It was in 1997 that the e-government project kicked off with connectivity to 20 sites through an alliance between Bahrain's Central Statistics Organisation (CSO) and Batelco to set up the Government Data Network (GDN).
The network will carry all government data, applications and information. It is being developed on an IP telephony platform. Basic IP telephony continues to be a restricted activity in the Gulf state.
"We do not expect to call a fresh tender for the next phase of connecting sites. It would defeat the objective of providing end-to-end connectivity based on a single solution," said Habib Rabia, manager for core network development, Batelco.
"Based on future requirements, we will consider raising the number of government sites beyond the 100."
Bahrain's telecom sector is bracing for far reaching changes, including the opening up of certain services to multiple providers. A deregulation decision is expected next year.
Meanwhile, Cisco will roll out its metro ethernet switching portfolio to provide next generation business broadband connectivity over a fibre network for the e-government project.
The new ethernet infrastructure will help provide greater flexibility in the way bandwidth is provisioned.
Batelco will also use Cisco IOS software to manage and modify bandwidth allocations on an individual customer basis.
Batelco is working with Schlumberger Network and Infrastructure Solutions for the project. Cisco has shipped out over one million IP telephones in the last two years to the Middle East.
Recently, it won the contract to supply units to Egypt's Citystar Heliopolis project, and has also been associated with the Dubai Internet City.
Quelle: Gulf News
