Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 33 | Page 12

NEWS Qatar ranked worldwide number one for mobile speeds Q atar has been ranked number one in the world for mobile speeds, according to the Ookla Speed Test Index. Data for the index comes from the hundreds of millions of tests taken by consumers using Speedtest every month. world, with average download speeds of up to 63.22Mbps, significantly faster than the 23.54Mbps average. The Ookla Speed Test Index compares Internet speed data from around the world on a monthly basis. The results, which are available to view via the Ookla website, show that Qatar has the fastest mobile Internet service in the Waleed al-Sayed, Chief Executive Officer at Ooredoo, said: “This result from Ookla demonstrates Qatar is truly number one for mobile data services. “We know that customers want a 24/7 connection wherever they are in Qatar, which is why Ooredoo has invested in making sure our Internet has the best coverage in the country, so everyone can enjoy the Internet.” “We vow to continue to push our network forward, in terms of coverage and technology, so Qatar is continually the best in the world,” he added. ////////////////// MoI announces online success of family visit visa T he Ministry of Interior (MoI) in Qatar has announced that the online service for family visit visas on its website and Metrash2 has been successful since its launch a few months ago. The MoI is seeking to approve e-submission for this service and dispense with paper requests. Brigadier Abdullah al-Muhannadi, Director of the Expats Affairs Department at the General Directorate of Passports (GDP), said that the ministry had been evaluating the service over the last two months and it was 100% successful. The General Directorate of Passports will evaluate the service on a daily basis and make further improvements. This will substantially reduce the number of visitors to the GDP headquarters and service centres, he added. Brigadier Al-Muhannadi further commented that the ministry had achieved a qualitative 12 INTELLIGENTCIO leap in developing its services to the public, both for citizens and residents, by using the latest innovative technologies to make services easier and improve communication with all segments of society. Service users can upload all the required documents and track the status of requests and pay the fees electronically. Applicants will be electronically notified about any missing or mismatching documents. www.intelligentcio.com