Muscat: The government push for e-governance and recent entry of new players in the telecommunications field has spurred the growth for the annual IT and technology exhibition, Comex, in Muscat.
Addressing a press conference at the Hotel Grand Hyatt, Sadiq Ahmad Khan, Director of Sales and Marketing at the event organisers Oman International Trade and Exhibition (OITE), said that the business section of the annual event has seen 40 per cent growth.
"This is the biggest ever Comex in the last 20 years," said Ahmad Saleh Baabood, Executive Chairman of OITE.
Khan said that there has been no reluctance by the participants from abroad to take part in the exhibition although Oman had seen unrest.
"We have seen equal growth among the domestic as well as the foreign participation," he said. He stressed that with an aim to improve the quality of the exhibition, the organisers had decided to put emphasis on the business side of the event.
"The consumer side is a big draw for us but this time the business section is bigger," he said.
He agreed that the government push for e-governance had contributed in a big way to boosting the growth of Comex. "The opening of the telecom sector and increased competition have also spurred the exhibition's growth," he added.
Khan added that every telecom player in the country is taking part in the five-day exhibition, backed by the Information Technology Authority (ITA), and being held from April 25-29.
This year's Comex will be held under the theme "Shift to e", which embodies the inspirational vision of e-oman to transform Oman into a sustainable knowledge society by leveraging information and communication technologies to enhance government services, enrich businesses and empower individuals.
"The exhibition offers a golden opportunity to all government organisations to highlight their latest programmes and electronic services," said Talal Sulaiman Al Rahbi, Deputy CEO of ITA.
