The ITU Arab Regional Cyber Security Center (ITU-ARCC) and Huawei have initiated a new program aimed at enhancing the cybersecurity industry within the Arab region. The program, named the “Cybersecurity Industry Development Strategy Maturity Module (CIDSMM),” serves as an exhaustive guide for regulatory bodies, industry professionals, and academic researchers to gauge and augment their cybersecurity proficiencies.

This program, a pioneering effort in both the region and globally, is tailor-made for the cybersecurity sector of the Arab region. This effort is a pivotal result of the alliance forged between ITU-ARCC and Huawei earlier this year, aimed at facilitating knowledge sharing, bolstering capabilities, and fostering collaborative efforts in the Arab realm’s cybersecurity field. The program’s introduction was made at the 11th Regional Cybersecurity Conference in Abu Dhabi, an event that convened global experts and professionals to exchange their wisdom and best practices.

Eng. Badar Al Salehi, the Director General of Oman National CERT and the leader of ITU-ARCC, commented on the significant growth of the cybersecurity market, which currently stands at over 270 billion dollars. He forecasted its potential escalation to 600 billion dollars by 2025. This partnership aligns with the Sultanate’s initiative, launched the previous year, aiming to ameliorate the landscape for the cybersecurity sector across Arab nations.

Aloysius Cheang, the Chief Security Officer at Huawei for the Middle East & Central Asia regions, expressed their pride in collaborating with ITU-ARCC on this significant program. The initiative’s goal is to furnish foundational knowledge that can robustly uplift the cybersecurity realm in the Arab region. The program aims to offer holistic guidance to craft cybersecurity strategies and policies, serving not just as a benchmark but also illuminating areas for action and rectifying research directions that can elevate the essence of any national cybersecurity venture.

Huawei’s vision with this program is to craft a flourishing Arab cybersecurity environment. They anticipate this milieu to be one where results and strategies are freely shared, acting as success templates for other Arab nations. The intent is to harmonize progress, curtail missed opportunities, and ensure collaboration, primarily through a public-private partnership model. This model promotes applied academic research and novel cybersecurity solutions, nurturing regional digital talents and elevating the overall regional cybersecurity sector’s maturity.

The evaluation program is designed to offer a framework for gauging and boosting the cybersecurity maturity of diverse stakeholders in the digital domain. This includes areas like digital infrastructure protection, data safeguarding, cloud security, emerging technologies, and telecom security. CIDSMM supplies pertinent and efficacious data, assisting in formulating a long-term cybersecurity blueprint, pinpointing best practices from global counterparts for self-betterment, setting a national benchmark for cybersecurity capability enhancement, and stimulating a market demand for cybersecurity offerings, thus amplifying commercial revenues.

Huawei perceives cybersecurity as a collective responsibility, necessitating cohesive efforts from all parties. Collaborations between the public and private sectors are vital for risk identification, cyber threat mitigation, and data and asset protection. Such collaborations foster information exchange, co-development of cybersecurity solutions, and best practice adoption. Harnessing the strengths of both public and private sectors allows for a fortified defense mechanism, proactive threat detection and response, and ensuring the safety of crucial infrastructures.

Committed to erasing boundaries, Huawei continuously collaborates with global partners, aiming to shape an industry beneficial to all. By partnering, sharing, and unlocking new avenues, Huawei strives to add value to both its direct partners and the broader community.