The 1st International Conference on Lebanese Technology Development Techleb 06, took place on May 20th and 21st at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States of America. The mission of the conference is to define the essential initiatives and strategies to make Lebanon the technology hub of the Middle East & North Africa region (MENA). The conference attendees were domain veterans, experts from the Lebanese Diaspora, private sector, NGOs and international organizations. The Lebanese government was also represented by Mr. Tarek Mitri, Minister of Culture, Mr. Marwan Hamadeh, Minister of Telecommunications as well as the Minister of Finance, Mr. Jihad Azour. www.techlebconference.com

Amongst the topics discussed were the current state of affairs in Lebanon, the development of Venture Capitalism, legal infrastructure and IP protection, the role of academia, research and out-sourcing. Participants also studied the key sectors of the High-Tec industry and models of economic development guided by technology in some countries such as Ireland and India. Examples of successful high-Tec businesses in Lebanon and overseas were scrutinized as well, and strategies to prevent “brain drain” examined.