LOS ANGELES - The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced the 2024 Middle East DNS Forum (MEDNSF2024). Organized jointly by ICANN and the National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ANRT) of Morocco, the forum is slated to take place April 24 -25, 2024 in Rabat, Morocco. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the event, and the first time it will be held in Morocco, according to the official website of ICANN.
The forum will provide an excellent opportunity for regional industry leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders to discuss the evolving landscape of the Domain Name industry in the Middle East.
This year's theme, "Celebrating Progress in the Middle East's DNS Journey," underscores the past ten years' advancements in the region's digital infrastructure and growth in Internet usage. Furthermore, the milestone showcases the collaborative efforts of governments, technical organizations, businesses, and civil society to boost digital connectivity and inclusivity. A focal point will be digital inclusivity, particularly the promotion of Universal Acceptance for domain names and email addresses in Arabic script, leading to a more connected and meaningful online environment.
Other sessions include DNS abuse mitigation for a safer Internet, insights into enhancing DNS operations and security, and the sharing of ccTLD best practices to drive innovation in domain management.
This hybrid event will bring together experts from industry, network and service providers, policymakers, and non-government organizations to discuss the latest developments in areas relating to, or that may affect, the DNS such as cybersecurity, the multilingual Internet, and applicable regulations and legislations. The forum also offers participants an opportunity for networking and collaboration.
ANRT is one of the largest ccTLDs in the Middle East and Africa with close to 120,000 registrations under .ma. ANRT also partnered with ICANN to host ICANN Public Meetings in Marrakech in 2006 (ICANN26), 2016 (ICANN55), and 2019 (ICANN65).