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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

GHEDEX goes online, accessible to all GCC visitors

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The much sought-after exhibition GHEDEX 2021 has not only gone online this year, but it has also got playful touch with gaming activities to suit the taste of the youth, who are one of the main target groups of the annual exhibition for higher education.


The ten-day 24-hour online exhibition will begin on March 28 and conclude on April 6. It has exhibitors from the Sultanate, UK, USA, France, Germany, UAE, and other countries. The peak hours are expected between 8 am — 8 pm Oman time (+4 GMT).


The exhibition’s 20-year celebration had to settle for a virtual reality due to Covid restrictions. Hence, the organisers have developed a virtual event with a real-like feeling in 3D with features like Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, GCC Avatar (national dress), and Gaming Experience exhibition with loads of algorithms and data science.


According to Amr Abdullah Baabood, Group CEO, Arabian Research Bureau (ARB/OITE Group), these are the advantages of this year’s exhibition. “The exhibition is promoted to GCC visitors, while earlier only Muscat visitors could come. At this event, we are expecting visitors from Salalah, Masirah and other remote and far-off places; so every student and parent can attend with an Internet connection and a computer. It is free to attend. Students can visit real-like booths, chat with international representatives and also hold video calls, collect brochures, business cards and get enrolment to global and Omani universities. Covid-19 pandemic has made this impossible and this technology has opened the doors for communication and networking in a safe environment.”


The Global Higher Education Exhibition will also be featuring TRAINEX (Technical Education and Vocational Training Exhibition, Future Skills Oman as well as education technology.


“As Arabian Research Bureau — ARB/OITE are very excited that Oman will host Arab World’s first Artificial Intelligence Exhibition — AI for the Education, Training & Skill Development Sector. This is a landmark development,” explained Sadiq Khan, Group COO of Arabian Research Bureau.


“The exhibition is for anybody interested in higher education, training, skill development and education technologies.”


The regular visitors supported by the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation, and Ministry of Labour are students, parents, young professionals, life-long learners as well as professionals from the education sector. One hundred exhibitors are participating in the exhibition this year.


For the last 12 months, the organisers have been working on the platform to accommodate all the 100 hundred exhibitors.


“The application can be accessed from any computer and the experience is going to be awesome. It is a free invitation for students, teachers and parents. We are expecting visitors from all over the GCC as well as the globe. The App is designed in such a way that people will feel they are visiting the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre. You can choose your own national dress.


“Visitors also can have one-to-one conversations with the exhibitors,” added Khan.


The last one year has seen tremendous changes in education, in both teaching and learning.


Accordingly, the areas that are covered by GHEDEX include education technologies, learning from home and attending education exhibition from home, and experiencing the latest technology.


“As exhibitions were closed in March 2020 and not open until March 2021; we have digitally transformed our business and now want visitors not to miss exhibitions but to visit them and benefit from them.”


“Anybody interested in higher education, training, skill development and education technologies can participate in this exhibition. We have special training for exhibitors to equip them with the capabilities of this application and platform,” pointed out Baabood.


We have special training for exhibitors to equip them with the capabilities of this application and platform,” pointed out Baabood.


“We encourage all schools to get students to log in during classrooms and experience this platform and see for themselves all the available education opportunities. Grade 12 students usually decide their college admissions and we also welcome Grade 11 and 10 so they can prepare in advance on their career path,” said Khan.


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