The Arab Regional Cybersecurity Center (ITU-ARCC), in collaboration with Huawei, has introduced a new program titled “Cybersecurity Sector Development Maturity Model.” This initiative aims to enhance and elevate the readiness of Arab nations in the field of cybersecurity.
It provides a comprehensive guide to assist government entities, academic institutions, small and medium-sized enterprises, and the private sector across 22 Arab countries in assessing and strengthening their cybersecurity capabilities.
This program represents a groundbreaking effort in the region and globally. It is specifically designed to meet the requirements of the cybersecurity landscape in the Arab world.
It is a result of the partnership between ITU-ARCC and Huawei, established to foster knowledge exchange, capacity building, and collaboration in the cybersecurity sector across the Arab world.
This announcement was made during the eleventh Regional Cybersecurity Conference in Abu Dhabi, which gathered a panel of international experts and speakers to share experiences and best practices in the field.
Eng. Badr bin Ali Al Salehi, the President of ITU-ARCC and Chairman of the National Centers of Cybersecurity for the Cyber Cooperation Organization, emphasized the rapid growth of the cybersecurity market, which is currently valued at over $270 billion and is expected to reach $600 billion by 2025.
He highlighted the alignment of this initiative with the Cybersecurity Sector initiative launched in Oman in November of the previous year, aiming to bolster the cybersecurity industry in the Arab region.
Alwieus Chiang, Chief Cybersecurity Officer of Huawei Middle East and Central Asia, expressed pride in the collaboration with ITU-ARCC to launch this pioneering program, which establishes a strong foundation for enhancing cybersecurity capabilities in the Arab region.
The program will provide comprehensive guidelines for developing long-term cybersecurity strategies and policies, ensuring the availability of measurable means. It seeks to set not only industry standards but also offer insights and effective action plans for improvement, based on practical research mechanisms to support the quality of any national cybersecurity program, from both technological and economic perspectives.
Chiang added, “Furthermore, this program will establish a dynamic Arab cybersecurity ecosystem where results and action plans will be shared as case studies, which can be adapted or modified to meet the requirements of other Arab nations. This will enhance levels of success and alignment while reducing the costs of failures when they occur.”
He emphasized that this program is designed to evaluate the cybersecurity industry environment, offering a comprehensive guide for measuring and enhancing the cybersecurity environment of various organizations within the digital ecosystem.
This includes the protection of digital infrastructure, data security, cloud computing security, emerging technologies, and telecommunications security, among others.
The program will provide accurate and effective information to aid in the development of a long-term cybersecurity strategy, benchmarking with other countries to draw lessons and utilize them for self-improvement, providing a national cybersecurity baseline for building cybersecurity capabilities, stimulating demand for cybersecurity-related services and products, and increasing commercial revenues or contributing to sector growth.
Huawei believes that cybersecurity is a collective responsibility that requires cooperation among all stakeholders. Public-private partnerships are a fundamental necessity for identifying risks, preventing cyberattacks, protecting data and assets, and ensuring the security of critical infrastructures.
By leveraging the strengths of both sectors, governments and companies can enhance their defensive capabilities, proactively detect and respond to threats, and safeguard critical infrastructures.
Huawei is committed to sharing its expertise with partners within the cybersecurity ecosystem to create new opportunities and contribute to the development of a supportive cybersecurity ecosystem for all.
