TEHRAN - A discussion session was held between the Sultanate of Oman and the Islamic Republic of Iran in the field of information and communication technology on Wednesday.

The Omani side was headed by Saeed bin Hamoud al Ma’awali, Minister of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, while the Iranian side was represented by Issa Zarepour, Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Times of Oman reported.

During the session, bilateral relations were reviewed, and discussions were held on strengthening the existing cooperation between the Sultanate of Oman and the Islamic Republic of Iran in the fields of information and communication technology, in a way that serves their common interests and brings more benefits to the two friendly peoples.

The two sides stressed the importance of benefiting from the expertise and experiences in the information and communication technology sector, which contributes to strengthening cooperation in this field.

The Iranian official also met with the Omani Minister for Higher Education, Research and Innovation Rahma bint Ibrahim Al Mahrooqi and the head of the country’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority on Thursday.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed joint academic and research collaborations and made suggestions about the axes of these collaborations.

Referring to the activities of Iran’s Communications and Information Technology Research Institute, Zarepour introduced the capacities of this institute and other Iranian technology parks and called for joint cooperation of Oman’s Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation with Iranian institutions.

The Omani minister welcomed this proposal and it was agreed that by forming a working group, the existing axes for cooperation will be examined and explored in expert meetings.

In another meeting on the same day, Zarepour held talks with the Head of Oman Investment Authority Abdul Salam Al-Murshidi to discuss ways of joint economic cooperation in the fields of communication and information technology.

The visit of Iran's Minister of Information and Communications Technology to Muscat was a response to the visit of the Minister of Communications and Transport of Oman that took place in May. During that visit, the two sides signed a MOU on joint cooperation in areas such as infrastructure, post, post bank, and information technology.

MG