII: Technology in Banking
   The core issues faced by banks today are on the fronts of customer's service expectations, cutting operational costs, and managing competition. Technology can help banks in meeting these objectives. Automation is the basic thing that banks need to have in place. It involves a combination of centralized networks, operations, and a core banking security application. This session dicussed:

-         Role of Technology in boasting Banks Competitiveness
-         Delivering Services Online: The experience of Arab Banks
-         Payment Systems
-         Facing the Security Challenge