ICA’s Future Shaping Forum discusses the Practices of Local and Federal institutions

Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship organized its first forum to explore the future, during which the experiences of many local and federal institutions in the state were presented and discussed with the participation of a group of experts, specialists, and decision-makers.

His Excellency General Mohammed Al Marri, Director-General of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai, said in his opening speech that the forum was keen to exchange experiences and knowledge in this vital field with the various institutions in the country due to the great and pivotal role it plays in enhancing the ability of institutions and countries to develop and change towards the best.

Independent knowledge

He said that future-shaping became a stand-alone science with its rules, foundations, and assets that must be followed to achieve the desired success, and an urgent and a basic need that can’t be dispensed by the aspiring countries to compete on the first ranks and the institutions seeking to maintain their continuity as a minimum and willing to adapt to the latest developments and meet the expedited scientific and technological progress needs to be witnessed by world today.

He added that the proper employment of this modern science allows the institutions to organize their affairs and utilize their resources optimally by studying the reality and taking advantage of its data, achievements, obstacles in planning for the future on both short and long strategic terms; in a way that conceives the optimal insight of the future and implement the same on reality in a highly professional and endless accurate approach which leads to achieving the planned results and objectives in the shortest ways and the least possible costs.

The Concept of “Future Shaping”

Al-Marri explained the concept of “Future Shaping”, which means trying to develop possible expectations and the study of variables and constants that lead to the achievement of these possibilities and thus drawing a picture as accurate as possible for the future and then providing the necessary requirements and allocating the resources required to transfer the image and reflect it on the ground.

Al-Marri praised the approach of wise leadership which has made the UAE one of the pioneers in the region and the world in adopting scientific and intellectual progress and benefiting from it in achieving its vision and aspirations and harnessing it to serve its people and humanity as a whole. He pointed out the launch of the “UAE Strategy for the Future Shaping”, which aims at exploring the opportunities and challenges in all vital sectors of the state, analyzing them, and putting forward long-term plans at all levels to achieve qualitative achievements to serve the interests of the State.

He stressed that all institutions are required today to harness this scientific field and take advantage of this strategy in drawing up its long-term plans with a focus on creativity and innovation and adapting the means of modern technology and the use of artificial intelligence and its applications and outputs in the development of its services and upgrading them to the best international levels, and at the forefront of this is the enhancement of the UAE’s security and safety, which reflects positively on the level of prosperity and well-being enjoyed by citizens and residents and raises the rate of happiness to unprecedented values.

Al-Marri extended his thanks and appreciation to HE Ali Mohammed Al Shamsi, Chairman of the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship, for sponsoring the Forum’s activities and his keenness to support all activities that seek to improve performance in all departments, sectors, and centers and develop their services to the best possible levels.

Zayed’s says and brainstorming

At the beginning of the event, which was held at the InterContinental Festival City, Dubai, a set of statements and words of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, on the importance of planning for the future and shaping it with all wisdom, in which he drew the features of UAE future and established the groundwork to be one of the best countries in the world and the most modern and developed country, and to make its people one of the happiest nations in the world.

A brainstorming workshop for future-shaping was held on the margin of the forum, which attended by 100 students from United Arab Emirates University, Zayed University, and New York Abu Dhabi University, during which they discussed the development of smart travel services, the system of tourist, education and health visas, identity card, upgrading the digital certification services, and citizenship services.

Held on the margins of the forum; a brainstorming workshop for future-shaping that has been participated by 100 male/female students from the UAEU, Zayed University, and NYU Abu Dhabi University, where during they discussed the smart travel services, the tourist, educational, and medical visa system, ID Card, and upgrading digital authentication and Nationality services.

Three workshops

The Forum included three working sessions entitled “From Hafeet to Mars” and was presented by Eng. Salim Humaid Al Marri, Assistant Director-General for Scientific and Technical Affairs and Director of the UAE Astronaut Programme at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center. The second session was held as a panel discussion on ” Future shaping with The Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence” was managed by Omar Al Busaidi, Director of Promotion and Tourism Investment at the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture, with the participation of Dr. Huda Al Khuzaimi, Director of the Cyber Security Center at New York University Abu Dhabi and Dr. Parag Gopal, a researcher in the digital sciences and the Internet at UAEU, Dr. Hisham Maya, SEB’s Industrial director in the Middle East and North Africa, Yousuf Khalili, Executive Director of NXN in the UAE, President of Smart City and Smart Government Management.

The third session of the forum discussed “Technical Future and Future Partners” and focused on the pillars of artificial intelligence, smart government, 3D printing, and intelligent navigation. It was presented by Eng. Shafiq Khashouf, Vice President of SAS International.

At the end of the Forum, the results of the brainstorming workshop for university students and the ideas that were drawn from the discussion sessions were presented, which were included and expected to contribute to the development of the services discussed in the session and to raise them to the best levels, as well as honoring speakers at the forum and a number of distinguished employees in ICA.