Doha – November 08, 2026 -- MWC26 Doha opened at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre (DECC) with the mobile economy forecast to add $470 billion to the Middle East and North Africa by 2030. The three-day event is held in partnership with Qatar's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT).
Qatar's communications minister ties AI agents to network resilience demands
Mohammed bin Ali Al Mannai, Qatar's Minister of Communications and Information Technology, delivered the welcome address at the second edition of MWC Doha. Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan bin Ali Al Thani, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs, attended the opening.
Al Mannai said telecommunications infrastructure requirements are changing fundamentally as artificial intelligence advances toward executing tasks through intelligent agents. That shift raises demand for more resilient networks and advanced computing capabilities. He added that global challenges make diversifying connectivity routes and ensuring service continuity more important.
GSMA's Badrinath sets standards and offline populations as regional priorities
GSMA Director General Vivek Badrinath and ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin held a fireside chat on the opening day. Badrinath named two priorities for MENA: continued commitment to global standards that keep networks and services interoperable across markets, and a renewed push to connect populations that remain offline.
"Progress only counts if everyone shares in it," Badrinath said.
MWC Doha co-locates with ITU's PP-26 to feed policy talks
MWC Doha runs alongside the ITU Plenipotentiary, PP-26, which is still under way. Badrinath said the co-location brings policymakers, innovators and industry leaders together and allows enhanced dialogue that will feed into the Plenipotentiary's discussions.