19.09.2012 page 1© 2012 asren, gmbh, all rights reservedankabut users meeting- al ain, united arab...

19.09.2012 © 2012 ASREN, GmbH, All Rights Reserved Ankabut Users meeting- Al Ain, United Arab Emirates

Salem Al-Agtash, Ph.D.ASREN/ German Jordanian University -

JordanAnkabut Users Meeting – Al Ain, 19.9.2012

[email protected]

Future prospectiveRegional Connectivity in the

Arab Region


Purpose of keynote Understanding challenges of Research and Education (R&E)

Understanding the current status of Arab e-Infrastructures

Generic overview of some key technical and operational requirements for a regional connectivity

Intended to seek consensus on the next steps to be taken towards developing Arab regional connectivity – future prospects


Outline Highlights of Education and Research in the region

Some facts, research growth and collaboration Why R&E networks are important Joining global development for advanced facilities and resources

Status of Arab ICT infrastructure and connectivity Resources and facilities

ASREN/ EUMEDCONNECT Towards developing regional connectivity Other important supporting projects

Prospective (I, II) for a future regional connectivity


Arab youth is estimated at about 200 million About 1000 Arab institutions hosting 20

million students (9M in universities) 10% are enrolled in postgraduate studies (8%

master, 2% doctorate) 80% of the undergraduate students are

enrolled in humanities 20% science

Highlights


0.8% international students to Arab universities

53% of out-going students at the postgraduate level (doctorate)

Average regional spending 5% of global spending, compared to 60% in industrialized countries

Government expenditure on research and development is 0.2-0.5% of total GDP, compared to 3-5% in industrialized countries

…….


Research growth: Turkey, Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan Turkey

produces ~ half of

the region’s

research output

Iran produces

~ one-quarter

Egypt slightly

less than one-

eighthSaudi

Arabia/ Jordan ~

half as much as

Egypt


Research growth: UAE, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Iraq, Qatar, Syria, Bahrain, Yemen United

Arab Emirates has the highest annual publications in 2009 with a steep progression


Focus of Research Fields of

research ranked by % of global share for 2005-09

Engineering is the greatest world share

Agricultural sciences comes next, then clinical medicine and chemistry


Research collaboration

Jordan (43%) has the highest percentage of national output with international co-authors

Egypt (39%)

Saudi Arabia (38%)


Implications Regional research currently lags

significantly A regional network of collaboration is

unrealized Research portfolio in the region is

dynamic and is showing a growing volume of excellence

With increasing research growth, there is a potential for more scientific activities

Resources are enormous and potential for achievement and innovation is vast.

Development of human capital and enhanced research infrastructure are critical to enabling a further growth


Why research networks? Research is increasingly becoming

computationally intensive and dependent on fast communication networks

Research has become dependent on community efforts and international collaborations to solve most pressing problems and issues

Research has become digitally dependent, for access, sharing, collaboration

SO: N/R – REN need to develop in a new

context “not just networks any more” Globalized platform, driver of

community innovation, market aggregator, source of knowledge creation and economic development, transformational vehicle, and political stabilizer


Why regional R&E is important? Current situation - NO regional connectivity

Jordan Universit

y

Jordan Universit

y

United Arab

Emirates University

United Arab

Emirates University

JUNETJUNET Ankabut

Ankabut

Arab region

InternetUS or EUInternetUS or EU

Regional communication passes by International (high cost) links

No Community Building

Regional communication passes by International (high cost) links

No Community Building


Jordan Universit

y

Jordan Universit

y

United Arab

Emirates University

United Arab

Emirates University

ASREN/EUMEDASREN/EUMED

The Arab region

InternetUSA or EUInternet

USA or EU

Internet

Provider

Internet

Provider

High Quality

Universities in

Europe/ USA

Universities in

Europe/ USA

JUNET

JUNET

AnkabutAnkabut

Regional communication stays regional (low cost, high bandwidth, better Performance/Price)

Connectivity to R&E sites in EU/USA is Direct, Dedicated, HQ

Economy of Scale and Strong Community Building

Regional communication stays regional (low cost, high bandwidth, better Performance/Price)

Connectivity to R&E sites in EU/USA is Direct, Dedicated, HQ

Economy of Scale and Strong Community Building

Scenario - Research with regional connectivity

19.09.2012 © 2012 ASREN, GmbH, All Rights Reserved Ankabut Users meeting- Al Ain, United Arab Emirates 14

The Global NetworkGlobal R&E connectivity


e-Infrastructure at «world» scale

15

>340 sites in 57 countries

~337,000 CPU cores>220 million GB of

storage~1 million jobs/day

~20,000 users in ~280 VOs

Available resources


Access paradigm

Scientific resources

. . . . .

Linking at the speed of the lightLinking at the speed of the light

Sharing computers, software and instrumentsSharing computers, software and instruments

Sharing and federating scientific dataSharing and federating scientific data


Status in the Arab region


Available CPU cores ~ 220 with limited cores per site, compared to 337,000 CPU cores available for access worldwide

Middleware support in Alegria, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and UAE – gLITE


EUMEDCONNECT, 2004 --> [1], [2], [3] PAN Arab Network, 2005 Rome Declaration 2006 - CAMREN NAP, the Network Access Points 2007 ASREN, 2010

EUMED - Brussels, March League of Arab States – Cairo, Dec.

ASREN GmbH - Dusseldorf, June 2011 Abu-Ghazaleh & Consulting GmbH Jordan University Network Moroccan CNRST Sudan REN Somal REN

Arab States Research and Education Network


The EUMEDCONNECT R&E network

project 2004 -2014 (3 phases), 14M Euro of EC funding

The only regional R&E Network in the Arab Region

NRENs in Algeria (ARN), Egypt (EUN), Tunisia (CCK), Jordan (JUNET), Morocco (MARWAN), Palestine (PALNET) and Syria (HIAST) were connected to its European counterpart GÉANT

Served more than 2 million users in around 700 institutions


An Internetwork for the Arab World ASREN/EUMEDCONNECT helps to build

research communities to tackle regional most pressing problems and issues, examples: Water

management and

sustainable farming

Thalassemia

Access to

education in

remote areas

Preservation of cultural heritage

Desertification


The EUMEDGRID Support Project

Coordination and Harmonization of

Advanced e-Infrastructures

Exchange Programme to advance e-Infrastructure

Know-How

Other Supporting Projects funded by EC


Globalization of Grid Infrastructures

EUMEDGrid Support(www.eumedgrid.eu)

Network Infrastructure

e-Science Collaborations

Grid Infrastructure


EUMED countries and operating sites


Hosting the Africa & Arabia Regional Operation Centre

Support of Users and Site Administrators

Same tools of EGI

Set up in collaboration with SAGrid, EUMEDGRID-Support, CHAIN, EPIKH. …


The CHAIN project(www.chain-project.eu)

Largest e-Infrastructure related knowledge base.

Information available for about half of the countries of the world.


RREN(s) NREN NGI CA(s) Id.Fed(s) ROC(s) Grid

site(s) Applicati

on(s) Science

gateways


Exchange Programme to advance e-Infrastructure Know-How” (EPIKH)

Building e-Infrastructures is a waste if we don’t “build”, at the

same time, their users.

The EPIKH Project (www.epikh.eu)


The EUMEDCONNECT3 A new phase EUMEDCONNECT3 runs 2011 – 2014 Co-ordinating Partners: DANTE and ASREN Opportunity to extend the network to other Arab countries

“A first step towards a Pan-Arab network for research and education”


Ankabut

Prospective I: Interconnecting Arab States National R&E Networks Regional connectivity of Arab NREN’s

towards a better future growth and prosperity

Initial interconnectivity model Internet

ASRENDANTE/ London

Géant Internet2

Palestine

PALEN

Other NREN

Algeria -

ARN

Morocco

CNRS


RCN/ JADI cable systems


SEA-ME-WE 4 cable system


With activation of various affordable cable systems (e.g. RDC, JADI, TGN-Gulf, IMEWE, SMW-4, etc. ) Capacity prices would fall, then More and more Arab NREN’s will connect with each other and become a hub between continents

Governments enforce low Tariffs and subsidize for the Last mile connection to local NRENs

Hopes


Prospective II: Interconnecting Regional RENs

InternetGéant, Internet2 and RENs worldwide

UbuntuNet

WACREN

ASREN


A logical topology Could be

cost efficient to rest on two or three regional hubs

Fujairah Smarthub could be emerging as an aggregation of important R&E landings


Summary • Increasing interest in building regional

Arab R&E network as globalization of e-Infrastructure became inevitable – Strength

• Lack of physical connection and no regional network of collaboration - Weakness

• Continuing of EC funding on regional efforts for e-Infrastructure and a growing excellence of Arab research portfolio - Opportunity

• Lack of vision and motivation at the regional policy level – Threat


Conclusion • JUNET, MARWAN, SUDREN – Current

ASREN shareholders

• All 22 Arab “existing+TOexist” Arab

NRENs to become ASREN “Shareholders”• Developed ASREN backbone with the

support of the private sector • Become consolidated in the globalized

REN platform


ASRENOrg.net


• “It is very difficult to say what is impossible for yesterday's impossibility is today’s hope and tomorrow’s reality”

Rocket Engineer: Robert Goddard


Inter-University cooperation confirms the original vocation of universities as meeting places between different cultures; as means of technological advancement and economic development; and as institutions open to dialogue and to comparison between different ethnics, religious and social identities

Principles of the 1995 Barcelona Declaration

Cooperation and collaboration – important elements

19.09.2012 page 1© 2012 asren, gmbh, all rights reservedankabut users meeting- al ain, united arab...

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