The Minister of Information and Communication Technology Seyed Sattar Hashemi on Monday stressed the sustained digital development and content production in the era of Artificial Intelligence, saying people were the winners in the Israel-US war against Iran.
Hashemi made the remarks at the quarterly
meeting of the directors of the ICT Ministry themed Resilience, Reorganization
and Synergy of Programs and Activities during which he appreciated the Ministry’s
employees for the achievements gained despite of the war.
Expressing his gratitude to the ICT
Ministry’s staff, private sector and stakeholders during the Israel-US imposed
war, he added that people were the real winners in the war.
The ICT Minister also reiterated
securing the public’s satisfaction, developing communication infrastructure,
making services smarter, completing national projects and increasing the
accountability of directors.
"What we praise today as the
epic of resilience is the result of empathy, sacrifice, and dedication of all
sectors active in the country's communications and information technology
ecosystem.”
Referring to the role played by the private
sector, Hashemi said: "Despite economic restrictions and reduced incomes,
many ICT stakeholders stood by the people and the government and did not allow
the country's communication services to be disrupted.”
People, Pillar of Resilience
The ICT Minister introduced the Iranian
nation as the most important factor in the country's success in overcoming the
difficult conditions of the imposed war and stated: “If the noble people of
Iran had not supported us, achieving this level of resilience in various
fields, including communications, would not have been possible.”
Employees Welfare
He also said that improving the
livelihood of employees is a serious priority for the ICT Ministry and stressed
the role of human resources in realizing the ministry's programs.
"Directors should use all
organizational capacities and even managerial initiatives to improve the
conditions of employees, because human capital is the most important support
for advancing the missions of the Ministry of Communications."
Hashemi stressed holding of meetings
with employees and strengthening dialogue at various management levels, and
said: “Many issues and concerns can be resolved by directly listening to
employees' opinions and creating an atmosphere of interaction and consensus.”
“Our strategy is accountability and
all directors should consider themselves obliged to explain the actions and performance
of the team under their management. It is necessary for managers to have
continuous communication with the public, the media, members of parliament and
other stakeholders and to state the facts clearly and honestly.”
The policy of the ICT Ministry, he
added, is to provide real reports and avoid making up statistics.
Communication Stability
The Minister referred to the stability
of network and services during the war and said: Maintaining the stability of
communications in a situation where the country was facing widespread
population displacement and multiple threats was no small achievement.
“The continuity of domestic platform
services, the stability of communication networks, the continuity of postal
services, maintaining connections with different regions of the country, and
the continuation of providing face-to-face and non-face-to-face services showed
that the country's communication infrastructure enjoys significant capacity and
resilience.”
Referring to the damage inflicted on
sections of the country's communication infrastructure during the war, he
added: “Rebuilding this infrastructure requires optimal resource management.
The use of smart technologies can play a decisive role in this regard.”
In another part of his speech, Hashemi
emphasized the necessity to develop a smart government and integrate executive
agencies’ systems.
“The multiplicity of isolated systems
is one of the country's serious challenges. We must organize government
services in the form of a smart government ecosystem with an integrated
approach.”
Space Industry
Referring to the reorganization in
the country's space sector, the ICT Minister stated: Iran's space industry has
made valuable achievements, but it must move more than ever toward providing
practical services and responding to the country's real needs.
“Reorganizing the space industry and
moving toward new development models is one of the necessities of this field
and must be pursued with a service-oriented approach.”
Fiber Optic
Hashemi termed the development of the
fiber optic network as one of the strategic priorities of the government, and
added: “The significant growth in the number of fiber optic subscribers in
recent months indicates that the country is moving in the right direction.”
“Despite all the limitations and conditions
of the country, the development of the fiber optic network must continue with
speed and seriousness to provide the people with better quality communication
services.”
GNAF Project
The ICT Minister praised the progress
in the national GNAF project, saying, “It is one of the important projects of
the ICT Ministry in the field of data governance and providing smart services.”
“The significant growth in the
implementation indicators of this project is promising, but it must continue
with seriousness until the set goals are fully achieved.”
The minister also stressed the legal
aspects of modern technologies and stated: “The country needs specialized legal
capacities to face emerging technological issues.”
Content Production
Hashemi concluded by highlighting the
developments caused by Artificial Intelligence and said: In the era of Artificial
Intelligence, the main axis of competition is content production, not limiting
the platforms for publishing content.
“Promoting digital literacy,
developing the production of high-quality content, and utilizing the capacities
of artificial intelligence should be on the agenda so that new technological
opportunities can be used for the growth of the country,” he added.