Non-Terrestrial Networks International Forum, organized by the Communications, Space & Technology Commission (CST) and The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), has seen an international participation through the opening speech delivered by Mario Maniewicz, Director of the ITU Radiocommunication Bureau, and the presence of Prince Mohammed bin Khalid Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, Chairman of stc; Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha; Minister of Transport Saleh Al-Jaser; Mobily Chairman Nabil Al-Amoudi; Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies South Africa Khumbudzo Ntshavheni; Minister of Communications, Republic of Ghana Ursula Owusu-Ekuful; Governor of the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST) Dr. Mohammed Al-Tamimi and President of General Authority of Civil Aviation Abdulaziz Al-Duailej. The forum saw the presence of more than 11 high-level officials and 26 CEOs of a number of technical companies, 10 representatives of telecommunications regulators, as well as 90 speakers from 130 countries around the world, where Maniewicz delivered an overview of the evolution of radio communications through the atmosphere and outer space, and its contribution to enabling better coverage of 5G networks and beyond, noting that the future of communications will not be through independent networks, yet it will depend on the integration and flexibility of communications operations between terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks. The forum also addressed a number of aspects that began with a session on "Opportunities and challenges to deliver communication services through non-terrestrial networks", where the first session answered the question: Why the world needs non-terrestrial network communications, and the second session focused on "Providing extraterritorial communications services", concluding with the theme "Spreading space and air networking - challenges and opportunities". The event reviewed a number of competition-winning research papers, organized by the Telecommunications, Space and Technology Authority in collaboration with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in the post-5G and 6G non-terrestrial networks, where participants, on the sidelines of the forum, received an educational lecture on the analysis of the performance of non-terrestrial networks using random engineering methodology. The forum will continue today with several sessions beginning with a session on "Integration of ground and space components of wireless networks", followed by a session on "Competition in modern wireless telecommunications". Technical experiences will also be reviewed to cover digital gaps through low-altitude platforms and a number of scientific and technical presentations exploring in-depth and research aspects of the field. The event will continue tomorrow at CST headquarters, to go on with discussing its aspects on the future of the 6G through non-terrestrial networks, the integration of space and terrestrial communications networks, available and available space, as well as the delivery of communications services to unconnected areas, space protection policies and responsibility for the spread of space systems, and orbital debris and sustainable development.
