15th-18th May, Abu Dhabi, UAE - Keynote speakers from organisations such as NATO, Dubai Municipality, and the Royal Jordanian Geographic Centre have confirmed their participation in the 4th annual Geospatial Intelligence Middle East conference, taking place 15th-18th of May 2011 at the Fairmont Bab Al Bahr hotel in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Colonel (Ret.) Neil Thompson, Managing Director, Westfield Consulting Group and Former Director Geospatial Intelligence, Canada Defence HQ, recently emphasized on the importance of the conference for future modernisation:

“Geospatial Intelligence Middle East is the ideal opportunity to review advances and to evaluate the multitude of ways in which GEOINT can now be utilised by the agencies and organisations tasked with protection against this multitude of threats and is a must-attend event for anyone looking to advance their own use of GEOINT”.

This event, hosted by Defence IQ, will gather experts tasked with improving protection abilities through the use of geographic information systems. The conference will offer presentations by more than 25 international speakers, discussing how geospatial intelligence can protect countries against internal or external threats as a result of deliberate attacks, natural disasters, criminal acts, or military operations.

Speakers addressing future strategy for development at the conference will include:

• Abdul Karim Al Raeisi, Executive Director, Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Centre (ADSIC), UAE
• Lieutenant Colonel Ali Mohammed Alshehhi, Manager of Falcon Ground Station, United Arab Emirates Space Reconnaissance Centre
• Colonel John Kedar, Chief of Staff, Headquarters Engineer in Chief (Army), UK MoD
• Karen Steinmaus, Head of Satellite Imagery, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
• Michael W. Powers, Technical Director, Geospatial Research and Engineering, US Army

Defence IQ invites all members of the public sector, government or military organisations in the MENA region to attend for free. Passes can be requested from Johanna Mikkela at Email Contact.

To view the full list of speakers or to obtain more information about Geospatial Intelligence Middle East please visit www.geospatialdefence.com or contact Email Contact. The Defence IQ Middle East Linked In Group is open for membership at http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2981611&trk=hb_side_g.