Baku, November 27 (AZERTAC). The 19th Azerbaijan International IT and Telecommunications exhibition Bakutel 2013 will be the largest in the event`s history and coincides with the country`s “Year of ICT”, an initiative of President Ilham Aliyev.

The event will take place from 2nd to 5th December at the Baku Expo Center and will feature almost 300 companies from more than 25 countries. 15 countries including Spain, Canada and France will be promoting their technologies on national stands, while groups from Afghanistan, Italy and the USA will participate for the first time.

Azerbaijani telecommunications operators, Internet providers, systems integrators and distributors of well-known brands will be well represented. The event will also feature special displays related to the Trans-Eurasian Information Superhighway (TASIM), the Azerbaijan space industry and the country`s information technology park project. Particular attention will be given to the development of new business, with special presentation zones and a conference on the "Support of National startups in Azerbaijan".

Bakutel 2013 will be significant for its size as well as the quality and number of activities and events in its business program including the World Virtual Conference of Azerbaijanis. Other seminars and conferences will cover subjects such as: internet development; cyber security; annual forum of telecom operators in the TASIM consortium; the Azerbaijan-US ICT Forum; a meeting of the SPECA project team from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) on the `Development of knowledge based economy` and an event connected to the creation of a centre for specialists in the partnership between the public and private ICT sectors.

Above all, Bakutel and its accompanying business programme provide a forum for business. It is anticipated that a range of memoranda with international industry organizations will be signed over the course of these events.

The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology of the Republic of Azerbaijan has played a key role in the development and establishment of the exhibition with their many years of valuable support.

The exhibition is organized by Iteca Caspian LLC, part of the ITE Group.

This year has been announced as the year of Information and Communication Technology, an initiative of President Ilham Aliyev of the Republic of Azerbaijan. To celebrate this, Bakutel 2013 will demonstrate the achievements of Azerbaijan in ICT in recent years.

The accompanying business program will create a festival atmosphere. There will be many surprises, competitions and prize draws for visitors and exhibitors. There will be an interactive laser show and a special gaming zone, using the latest technologies. Titan, the world famous robot will also visit Bakutel to greet guests.

The international prominence of Bakutel is confirmed by the support of international industry institutes, including the United Nations, the International Telecommunications Union and the Regional Commonwealth in the Field of Communications as well as through being granted the UFI ‘Approved Event’ status. The general sponsor of Bakutel 2013 is HP - a perennial exhibitor at the exhibition.