In line with its efforts to promote best practices in the government, Emirates eGovernment, in partnership with Gartner Inc. , held a workshop on Monday 19th December for government entities in the UAE. The workshop titled 'Business Value of Enterprise Architecture- Cases and Lessons' is part of the federal eGovernment strategy of the UAE.

The workshop was held in the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) building in Dubai and was attended by a number of Chief Information Officers (CIOs), IT Directors and IT Executives from government entities in the UAE.

In his opening speech, H. E. Salem Khamis Al Shair Al Suwaidi, Director General, Emirates eGovernment, welcomed government officials who participated in the workshop and highlighted the importance of Business Architecture (BA) for government. He said, "I am pleased to welcome all of you today and take this chance to congratulate you on the 40th anniversary of our Union from which we derive the spirit of cooperation and teamwork."

"Our united efforts in the field of eGovernment are the electronic embodiment of the UAE Vision 2021," Al Suwaidi added.

Speaking about the importance of EA for government, Al Suwaidi said, "Properly deployed and managed Enterprise Architecture is a valuable IT management asset, helping align IT and the organisation operation while shaping the future of both."

The workshop featured Stephane Niango, Executive Partner at Gartner who discussed different aspects of EA including the scenarios in which to deploy EA, the Dos and Don'ts of EA, positioning of EA and how EA is used in government. He also highlighted some success stories and lessons learnt in addition to taking questions from the participants.