History of ASOCIO from 1984 to 1997

The countries of Asia Oceania have show tremendous growth potential over the years. Economies like China, Australia, Malaysia, Japan observed unprecedented growth over the years. The ICT sectors of these countries had major contributions in this development. To unite the ICT industries of these regions and ensure further growth ASOCIO has been working rigorously.

Asian-Oceanian Computing Industry Organization (ASOCIO) was established in 1984 in Tokyo, Japan. The main objective of the organization was to develop the computing industry in the Asian Oceania region through the promotion of trade relationships between the countries. In June 1984, representatives of various information services industry in the Asia Oceanian region opted for the creation of an organization. This was followed by a promoters meeting in Tokyo in October where preliminary statutes and Plans of Activities of the organization were determined. The first ASOCIO General Assembly was also held in October in Japan where ICT Associations of various countries met including JISA ( Japan ), ASOCIO Australia (Australia ), KIIA (Korea), CISA (China , Taipei), NZCSA (New Zealand). Observers came from China , Hong Kong , Philippines and Singapore attended the meeting. In the meeting General Assembly- Ichiro Tanizawa of Japan was declared president, Kevin Morrisey of Australia was declared vice president, Y.T Lee of Korea was declared secretary and Fujimoto Kazuro of Japan was declared director.

The next year in May, at the second General Assembly, Singapore Federation of the Computer Industry became one of the founding members of ASOCIO. That year in September, third ASOCIO General Assembly was held where interim reports on ASOCIO Member Economies Activities were reviewed.

In October 1986, the fourth ASOCIO General Assembly meeting was held in Seoul, South Korea where Mr. Kevin Morrisey of Australia was declared the President of ASOCIO.

In November 1987, the fifth ASOCIO General Assembly meeting was held in Wellington, New Zealand where ASOCIO members adjusted their activities.

In December 1988, the sixth ASOCIO General Assembly was held in Taipei, China where Dr. Y. T. Lee of Korea was declared ASOCIO’s President. That year Malayasia’s ICT association, The Association of the Computer Industry Malaysia (PIKOM) was accepted as full member of ASOCIO. In that year’s general assembly, necessary amendments relating to membership were made to statutes.

In December 1989, the 7^th General Assembly was held in Singapore. A symposium themed “The Information Industry- Towards the 21^st Century” was also held. Members discussed about development plans and prospects for the software industry, environment and promoting computerization and information industry partnerships.

In June 1990, Officers meeting took place at Washington D.C. That same year in November, the 8^th General Assembly and Symposium of ASOCIO was held in Perth, Australia. Themed ‘Strategic Alliances’ the symposium was aimed at creating a platform for ASOCIO members to meet and forge alliances. In the General Assembly meeting, Mr. Noel Hon Chia Chun of Singapore was declared president.

In June 1991, ASOCIO officers’ meeting was held in Penang, Malaysia. That same year in November, the 9^th ASOCIO General Assembly and Symposium themed “IT Trade Incentives and Opportunities in the Asia-Oceania Region” was held. This year, the Association of Thai Computer Industry (ATCI) became the Vice-President in charge of ASOCIO General Assembly and Symposium.

In July 1992, ASOCIO officers meeting was held in Singapore. That same year in December, the 10^th General Assembly of ASOCIO was held in Bangkok, Thailand. A symposium themed “IT Business Opportunities in ASOCIO” was also held. This year, ASOCIO declared Mr. Richard Yin of CISA, China, Taipei, as the President of ASOCIO. Another noticeable feature of the event was the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) and Information Technology Association of Canada (ITAC) were accepted as guest members.

In June 1993 in Taipei, China, officers’ meeting was held and six strategic initiatives were established in the strategic planning session. The ASOCIO officers also visited various government offices including Institute of Information Industry with an aim to exchange information and understand the public policies with high-ranking government officers. In December of that year, the 11^th ASOCIO General Assembly was held in New Delhi, India. A symposium was also held. The them of the symposium was “IT Strategies for End-User Organization.” The ASOCIO members also visited the Ministry of Science and Technology.

In June 1994, ASOCIO officers’ meeting was held in Seoul, the capital of South Korea. In December of that year, 12^th ASOCIO General Assembly and symposium was held. The theme of the symposium was “Software Market and Opportunities in Asian Oceanian Region and Intellectual Property Rights in ASOCIO Member Economies. Dr. Y. T. Lee of FKII (The Federation of Korean Information Industries) was declared president. On December 2, 1994, the 10-year Anniversary Banquet was held which invited the 26 honorable contributors and past Presidents of ASOCIO.

In July 1995, ASOCIO officers’ meeting was held in Bangkok, Thailand where

eight strategic initiatives were established and a government visit program was arranged to meet with the head of NECTEC of Thailand. In November that year, 13^th ASOCIO General Assembly and Symposium was held. The themes of the symposium were: “Multimedia Applications for Information Super Highway", "Directions of Internet Business in ASOCIO" and "Present and Future of CALS in ASOCIO". Myung Oh, Minister of Construction and Transportation South Korea received ASOCIO IT Award 1995.

In May 1996, ASOCIO officers’ meeting was held in Auckland, New Zealand. The officers met with the senior government officials of New Zealand and Australia. In September that year, 14^th ASOCIO General Assembly was held in Singapore along with COMDEX Asia. At the same year Dr. F.C. Kohli of NASSCOM was elected ASOCIO’s President. Mr. Lim Swee Say, Chairman, National Computing Board (NCB), Singapore, received ASOCIO IT Award 1996. Computer Association of Nepal (CAN) and SEDISI (Spain) were accepted as associate member and guest member respectively. This year ASOCIO also made necessary amendments to its member statutes.

In June 1997, ASOCIO officer’s meeting was held in Taipei, China where five action plans were identified at the strategic planning session with an aim to create a “trans-century vision.” In addition, the ASOCIO officers also met with government officials. In November that year, in Tokyo, Japan, 15^th General Assembly and symposium themed “Staying Ahead in the IT World of the 21st Century” was organized. ASOCIO also awarded Dr. Hirose Inose, Director General, National Center for Science Information Systems, under the Ministry of Education, Japan, ASOCIO IT Award 1997. This year, Federation of Information Technology Industry, Sri Lanka (FITIS) was accepted as associate member.

Reference: http://www.asocio.org/history.php#2009

LG launched its first Android powered phone LG GW620

Android powered mobile phones are gradually taking over the market. In India LG launched its first Android powered smart phone, LG GW620. After the success of LG Chocolate and Cookie Pep, LG launched this Android powered smart phone. Sudhin Mathur, Business Head, Mobile communications said that LG GW 620 is a multi-task phone. It is targeted towards business people who want to perform various tasks through their devices on the go. They surf the Internet, seek direction, listen to songs or watch movies, play games, take pictures, update their status and share photos with family and friends.

• 3” touch screen
• 5 mega pixel camera
• side slider QWERTY keypad.
• GPS
• Eddge
• Wi-Fi
• High Speed HSDPA up to7.2 Mbps
• Inbuilt memory166 MB and can be expanded up to 32 GB via microSD.
• The phone has dual boot option. Users can either run the standard Android menu option or go for the LG-S Class interface.
• Other features include voice calls, text messages, emails, status updates and images and social network sites accessing.
• Price: Rs. Rs 16,490.

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How ASOCIO Can Help IT Sector of Bangladesh?

Bangladesh has strong ties with Asian-Oceanian Computing Industry Organization (ASOCIO) for quite some time. Bangladesh Computer Samity (BCS) arranged 1st Multilateral Trade Visit of ASOCIO on December 2001. Also, On July 2004, BCS hosted the Officers' Meeting, Strategic Planning Session, Executive Meeting and the 20th Anniversary Committtee Meeting. It is expected that sooner rather than later Bangladesh will host General Assembly meeting of the organization. With Abdullah H Kafi, Bangladesh has a very active representative in ASOCIO board. Bangladeshi IT companies can get benefited with ASOCIO.

The best thing that ASOCIO can do is to help to create a better image of Bangladesh add to the brand value of the country. Many people outside of the country have the image that Bangladesh is a country of natural disaster and political conflicts. ASOCIO can at least inform its member organizations about the positive aspects of the country. For example, Bangladesh is a country with continuous 5-6% economic growth. Here, mobile phone penetration is nearly 50%. In this country, the PC market is growing very rapidly. Bangladesh Computer Samity can boast of having 700+ members.

ASOCIO has already done something positive in this regard. In the Fifth edition of ASOCIO Connect, IT sector of Bangladesh has been highlighted. ASOCIO can create a place in its website in which there will be a lot of information about IT sector of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Computer Samity can surely provide the information. Thus, ASOCIO can provide more coverage to this country.

There are numerous events (IT Expo, Conference, Seminars etc) taking place in some of the richer ASOCIO member economies like Australia, Japan, Taiwan and Korea. ASOCIO always encourages its members to visit and actively take part in any event taking place in any member country. It can try to arrange some discounts for Bangladeshi participants.

Inside the country, the IT sector of Bangladesh enjoys a lot of media coverage. However, outside of the country, the media coverage is negligible. ASOCIO can perhaps give some guidelines to Bangladesh Computer Samity about getting more media coverage outside of the country. 

Research is one area, ASOCIO can help Bangladeshi IT sector. Still, no significant survey has been carried out about the IT sector here. ASOCIO officials can request some other member countries to share their experience and skill about carrying out a large scale market survey in Bangladesh. 

ICT Sector of Bangladesh at a Glance

Bangladesh is a country of one hundred and sixty million people. It is a poor country but because of continuous high economic growth, the country is developing and the market here is expanding every year. Bangladesh is a country with rich heritage, intellectual achievements and hard working people. In the last one decade, people have become very conscious about the potential of ICT sector.

The market of computer products has been expanding sharply all the time. If a person visits different parts of Dhaka then she or he will notice the existence of many computer shops. There are more than one thousands computer shops in Dhaka and it perhaps indicates the interest of ordinary people about computer technology. In this country, Computer Science and Engineering is a very popular topic among students in university level. All the Universities (both public and private) have these subjects and it is a very popular choice among the meritorious students. Thus the country produces around 5,000 ICT graduates every year.

Bangladeshi decision makers are keen to support the ICT sector and there is a dream that within a few years, Bangladesh will earn millions of dollars from export of software and ITES. Right now, there are more than two hundred companies that are working in software and ITES field. The revenue from software and ITES sector is slowly increasing.

Bangladesh got connected with internet in 1996 and in the last fourteen years there has been a tremendous growth. Right now there are more than 180 registered internet service providers. Apart from Internet connections from the Internet Service Providers, People can access internet through their mobile phones and in 2009, Wimax came for the users in Dhaka city. It is expected that the market of broadband internet will witness many fold growth in the next one decade and it is a very good time for foreign investors to come and invest in this sector.

There are three major ICT associations. Bangladesh Computer Samity or BCS is the largest ICT association with over seven hundred members. It is an inclusive organization with members from hardware, software and ITES and internet segments. BCS is a member of ASOCIO.

Bangladesh association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) is the association for software and ITES companies. On the other hand, Internet Service Providers Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB) is the association for internet service providers.

The country has witnessed revolutionary growth in the mobile phone sector. Now, Bangladesh has a teledensity of almost 50% and the mobile phone market has been growing at a very fast speed in the last ten years.

There are more than 10 private TV channels and more channels will come in the next two years. There are several FM radio stations and they are very popular among the young generation.

Many of the top tech companies have their office in Bangladesh. Many other top tech companies are well represented by their distributors in the country. Thus, companies like Microsoft, Intel, Canon, HP, Samsung, ASUS are actively present in Bangladesh market.

The government of Bangladesh is keen to promote the ICT sector and the goal of the current government is to turn Bangladesh into ‘Digital Bangladesh’ by year 2021. Thus, there is a lot of good will from the government to support this industry. 

ASOCIO: A Success Story

Asian-Oceanian Computing Industry Organization (ASOCIO) is the most important organization dealing with information technology sector in Asia and Oceania region. It was set up in 1984 to promote better relationship among the IT companies in the Asian-Oceanian region. In the last 25 years, it has expanded its activities. Now, ASOCIO has around 10 thousand companies of the region under its umbrella. Thus, ASOCIO has emerged as the most inclusive organization about Information Technology in the Asian-Oceanian region.

In June 1984, there was a meeting in which Japan suggested that an organization should be created. In October 1984, the first General Assembly was held in which organizations from Japan, Australia , Korea , and Chinese Taipei attended and there were observers from China , Hong Kong , Philippines and Singapore . The current members of ASOCIO are: Japan , Australia , Bangladesh , Hong Kong , India , Indonesia , Korea , Laos , Malaysia , Mongolia , Myanmar , Nepal , New Zealand , Pakistan , Philippines , Singapore , Sri Lanka , Taiwan , Thailand and Vietnam .

ASOCIO also has seven guest members and they are USA , UK , Canada , Spain , France , Russia and Kenya .

If we take a look at the list of member countries then we will notice that many of the countries of East Asia, South Asia and South-East Asia are its members. Countries like Australia, Korea , Japan and Taiwan are among the leading manufacturers of hardware equipments in the world. On the other hand, India and Philippines are among the top names in outsourcing sector. Understanding the importance of ASOCIO, organizations from USA, UK , Canada , Spain , France , Russia and Kenya have become its guest members. It shows the potential of ASOCIO for the future.

The main objective of ASOCIO is to encourage, develop and co-ordinate the interest of the IT companies in the region. It also wants to contribute in the development of the IT industries of the member countries. It is also working to promote the interest of the IT industry of its members in the media.

To meet its major objectives, ASOCIO regularly carries out a number of activities. Every year, there are some events such as Business exchange mission, Multi-lateral Trade Visit, executive meeting etc. Also, it tries to promote the IT exhibitions and conferences to its members and thus, because of active encouragement from ASOCIO, now IT businessmen and leaders of member countries are visiting different countries a lot more than the past.

Only ten or fifteen years ago the relation between Asian countries in information technology was not that strong. The main idea was that Asian countries would only manufacture and give service to rich countries like USA, Canada and Europe. Now, because of active participation and encouragement from ASOCIO, the inter-relationship between Asian countries in IT sector is flourishing.

Ensuring better relationship among member countries, contributing in the increase of inter-trade among its members are perhaps the most important achievements of ASOCIO. As a result, the countries are slowly creating a market of their own and this indirectly is helping the economies of the member countries belonging to ASOCIO. Bangladesh is perhaps one of the major success stories. In the last one decade, the use of computer and internet has dramatically increased in the country.

ASOCIO has a very rich website with a lot of information about the information technology industry in Asia-Oceania. The address of the website is: http://www.asocio.org.

This website contains a lot of information and it can be very helpful for researchers, IT businessmen and journalists who are interested about the IT sector of Asia-Oceania.

ASOCIO officials are active and they are trying to contribute in the development of IT sector of the region. There is some more room for growth. One of things that can be done is to actively pursue members from the Middle East and Central Asia.  

Bangladesh is a member of ASOCIO and Bangladesh Computer Samity (BCS) is representing the country. Right now, Deputy President of Asocio is Abdullah H Kafi who is from Bangladesh. He has been very active in promoting ASOCIO in Bangladesh and at the same time promoting Bangladesh in ASOCIO.

The future of ASOCIO looks to be very promising as the future of Asia looks very promising.

Varudu : Bhanushri Mehra is the heroine

On March 31, 2010, the most awaited Telugu Movie, Varudu, had been released in theatres in the U.S. in Los Angeles, Dallas, and Boston. The movie is directed by Gunasekhar. After a two-year break Gunasekhar came up with this movie. Allu Arjun established himself as an action star in Tollywood. In this movie, you will also see him in doing some great action and dancing sequence.

The movie revolves around a marriage ceremony. Allu Arjun plays the role of an NRI guy named Sandeep aka (Sandy). Though Sandys parents (played by Ashish Vidyarthi and Suhasini) did love marriage against their family’s wishes, Sandy is a bit traditional. He goes for arranged marriage. Sandy’s parents then showed him a girl named Deepti (Bhanushree Mehra). Sandy fells in love with her. On the day of their marriage, Deepti was kidnapped by a psycho (Arya) who also loves her. Instead of leaving her, Sandy then tries to find out her and saves her.

In this movie, Bhanushri Mehra played the female lead. Her name was kept secret by the director. Gunasekhar said that it was necessary for the script of the movie.

The movie got mixed reviews from different websites. Many said that Gunasekhar did very well in the first half but in the last half he failed to keep up with the pace of the story. Overall, Varudu is not very satisfactory for the movie failed to live up to its hype.

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Australia Squad for T20 World Cup 2010

Australian selectors announced their final squad for the upcoming ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2010. In this squad, they have given more importance on young and experienced players. No uncapped player has been included in this 15-man squad. Look at the squad at glace-

Australia Squad: Michael Clarke (captain), Cameron White, Daniel Christian, Brad Haddin, Nathan Hauritz, David Hussey, Mike Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Dirk Nannes, Tim Paine, Steven Smith, Shaun Tait, David Warner, Shane Watson.

Australia has been placed in Group A along with defending champion team, Pakistan, and giant killer, Bangladesh. Australia can face strong protest against Pakistan only. There is no guarantee if Bangladesh can make any upset again or not. However, Australia will try their best to be the group champion putting other two teams behind them. Australia will play their first match against Pakistan on May 2, 2010.

Australian squad is full of young but experienced faces. It seems that the chairman of selectors, Andrew Hilditch, keeps faith on young blood. I have not found so many old players like Ricky Ponting. There is no place for Ricky Ponting. It makes me surprise for he had not been selected in the shortest version of cricket game. He is the most successful captain in the history of the Australian cricket. He has more knowledge about all forms of cricket game. I think that they could call Ricky Ponting to be with Australia team as an advisor. However, Michael Clarke was named captain as the successful ancestor of Ricky Ponting.

I am not hopeful about the performance of Australian cricket team in the third edition of ICC Twenty20 World Cup. But this year they look much strong and they are more confident to get their maiden trophy in this tournament. Australia is the highest four times ICC World Cup winner. They dominated the cricket world for long time but their performance in the last two T20 versions was not satisfactory. So, naturally the question can come up to your mind is that if they could win the champions trophy this year.

Three experienced fast bowlers have been included in the squad. Brett Lee is one of them. He has got a surprise call in the squad. This 33-year-old player did not play much cricket this summer. Selectors expect that he will regain his fitness before the start of T20 World Cup 2010. This prominent bowler has played only T20 match for his IPL team King's XI Punjab after returning from elbow injury. He won selection ahead of the in-form Ryan Harris.

Brett Lee will continue playing cricket in IPL as the preparation of this tournament. He has taken retirement from Test cricket earlier this year so that he can extend his career in both ODI and T20 form of the cricket game.

Dirk Nannes, who plays for Delhi Daredevils in IPL, is in good form. His form brought him in the Australian squad. He is a leading wicket taker in his club. No doubt, he will be a big asset for the Australian cricket team. Despite being a good bowler, he will have to face a tough challenge by Brett Lee or Mitchell Johnson to get place in the main squad. If selectors select three fast bowlers in a match then he will not have to compete for a place.

Mitchell Johnson has become a part of Australian cricket team. He has been included in all forms of cricket game on a regular basis. I think that, as a bowler, he will be the main choice for the selectors.

The exclusion of in-form player Ryan Harris was very shocking. He was very unlucky player to miss selection despite showing his strong performance in all forms of the game in recent times for Australia. Travis Birt is also another unlucky player. He had limited opportunity to catch the selectors’ attention.

Nathan Hauritz is the only experienced spinner. He has good performance in T20 cricket but I am not sure if selectors will give him chance to play anymore.

This T20 World Cup will be a big challenge for Michael Clarke. Perhaps it will be his first cricket tournament as a captain. Cricket lover are waiting to see if he could lead his team successfully as a captain or the burden of captaincy will affect his batting skill.

The selection of Daniel Christian is perhaps a mystery. However, his all-rounder skill with bat and ball gave him a place. He has the experience of playing only 3 T20 international matches.

Hussey brothers- David Hussey and Mike Hussey, is also a part of this tour. David Hussey is a professional T20 batsman while his brother Mike Hussey is a permanent member in all forms of the cricket game.

Brad Haddin is an experienced wicketkeeper-batsman. He has the experience to play for Australia. However, Tim Paine was included as the second wicketkeeper. If Brad Haddin picks up an injury, Tim Paine will replace him.

Cameron White and Shane Watson are two most experienced all-rounders in Australia team. With the bat, Shane Watson can score huge runs and take wickets with the ball. Shane Watson can play in opening or middle order position. Perhaps it is the only advantage of him. He will be a big threat for the opponent teams.

David Warner is an aggressive opening batsman. When he is in good form, he can demolish any bowling line up. I hope that he will make the match more exciting with his aggressive style.

Compare with other teams, Australia looks much stronger and balanced. Let us see how long they can proceed in ICC T20 World Cup 2010.

First AC double-decker rail coach launched in India

On March 30, 2010, India’s Rail Coach Factory launched its first AC double-decker rail coach on Delhi-Mathura section. The coach will be inspected by Railway Minister, Mamata Banerjee and senior officers of Railway Board in Delhi on March 31, 2009. Miss Banerjee talked about the introduction of AC double-decker trains in the Rail budget 2010-2011.

RCF general manager, Pradeep Kumar, said that the factory would start manufacturing the double-decker coaches after completing the “oscillation trials.” Painted in green-yellow, the double-decker coach has all the necessary luxury features and the comforts of a Shatabdi coach.

In India, railway is one of the most popular means of communication and Indian railway is one of the largest and busiest rail networks in the world transporting 20 million passengers and more than 2 million tonnes of freight every day. It is also one of the world’s largest employers with more than 1.6 million employees. In order to keep with the demand of the AC railway coaches, Indian government introduced these double-decker AC coaches.

The AC double-decker coaches were built at the RCF facility in Kapurthala, Pujab. The officials claimed to have completed building the coach in a record time of eight months. If the trial becomes successful RCF will then go into mass production.

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Press Conference of BCS Digital Expo and ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010

Dear journalist friends,

At the press conference of “BCS Digital Expo 2010” and “ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010,” on behalf of the Executive committee members of BCS and BCS fair organizers, I welcome you all. We are very happy to inform you that within few days, we are going to organize a digital Lifestyle Exhibition where we would showcase various digital technologies, latest IT machineries, products, and services.

The four-day exhibition, titled “BCS Digital Expo 2010,” will start from March 31, 2010 to April 1, 2010. Simultaneously, at the same venue, from March 31, 2010, the ASOCIO Multi-Lateral Trade Visit 2010 will be held. You are well aware about the “Digital Bangladesh” initiative undertaken by our current government has been widely acclaimed both nationally and internationally. By organizing this exhibition and international trade visit, we, the members of BCS, show our support to the “Digital Bangladesh” initiative of the government. 

Today, we have gathered here to discuss about various aspects of the “BCS Digital Expo 2010” and “ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit” and collect your valuable feedbacks to make our endeavor more successful.

Dear journalist friends,

We are very happy to inform you that the hon'ble Prime Minister of Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, gave her consent to inaugurate “Digital Expo 2010” and “ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010” on March 31, 2010, as the chief guest. Among others, Finance Minister, Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, Commerce Minister Lieutenant Col.(Rtd) Faruk Khan and Yafes Osman, Science and ICT Minister, will be the special guest of the show. As special guests, Looi Kien Leong, President, ASOCIO, will be present at the show. Abdullah H. Kafi, Deputy President, ASOCIO, will be the honorable guest of the show. In addition, Michael Kuehner, Managing Director and CEO, AXIATA Ltd. and chairman of Southeast Bank Limited, Mr. Alamgir Kabir (FCA) will attend the show.

Bangladesh Computer Samity (BCS), in collaboration with ICT Business Promotion Council, an organization created under Ministry of Commerce, will organize “BCS Digital Expo 2010” for the second time. Simultaneously, another international show, “ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010” will be held at the same venue where representatives from ten countries of the Asian-Oceanian region will attend and discuss on different matters over promoting bi-lateral trade.

The Asian-Oceanian Computing Industry Organization (ASOCIO) was established in 1984 with an aim to promote trade between various ICT organizations of different countries in the region. Since its inception, ASOCIO has been rigorously working towards encouraging and fostering trade relationships between its member organizations. In 1996, BCS became the member of ASOCIO and five years later, BCS organized the first Multilateral Trade Visit in Dhaka. It is a matter of great pride for BCS for it organized the first Multilateral Trade Visit of ASOCIO. Over the years, other member economies hosted the Multilateral Trade Visit of ASOCIO and after ten years, BCS is going to organize ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit for the second time.

One noticeable feature of “BCS Digital Expo 2010” and “ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010” is that for her valuable contribution in creating and implementing the “Digital Bangladesh” project, honorable Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina will be given the prestigious ASOCIO Award. It is also a matter of great pride that for the first time, any head of the government in South Asia is receiving this award. Among the countries of Asia Oceania, previously, Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad of Malaysia (1998), Thaksin Shinawatra former Prime Minister of Thailand (2002) and Phan Văn Khải, former Prime Minister of Vietnam were the proud recipients of the ASOCIO Award.

My dear friends, a revolutionary change is taking place all over the world and at the helm of this change, is the new digital technology. From individual to society, luxury to necessity, work to leisure, everywhere, the digital technology is causing a silent revolution. If we cannot keep up with this new technology then we would not be able to reap its diversified benefits and we would not be able to attain our expected goal of improvement. Though a poor country, digital technology established itself in Bangladesh. For the overall improvement of the socio-economic condition of our country, we need to further ensure the prosperity of digital technology in this region through the promotion of digital technology in every sphere of our lives.

Judging the immense potential of the ICT sector in Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, the current Prime Minister of the of Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, announced her “Vision 2021” under which, she introduced a project titled, “Digital Bangladesh.” On the other hand, Bangladesh Computer Samity (BCS) has been playing a major role in promoting computer and ICT technology in Bangladesh. In 1993, BCS first organized its first IT-based exhibition and since then the organization has been successfully organizing various fairs and exhibitions either by itself or in collaboration under various titles all over Bangladesh.

In collaboration with the ICT Business Promotion Council, an organization under the Commerce Ministry of Bangladesh BCS will organize BCS Digital Expo 2010 at Sheraton Hotel. The show will start from March 31, 2010 and continue till April 3, 2010. Below are given the names of various products that would be exhibited by various organizations in the fair and other important facts about the BCS Digital Expo 2010:

At the BCS Digital Expo various technologies related to IT, computers and accessories, laptop, notebook, palmtop, iPod, mobile PDA and smart phone, multimedia projector, digital still and video camera, LCD monitor and television, digital photo frame, photo-printer, portable audio devices, wireless keyboard, mouse, USB mobile device, etc will be presented at the show. Visitors would be shown live demonstration of these products at the exhibition.

Various Internet networks including Wi-Max connectivity, Wi-Fi and other Internet technologies will be showcased at the exhibition.

The exhibition will also showcase various domestic and international software and multimedia products including audio-visual tutorials, digital education software, office and library management softwares. Along with softwares, various books and journals written by famous writers, digital edition of books and articles would be available at the show.

The BCS Digital Expo 2010 will also organize various seminars, roundtable discussions, technology presentation session.

Exchange of knowledge and views between ICT industry experts of the Asian Oceanian region over improvement and expansion of ICT and discussion about the past, present and future of the ICT sector in this region will also take place.

We hope and believe that this exhibition would bring together consumers, vendors and ICT industry experts.

The exhibition will have a Wi-Fi zone where users would be able to access the Internet for free. In addition, they would be given live demonstration of various new products and technologies.

The exhibition will organize quiz show, product ramping, cultural function and various other interesting and exciting events.

To promote various technological inventions by different institutions, BCS Digital Expo 2010 would also provide complementary stalls.

Dear journalist friends,

It is very important that we, at present, should determine our future goals and activities based on the current economic and political situation and education system of our country.

BCS Digital Expo 2010 is not just any traditional exhibition but an exhibition that would create new opportunities regarding new technologies and products in Bangladesh. It would simultaneously present new inventions and present digital lifestyle which never happened before in Bangladesh. Hence, in the face of building a digital Bangladesh, this exhibition is different from other ICT exhibitions of our country. We made sure that visitors get a taste of something new in this exhibition.

In this expo, several seminars have been arranged by BCS and sponsor companies. Along with it, the participating companies will arrange different kinds of competitions in order to promote their brands and products. On the third day of BCS Digital Expo 2010, the organizing committee will arrange children’s painting competition and it will take place on April 2, 2010, from 10.30 a.m.- 12.30 p.m. The competition will take place in three topics and age categories. In BCS Digital Expo 2010 venue, there will be a controlling center from BCS and all the activities will be managed from here. There will be a supporting team to help the visitors and participating companies to provide all out support. The security team will work to ensure safety. Apart from it, there will be a team consisting of reporters and photographers who will provide all the supports to the journalists. There will be a food court in the expo venue where people will be able to enjoy different kinds of food items and drinks.

The ticket price is taka 20. However, school students will be able to enter at free of charge by showing their identity cards. One of the new attractions of this fair is that the visitors would be able to buy tickets from their mobile phones.

I would like to inform you that to ensure the smooth functioning of the ICT Expo, an organizing committee and several sub-committees have been formed.

At the same time, in order to promote the ICT sector of Asia Oceania region, BCS and ASOCIO are going to jointly host ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010 from March 31, 2010 to April 1, 2010. In this event, ASOCIO President Looi Kien Leong will head the ASOCIO delegates and participants from Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Pakistan etc. The ASOCIO representatives would meet the government and high officials of some organizations. Here it should be mentioned that ASOCIO is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. According to the decision of Executive Body of ASOCIO, honorable Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, will be awarded 'ASOCIO ICT Special Recognition Award' for her special contribution to the development of the ICT sector of Bangladesh and planning and implementing the vision of “Digital Bangladesh.” In order to ensure the smooth operation of the ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010, a high-level organizing committee has been created and it will be headed by Abdully H. Kafi, the current Deputy President of ASOCIO and the former president of Bangladesh Computer Samity.

  

Dear Journalist friends,

Now, I like to remember with gratitude the enormous contribution of ICT journalist in the development of ICT sector of Bangladesh. I would particularly like to remember your contribution and thank you for helping Bangladesh Computer Samity and supporting all our activities by giving us due media coverage. I have no hesitation to say that the media has a lot of contribution in making Bangladesh Computer Samity popular and making our programs and activities acceptable to the ordinary people. Like the past, this time too, we expect all the support from the media and I like to remind you that we from BCS are ready to give you any kind of information and support you in every way. During the time of BCS Digital Expo 2010 and ASOCIO Multilateral Trade Visit 2010, the journalist can contact with the members of media committee and if they wish they even can directly contract with me. Also, BCS will provide updates of the events through two websites: http://www.bcs.org.bd  and http://www.bcsdigitalexpo.com.bd/ .

In the end, I like to thank all of you for your presence today and making this press conference a success.

Md. Shahid-Ul-Munir

Convener, BCS Digital Expo 2010

BCS Digital Expo 2010 at a glance

Theme: Towards digital Bangladesh.

Venue: Dhaka Sheraton Hotel, 1, Minto Road, Dhaka.

Date: March 31, 2010- April 3, 2010 everyday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Platinum sponsor: Axiata Bangladesh, Limited

Gold sponsor: Samsung, Microsoft

Official WiMAX partner: Banglalion Communications Ltd.

Official Bank: Southeast Bank Limited

Ticket counter sponsor: Caspersky.

Volunteer dress sponsor: United Computer Center.

Media partner: Desh TV, The Daily Samakal, Radio Today.

Internet connection: Fibre optic broadband connection, Wi-Fi, free Internet browsing zone.

Ticket price: Regular cost of ticket is taka 20. Upon showing leaflet visitors will get 50% discount. Students upon showing their ID will have freen entrance.

Number of exhibitors: 45

Number of pavilions and stalls: 20 and 42

Email: samity@bcs.org.bd, secretariat@bcs.org.bd

Website: www.bcsdigitalexpo.com.bd

Zimbabwe Squad in T20 World Cup 2010

Zimbabwe cricket selectors announced their final squad of the forthcoming ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2010. The squad consists of 15 members. However, only one uncapped player has been included in this squad. Here are the names:

Zimbabwe Squad for T20 World Cup 2010: Prosper Utseya, Brendan Taylor, Hamilton Masakadza, Tatenda Taibu, Charles Coventry, Vusimuzi Sibanda, Gregory Lamb, Elton Chigumbura, Graeme Cremer, Raymond Price, Christopher Mpofu, Tymcen Maruma, Craig Ervine, Andy Blignaut, Chamunorwa Chibhabha.

Zimbabwe has been put in Group B with Sri Lanka and New Zealand. They will start their campaign against New Zealand on May 2, 2010.

No doubt, Zimbabwe will go to the competition as an underdog team. They are one of the weakest contestants in this tournament and have no possibility to win any match. You should know that this team withdrew from the 2009 competition. That is why, they have failed to get a seed or rank for the 2010 competition.

Zimbabwe can be a weak team but any big team can be upset by them. In their inaugural Twenty20 World Cup tournament, they defeated Australia. It is expected that they will repeat the history this year. I hope that they will perform well in this upcoming shortest version of cricket game. Zimbabwean cricket team has developed a lot within a short time. I hope that they will be a big threat for big teams.

It is impossible to forget the name Charles Coventry. He toppled Saeed Anwar’s record of 194 runs in ODI cricket. Charles Coventry scored same runs but he was unbeaten till the end. He may break record in T20 cricket also.

Craig Ervine is likely to make his debut in the international cricket in this upcoming third edition of Twenty20 World Cup. His impressive performance in his club, Southern Rocks, gave him a place in the main squad. He averaged 35 in the first-class game and over 53 in ODI format of cricket. This 24-year-old player is the younger brother of Sean Ervine. However, elder brother Sean Ervine cannot find a place for himself as he is still tied to a contract in English county cricket.

Former international player, Andy Blignaut, has been recalled. The 31-year-old all-rounder was perhaps a shock recall in this squad. It took him five years to be included in the national team. Blignaut was one of the players who fell out with Zimbabwe after joining a strike by players dissatisfied with their contracts. However, his good performance in the local 20-over competition for Matabeleland Tuskers helped him to return to the squad. He averaged 37 this season.

All-rounder Greg Lamb is another new face who has been included in the squad. He played his only T20 match against West Indies on 28^th February 2010. His all rounder performance satisfied the selectors.

In the squad, we can see that there is no place for Shingi Masakadza and Stuart Matsikenyeri. They have been excluded from the player’s final list. Their bad performance in the recently concluded ODI series in West Indies was the only reason for not selecting them. Zimbabwe lost to West Indies by 1-4.

Because of the injury fast bowler, Kyle Jarvis, cannot tour the Caribbean with Zimbabwe team.

The return of top-order batsman, Chamu Chibhabha, will inspire the team to make upset against the strong teams. He had good performance in Zimbabwe’s domestic Twenty20 competition last month. He was the second highest run scorer.

So far I have talked about the batsmen and the all rounder. I think that Zimbabwe will have to face problem for their weak bowling line up. Their bowlers are not much experienced. Let us see how they intend to overcome this problem.

Prosper Utseya was named as captain. He will lead his team in this competition.

Bharti Airtel will sign deal with Zain on March 31st

Bharti Airtel, India’s largest telecom operator, is going to sign deal with Kuwait mobile operator, Zain, to take over its assets in Africa. The $10.7 billion deal will ensure Bharti Airtel’s entrance into the African mobile phone market. On the other hand, the government of Gabon disapproves of Zain Gabon’s sale to Bharti Airtel and declared to take “all the necessary measures.”

The deal has already been approved by the boards of both companies. Last week, Bharti and Zain reported that all the necessary works have been done and the two companies would sign agreement pretty soon and then the announcement came on March 25, 2010. It was also the last day of the “exclusive talks” between the two companies.

Upon completion of the deal, Bharti Airtel would become the seventh largest telecom company in the world with a subscriber base of 171 million. Zain has its business in different regions in Africa.

According to Kuwaity daily, Al-Watan, the deal signing ceremony would take place at the headquarters of Zain Africa in Amsterdam on March 31, 2010. Zain’s Chairman Asa’ad Al Banwan, CEO Nabeel Bin Salamah, and Bharti Enterprises’ Chairman Sunil Mittal and other senior officials would be present in the ceremony.

After signing the deal, Asa’ad Al Banwan would return and hold a board meeting on Wednesday where the annual results Zain will be approved.

Related article:

The Hindu

Sania Mirza will be marrying Pakistani cricket star Shoaib Malik

Famous Indian tennis player, Sania Mirza, has got engaged to Shoaib Malik, the former captain of the Pakistan cricket team. The news was given out by a TV channel in India. The news reports said that the two sports stars are going to get married next month.

Earlier, another huge sensation was created when Sania Mirza broke up with her Hyderabadi businessman fiancee, Sohrab Mirza. On the other hand, Shoaib Malik was rumored to have married another Hyderabadi girl, Ayesha Siddiqui over the phone. However, Shoaib Malik refuted the claim and said that he was only engaged to her. The news channel also said that Shoaib’s mother went to India to meet with Sania Mirza’s parents and fix the marriage.

The ‘Walima’ or reception will be held in Lahore on April 16^th or 17^th according to the news channel. Sania and Shoaib fell in love some six-and-half months ago and many are speculating this to be the reason behind Sohrab and Sania’s break up. About the relationship, Shoaib Malik said:

“I desire to get married soon. You will soon get some good news but it depends on my family. I fully expect to get married this year,.....No can say what will happen, but it will take place with the concurrence of my family.”

Here is video clips about the news on Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik’s marriage.

Wills India Fashion Week 2010: A new controversy

It seems that Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week 2010 will be remembered in the history for the controversies rather than the designers. In the opening day, there was no fashion show because the organizers failed to get the fire license in due time. So, a lot of fashion designers and fashion houses were unhappy. They could not show their products in the opening day.

Today, the organizers Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI) tried to please those designers by increasing the duration of the event by one extra day. In the last day, the designers of the first day would be able to show their clothes. Puneet Nanda is unhappy about it and he is not going to show his products in the last day. The organizers tried to convince him but he would not do it.

Pakistan Squad for T20 World Cup 2010

Pakistan cricket selectors have announced a 15-man squad for ICC World Cup Twenty20 2010 which will be played later this year. In this squad, only nine players have been picked who have the experience to play the Twenty20 World Cup 2009. Twenty20 World Cup 2010 will be a tough competition for defending champion Pakistan. They will have to struggle hard to defend their trophy. Pakistan won the trophy in 2009 after defeating Sri Lanka in the final match at Lords. Fans will be watching to see if they can hold the crown for the second time. Pakistan has been placed in Group A along with Bangladesh and Australia. They will start this tournament with the match against Bangladesh on 1^st May, 2010. Here is the squad:

Pakistan Squad for T20 World Cup 2010: Salman Butt, Mohammad Hafeez, Khalid Latif, Misbah-ul-Haq, Fawad Alam, Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi (Captain), Abdul Razzaq, Yasir Arafat, Hammad Azam, Kamran Akmal (Wicket Keeper), Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Aamer, Saeed Ajmal.

Reserves: Shahzaib Hasan, Mohammad Sami, Raza Hasan, Naveed Yasin, Sarfraz Ahmed (Wicket Keeper).

Among 15 players, there is only one uncapped player in the squad. He is Hammad Azam. Hammad Azam is an all rounder. He impressed the selectors with his performance in U19 world cup in New Zealand where Pakistan lost to Australia in the final match.

I think that fans will be surprised for the exclusion of Shoaib Malik and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan. These two experienced players have not been able to get their place in the squad for their long term ban.

There was confusion about the selection of captain for the upcoming Twenty20 World Cup. Selectors announced Pakistan squad without naming a captain. After a long dispute, Shahid Afridi was named captain for Pakistan cricket team. Shahid Afridi was seen leading Pakistan cricket team in the last Twenty20 World Cup when Younis Khan took retirement from the shortest version of cricket.

Pakistan T20 captain Shahid Afridi is not satisfied with the squad. He wanted some changes in the main squad. He also talked with Chief selector Mohsin Khan and Coach Waqar Younis and discussed about the team. May be, from next year, captain’s input will be considered prior to the team’s selection. But it is not possible now. However, if you look at the squad then you can see that Pakistan’s batting line up looks little bit shaky. How can they defend their title with these batsmen?

Ahead of the Twenty20 World Cup, Misbah-ul-Haq, Salman Butt and Mohammad Hafeez have been recalled.

Who will open for Pakistan? It seems that Salman Butt will open along with Mohammad Hafeez. The inclusion of Salman Butt in the squad will be a big challenge for him to prove his skill in the shortest version of this game. I am hopeful about the performance of Mohammad Hafeez in this upcoming Twenty20 World Cup 2010. He has become able to make his place in the squad after showing his excellent performance in the RBS T20 Cup.

The inclusion of two Akmal brothers was perhaps a good decision taken by Pakistan Cricket Board. Both Umar Akmal and Kamran Akmal will tour the Caribbean country with Pakistan cricket team. Umar Akmal is a young promising batsman. He has a lot of potential to be one of the future star players. I think I don’t need to use more words for Kamran Akmal. You already know that he is an effective wicketkeeper-batsman. He will be a big threat for the opposite teams.

Misbah-ul-Haq is one of the most senior players who have been selected for the forthcoming T20 world cup. Misbah-ul-Haq had been left out from all three forms of cricket game last year by the selection committee. The only reason was that he was not consistent in performance. However, he was picked up in Test squad at the request of Mohammad Yousuf but his bad performance dropped him again from the ODI squad.

The inclusion of Abdul Razzaq will be a big boost for Pakistan cricket team. He is consistently performing well. His all rounder performance may lead Pakistan team to win the crown for second time. However, Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi went under huge criticism after being found ball tempering. For this incident, he has been punished twice. ICC banned him for two matches while PCB fined him. He was also punished for his poor performance in Australia tour. Despite his punishment, Afridi remains in the running. Yasir Arafat is another all rounder.

Pakistan selectors have included only one wicketkeeper in squad. I think they will select second wicketkeeper for any necessary. If Kamran Akmal is injured then the second wicketkeeper can replace him. Sarfraz Ahmed is a wicket keeper and he is in the reserve team.

In this squad I can see only two experienced fast bowlers- Umar Gul and Mohammad Asif. They both are good and wicket taking bowler. But I hope that selectors will also think about Mohammad Sami. He is also a good fast bowler. Mohammad Sami has been included in the reserved squad. Saeed Ajmal is the only specialist spinner in Pakistan squad. Pakistan cricket team can cover their lack of batting with their strong bowling line up.

Perhaps poor ground fielding is the main problem for Pakistan cricket team. We have seen them to suffer a lot for their weak fielding. What will they do to improve their ground fielding?

At the end, we can say that they are not a very balanced team.