EIAST
2. Serving Humanity through Space Development
Presenter: Dr. Mohammed Al Ahbabi, Director General, UAE Space Agency
Wednesday, 29 April 2015, 09:10-09:20
The space sector provides critical support to humanitarian operations through tools that are affordable, scalable and fast to deploy. The UAE is one of the world’s largest contributors to humanitarian response, and the UAE Space Agency works to put space at the service of humanity through using space technologies for the benefit and future of all humankind.
The United Nations considers information and connectivity as a basic need. Dr. Ahbabi explained how the UAE space sector provides connectivity to many of the world’s crisis-affected areas, plays a significant role in supporting aid organizations to plan and deliver the basic necessities of life, among which food, water, shelter and healthcare, and offers opportunities for collaboration and innovation.
Dr. Mohammed Al Ahbabi, Director General, UAE Space Agency
Dr. Mohamed Nasser Al Ahbabi is the Director General of the UAE Space Agency, which he designed and created, and leads a team of 50 who manage the UAE’s space sector. He is responsible for realizing the Agency’s goals of growing the sector and recommends the National Space Strategy, and related laws, policies, and regulations to the government.
Dr. Ahbabi has contributed and led numerous strategic projects in the ICT domain for UAE government as well as having led a UAE Armed Forces Think Tank Project within the Centre of Excellence, advising Military and Government at the strategic level on emerging concepts and technologies in the area of Smart Defense, Cyber Warfare and Space developments. He was the head of YAHSAT MilSatCom and other space projects. He has an active role in ITU-R, UN Space working groups and ICT professional associations. Dr. Ahbabi is also a key speaker in a number of international conferences in the area of smart defense, mil-Space, cybersecurity, and smart governments. He is a board member of YahSat Company and of the UAE ICT fund.
Dr. Ahbabi obtained his first degree in the USA, and his MSc and PhD in the United Kingdom in the Information and Communication Technologies domain, where he has published more than 20 scientific papers.
Link to related material:
WGET ICT Humanitarian Innovation Forum 