for the first time,Etisalat Participates at the 41st Cairo International Fair

Etisalat today announced that Ebtikar Card Systems, a subsidiary of Etisalat Services Holding, is participating for the first time in a regional exhibition, the 41st Cairo International Fair. Some of Ebtikar’s services are displayed in a specified section in the ‘UAE Pavilion’. Ebtikar is a regional leader in producing smart cards and payment solutions for mobile operators.

The Cairo International Fair is one of the largest business-to-business and business-to-consumer trade events in the Middle East and North Africa, targeting every major manufacturer, wholesaler, and supplier of products and services. The Fair aims to create favorable conditions for local and foreign enterprises and trade organizations to search for business partners, expand markets, develop production, business and import – export activities. There are 24 countries participating in this year’s event and over 2,000 Egyptian companies.

Ebtikar Card Systems is the first smart card manufacturer in the region and is a division of Etisalat Services Holding. The company specializes in manufacturing a range of smart cards, GSM SIM cards and scratch card solutions. Smart cards manufacturing unit fulfills the exponentially growing card and application demands of the market. Providing a physical support to international telco operators to deliver airtime and value added service to end-users.

In this occasion, Ali Al Sharid, CEO, Etisalat Services, said: “Etisalat is committed to establishing factories to international standards and adopting the latest processes to ensure a world class standard of production.”

In 2007, Ebtikar Card Systems received the ‘Best National Factory’ award from the 2nd Ajman Awards for Industrial Excellence. Ebtikar Card Systems was established in 1996 and produces 400 million cards a year.

Ahmed Bin Ali, Vice President of Corporate Communications, Etisalat, said:  “Etisalat is pleased to be participating in the Cairo International Fair and is committed to Egypt. This reinforces our commitment to provide the best services to our customers in the markets it operates in. Each of the operators in the Etisalat family pursue the same mission, to extend the reach of our customers. They do this through delivering the latest technology to meet the needs of our customers, whether they are individuals, businesses, or service providers.”

March 22,2008