Ma3bar
Encyclopedia
ma3bar is the Arab Support Center for Free and Open Source Software
(المركز العربي لدعم البرمجيات الحرة والمفتوحة المصدر) initiated by UNESCO
and UNDP-ICTDAR and hosted by The University of Balamand
. The center’s main goals are to develop FOSS
awareness and to encourage FOSS use and development in the Arab Region. The target groups for the Center are Universities, Research Centers and Governmental Institutions all over the Arab Region, as well as Arab FOSS
communities and interested agencies.
, and the University of Balamand
, the center strives to disseminate free and open source software
as a philosophy and culture in academia
and Arab societies. Ma3bar is committed to contributing to social
and economic development
in the Arab region by promoting the use and development of free and open source software
, and by developing and conducting training programs on such software, to ensure that more Arab communities have affordable access to information technologies.
. The objectives of Ma3bar are three-fold:
The University of Balamand(UOB), with existing initiatives and active FOSS development, has joined the consortium
as a first partner. UOB is proposing to participate actively by supporting and hosting the center. This effort is to be conducted in cooperation with a wider possible set of partners comprising other leading academic institutions throughout the Arab region.
Free and open source software
Free and open-source software or free/libre/open-source software is software that is liberally licensed to grant users the right to use, study, change, and improve its design through the availability of its source code...
(المركز العربي لدعم البرمجيات الحرة والمفتوحة المصدر) initiated by UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
and UNDP-ICTDAR and hosted by The University of Balamand
University of Balamand
The University of Balamand is a private, secular university located at El-Koura, Lebanon. It was founded by the Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius IV of Antioch in 1988...
. The center’s main goals are to develop FOSS
Foss
Foss may refer toPeople*Foss , people with the last name Foss*Foss Shanahan , New Zealand diplomat*Foss Westcott , English bishop...
awareness and to encourage FOSS use and development in the Arab Region. The target groups for the Center are Universities, Research Centers and Governmental Institutions all over the Arab Region, as well as Arab FOSS
Foss
Foss may refer toPeople*Foss , people with the last name Foss*Foss Shanahan , New Zealand diplomat*Foss Westcott , English bishop...
communities and interested agencies.
Mission statement
Ma3bar is the Arab Support Center for Free and Open Source Software. Since its inception by UNDP-ICTDAR, UNESCOUNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
, and the University of Balamand
University of Balamand
The University of Balamand is a private, secular university located at El-Koura, Lebanon. It was founded by the Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius IV of Antioch in 1988...
, the center strives to disseminate free and open source software
Free and open source software
Free and open-source software or free/libre/open-source software is software that is liberally licensed to grant users the right to use, study, change, and improve its design through the availability of its source code...
as a philosophy and culture in academia
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
and Arab societies. Ma3bar is committed to contributing to social
Social
The term social refers to a characteristic of living organisms...
and economic development
Economic development
Economic development generally refers to the sustained, concerted actions of policymakers and communities that promote the standard of living and economic health of a specific area...
in the Arab region by promoting the use and development of free and open source software
Free and open source software
Free and open-source software or free/libre/open-source software is software that is liberally licensed to grant users the right to use, study, change, and improve its design through the availability of its source code...
, and by developing and conducting training programs on such software, to ensure that more Arab communities have affordable access to information technologies.
Objectives
The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the United Nations Development Program – Information and Communication Technology for Development in the Arab Region (UNDP–ICTDAR) have come together to initiate Ma3bar, the Arab Support Center for Free and Open Source SoftwareFree and open source software
Free and open-source software or free/libre/open-source software is software that is liberally licensed to grant users the right to use, study, change, and improve its design through the availability of its source code...
. The objectives of Ma3bar are three-fold:
- Capacity building by providing the necessary training and assistance in developing the necessary skills and competences in the public and the private sectors, as well as in non-government organizations, and encouraging the inclusion of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) courses as part of the standard course offerings in universities as well as networkingSocial networkA social network is a social structure made up of individuals called "nodes", which are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.Social...
the various FOSS communities that exist in the Arab Region. - Support the creation of applications (or toolkits) that will meet the needs of the local market and lead to the strengthening of local and regional expertise.
- Raise awareness at the government and business levels on the potential and viability of open sourceOpen sourceThe term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
solutions and applications as solid alternatives to proprietary softwareProprietary softwareProprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...
.
The University of Balamand(UOB), with existing initiatives and active FOSS development, has joined the consortium
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
as a first partner. UOB is proposing to participate actively by supporting and hosting the center. This effort is to be conducted in cooperation with a wider possible set of partners comprising other leading academic institutions throughout the Arab region.
External links
- ma3bar.org Official Website
- UNESCO.org UNESCO
- UNESCO.org/beirut UNESCO office in Beirut
- University of Balamand
- UNDP.org UNDP
- ICTDAR.org ICTDAR