Fulfilling the Promise of the Digital Age
MEDIA RELEASEMay 16, 2022Contact: Dr. Sean Seah. Mobile: +6012 (336) 1933 E: sseah2005@gmail.com Dr. Jim Poisant. Mobile +1 703 728-4547 E: jpoisant@witsa.org
Malaysia Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Meets WITSA SG, to Officially Open WCIT 2022 Malaysia in Penang; MoU Signed to Drive Transformation, Grow Industry
Fairfax, VA: WITSA Secretary General Dr. Jim Poisant on May 11 met with His Excellency Dato' Sri Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob, Prime Minister of Malaysia at Willard InterContinental Washington, D.C. Hotel. During the one-on-one session, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri strongly expressed his support for WITSA’s flagship event, the World Congress on Innovation and Technology (WCIT), which will next be held in Penang, Malaysia, on September 13-15, 2022. The Hon. Prime Minister was confident WCIT would help to grow the tech industry both globally and in Malaysia and put a spotlight on how technology can benefit humankind through innovation and entrepreneurship. He was looking forward to officially opening WCIT 2022 Malaysia in Penang on September 13th, 2022.
The Prime Minister traveled to the United States on a four-day working visit, during which he also met with President Joe Biden, ASEAN leaders and major U.S. companies, including Microsoft, Google, Tesla, Boeing, IBM, Texas Instruments, GE Aviation, Conoco Phillips, Ford, National Instruments, Infineon, Micron, and Insulet.“The WCIT is unique in its global perspective on tech issues and its ability to draw users, providers, media and academia from around the world”, said WITSA Secretary General Dr. Jim Poisant. “Global business, government and academic leaders discuss emerging markets, legal and policy issues, political and economic trends, emerging technologies, tech user perspectives and business opportunities in the global marketplace,” continued Dr. Poisant. “I am delighted that Prime Minister Ismail Sabri will personally join us in Penang to open our ‘Olympics of IT’, which help connect and transform the world by exploring innovative approaches to fulfill the promise of the digital age for everyone.”Dr. Poisant on May 12, 2022 also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between WITSA, Malaysia's Human Resource Development Corporation (HRDC) and The National Tech Association of Malaysia (PIKOM). The signing ceremony was attended by the Malaysian Minister of Human Resources Datuk Seri Saravanan Murugan, Senior Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Azmin Ali and Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah. HRDC was represented by its Chief Executive Datuk Shahul Dawood.
In the MoU, HRDC, PIKOM and WITSA committed to collaborate in organizing WCIT 2022 Malaysia and to drive transformation and grow the industry given that tech is the key driver of the global economy. The parties also agreed to advocate international public policies that advance the industry’s growth and development, to facilitate international trade and investment in tech products and services through their respective global network of contacts, and to promote industry cooperation and strengthen their national associations through the sharing of knowledge, experience, and critical information. The MoU also stipulated that the parties would work closely with internationally recognized organizations to promote and facilitate growth.PIKOM Chairman and WITSA Deputy Chairman Dr. Sean Seah urged businesses, governments, users, media and academia from all around the world to participate in WCIT 2022 Malaysia on September 13-15 and join the conversations to “Connect and Transform the World”, the theme of this year’s Congress. “Billions of online connections are driving innovation and changing everything,”said Dr. Seah. “This changing landscape is a world of opportunities. Make the digital economy relevant to you and you to it,” continued Dr. Seah. “Different economies perceive advances in technology in different ways. How should policy nurture innovation and diversity? What deployment and data are used by governments to respond to change? How should countries and corporations anticipate and respond to shifts and drive actions for positive change, future-proofing technology? Discussions will focus on areas including innovation indices, economic growth, resource depletion, public & private policies, development and more.”Dr. Seah also stated that Malaysia now is open for business, with most COVID-19 travel restrictions lifted since 1st April 2022. Early Bird tickets for attending the congress both in person and virtually are available until June 30 at https://wcit2022.com/wcit/home.About WITSA: The World Innovation, Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA) is the leading recognized international voice of the global digital technology industry, whose members from over 80 countries and economies represent more than 90 percent of the world tech market. WITSA is dedicated to advocating policies that advance industry growth and development; facilitating international trade and investment in digital technology products and services; strengthening WITSA’s national industry associations; and providing members with a broad network of professional contacts.WITSA members are leaders in a globally interconnected marketplace. Because the challenges facing the digital technology industry are undisputedly global in nature, WITSA members work together to achieve a shared vision on important issues of common interest. WITSA makes it possible for its members - ranging from Mongolia and Argentina to Kenya and the United States - to identify common issues and priorities, exchange valuable information, and present a united position on industry issues. For more information on WITSA, please visit https://witsa.org/.About WCIT 2022 Malaysia: WCIT 2022 Malaysia is organized by PIKOM, strategically enabled by MDEC, and the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia and hosted by the Penang State Government. WCIT 2022 Malaysia includes discussions relating to the implications of technological advancements to legal, political and economic trends affecting tech business processes; presentations of innovative solutions from breakthrough technologies; and B2B/G2G meetings to identify and secure new investment opportunities. Past speakers of WCIT include Al Gore, Mikhail Gorbachev, Margaret Thatcher, Michael Dell, Larry Ellison, Bill Clinton, Don Tapscott, Bill Gates, Steve Balmer, John Chambers, Craig Barrett, Nicholas Negroponte, Craig Venter and Colin Powell.For more information about the September 13-15, 2002 World Congress on Innovation and Technology 2022 Malaysia, please visit the official website at https://wcit2022.com/.
