The speed at which Information Communication Technology (ICT) is continually being innovated and embraced worldwide continues to astonish. As the breadth of ICT grows, so too, it seems, does the faith in its power to change the world; nurturing peace not only amongst Muslims, but society as a whole.

In Islam, there are several terms that are used to denote peace. One of them is the Arabic word islah which means to repair, and can be translated to represent improvement and development. It is therefore in this context that I will examine the role of telecommunications, in particular mobile communications technology, in nurturing peace and in reaching those that matter.

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About the Author

Arve Johansen, Senior Executive Vice President/Deputy CEO and Head of Telenor's Asia operations - has served as Senior Executive Vice President/Deputy CEO and Head of Telenor's Asia operations since January 2006. Mr. Johansen joined Telenor in 1989 and has held a number of positions in the Group. He served as Senior Executive Vice President and Head of Mobile from 1999 to 2005 and was Chief Executive Officer of Telenor International AS from its inception in 1993 to 1999. Prior to joining Telenor, Mr. Johansen was employed at EB Telecom (Ericsson Norway), where he served as Executive Vice President and at the Norwegian Institute of Technology, as a research engineer at ELAB. Mr. Johansen received his M.Sc in Electrical Engineering (Telecommunications) from the Norwegian Institute of Technology in 1973 and participated in the Program for Management Development at Harvard Business School in 1988.

About Telenor

Telenor is one of the world’s largest mobile operators, and one of the fastest growing providers of mobile communications services worldwide. The company is also the largest provider of TV services in the Nordic region. Telenor has mobile operations in some of the world's fastest growing markets as well as in the most advanced markets, and holds ownership interests in mobile operations in 13 countries, constituting a total subscriber base of 115 million as per Q4 2006. In Asia, Telenor has ownership interests in DiGi (Malaysia), DTAC (Thailand), GrameenPhone (Bangladesh) and Telenor Pakistan.

In 2006, Telenor opened its first Research and Innovation facility outside Norway. The centre is located within the Multimedia Super Corridor in Cyberjaya, Malaysia. Cyberjaya was selected due to its high density of technologically advanced and mature companies, a hub for regional development within the ICT industry, and the Malaysian authorities’ strong focus on the further development of the local ICT industry.

For the full year 2006, Telenor’s revenues amounted to approx. NOK91.1 billion, which was an increase of 38% compared with the previous year.

For more information, log on to: www.telenor.com