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| A comprehensive guide
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Valuable concise reference source on the UAE,
covering political system, economy, business, history and heritage,
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Natural history of the UAE,
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Khalifa Bin Zayed Foundation, Virgin Unite ink cooperation agreement
posted on 03/07/2009
 The Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Charity Foundation has yesterday agreed with Virgin Unite, the non profit foundation of the Virgin Group, to jointly work on education and health initiatives.
H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Board Chairman of Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation, and Sir Richard Branson signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Abu Dhabi to commence the partnership.
H.H. Sheikh Mansour, said: "The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is determined to improve the lives of people all over the world and has already contributed significant funds through the Khalifa Foundation. We are delighted to be announcing this partnership with Richard Branson and Virgin Unite who share our passion for creating opportunities to help people lift themselves out of poverty." Sir Richard Branson said, "We are very pleased to be partnering with the UAE through the Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Charity Foundation, who do brilliant work in helping to alleviate poverty and suffering all over the world. The two foundations will form a great team to work closely with people and organisations on the frontline to create entrepreneurial approaches to ending poverty." The partnership will focus initially on education initiatives to help create job opportunities for young people. Both organisations have a wealth of experience in creating education opportunities.
The Khalifa Foundation has successfully achieved a qualitative movement in its humanitarian and charitable activities through its local and foreign projects. The foundation activities have covered all the state '&' more than (35) countries around the globe.
Locally it supported more than 30.000 thirty thousand students in their tuition fees, meals, stationary, clothes shoes '&' other needs. Regionally, it is planning to launch a number of initiatives in vocational education in selected countries.
Virgin Unite works all over the world to bring people together to tackle tough environmental and social issues in an entrepreneurial way. This includes helping to incubate and launch global initiatives such as the Elders and frontline projects such as health clinics in Africa.
In the area of education, Virgin Unite launched the Branson School of Entrepreneurship in Johannesburg, South Africa, three years ago and has since trained thousands of young people and helped to incubate and fund their small businesses. The Branson School of Entrepreneurship is in the process of expanding into Kenya and several other countries.
The two foundations will work closely together in the coming months to build a strategic plan and conduct due diligence for relevant educational initiatives with local and international partners. These joint initiatives will help create thousands of jobs and provide young people in poverty a chance for true economic freedom. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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UAE is ready to offer its expertise to ISESCO: UAE Minister
posted on 03/07/2009
 The UAE commended yesterday the role the Islamic, Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (ISESCO) is playing in promoting the Islamic culture regionally and internationally and offered to put its potentials at the service of the pan-Islamic body.
'The UAE stands ready to pass its rich expertise and achievements to ISESCO to enable its deliver its strategic objectives, UAE Minister of Education Humaid Al Qattami said in an address at the opening session of the ISESCO General Conference being held in Tunis under the patronage of Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
Al Qattami is leading the UAE delegation to the conference which lasts until July 4.
The UAE minister met with the Tunisian president before the opening of the conference.
In his inagural address, the Tunisian President highly commended the Organization's achievements.
Dr Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri, the Director General of ISESCO, said the organisation had achieved significant and highly effective results in terms of the implementation of the 2007-2009 Action Plan.
'This has provided the ISESCO with a broader scope for renewal, modernization and development in which it demonstrated a high level of proficiency and competence,'he said.
Dr Altwaijri also stated that ISESCO has, over the period from January 2007 up to the end of June 2009, implemented 1020 educational, scientific, cultural and communication activities, representing 70.19%. In fact, this high rate is likely to maintain its upward trend to reach more than 80%, considering that a large number of the activities scheduled under the last year (2009) of the current action plan will be carried out during the second half of this year. The implementation rate of all the activities scheduled under the current three-year action plan will exceed by far all previous records registered since the inception of ISESCO.
Moreover, the Director General said that the current General conference is held amidst very complex regional and international mutations. Their impact bears heavily on world peace and security, and reduces people's chance to live in dignity, freedom and respect for human rights, international law and international legality.
He underscored that the Islamic world is at the core of events which continue to haunt the conscience of Muslims and humanity at large. In this troubled situation, the Palestinian cause has arrived at crossroads, if not a dead-end, as a result of the radical right-wing policies of the Israeli racial government. - Emirates News Agency, WAM
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UAE will partner with world family to attract renewable technologies: Lubna
posted on 03/07/2009
 As the host of the HQ of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the UAE will approach countries of the world to attract the most advanced renewable energy technologies and equipment, H.E. Sheikha Lubna Bint Khalid Al Qasimi, Minister of Foreign Trade, said today.
'There are prospects of scientific research cooperation between companies and universities in the UAE and Britain in renewable energy fields,' Sheikha Lubna said during talks with Lord Davis of Abersoch, British Minister for Trade, Investment '&' Business.
Global climate change, she stressed, calls for mobilising international efforts in developing creative ideas and projects on renewable energy.
Sheikha Lubna and the visiting British minister explores avenues of joint cooperation in domains of renewable energy following the UAE became home to IRENA.
The British minister said his country was keen to further expand cooperation with the UAE in economic and investment sectors.
He voiced the desire of the British government to boost partnership with the UAE on renewable energy sources. He commended the UAE's initiatives on renewable energy.
Trade and economic relations between the two countries have seen marked growth over the recent year with two-way non-oil trade exchange reaching Dh 30 million last year. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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UAE's flying hospital arrives at Juba airport
posted on 03/07/2009
 Juba, South Sudan - The flying hospital sent by UAE to give humanitarian help for the people of South Sudan has arrived at the Juba airport.
The aero plane equipped with the most modern medical and surgical facilities is sent in line with directives from Abu Dhabi Ruler's Representative and Chairman of the UAE Red Crescent (RCA) HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
A team of specialised medics and Para medics from UAE and other countries travelled on board the flying hospital creating one of the most inspiring examples of humanitarian volunteering.
The minister of health in South Sudan said that UAE has set a marvellous model of social volunteering and humanitarian work for the others to follow.
Apart from the medical equipments and surgical facilities, the flying hospital has plenty of medicines in stock and is managed by the expert doctors from UAE, Sudan, USA, Europe and Asia who have joined in one of the most benevolent humanitarian partnership.
After Sudan, the hospital will leave for other destinations that include Morocco and Lebanon.
The Chief of the Emirati Mobile world Humanitarian Hospital, Khadeem Al Dare'i, stressed the keenness of UAE, under the leadership of President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for providing medical help to those who need it where ever they are irrespective of their creed, colour and ethnicity.
The idea of this hospital has greatly been inspired by the model of benevolence set by the country's founding father late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, he added. He hailed the keenness of General HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, crown prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy supreme commander of the UAE Armed Forces, for ensuring the success of the initiative.
The world renowned Emirati cardiac surgeon, executive chief of the 'Zayed of Giving' humanitarian medical initiative and Executive Director of the Emirati World Humanitarian Mobile Hospital Dr. Adel Al Shamari, said that the all preparations have successfully been completed with ample logistic support for the hospital to function.
An expert team from UAE is soon to arrive in Juba to install the hospital at a location where enough water and electricity will be available for the hospital to function, he added.
A team consisting of 100 members were trained in UAE to take care of the administrative, technical and medical aspects of the unique humanitarian initiative and 15 specialised members from Interior Ministry and Civil Defence were trained as per directives from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Lt. General HH Sheikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for installing and equipping the mobile hospital, Al Shamari noted. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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MoH announces three Swine Flu cases
posted on 03/07/2009
The Ministry of Health (MoH) has announced three new cases of H1N1 virus and that the three patients: UAE national woman, Malaysian woman and Malaysian child have entered into the country from abroad.
The MoH added that the three patients were receiving treatment and their conditions were stable, indicating that other patients who were infected earlier with the disease had been treated and discharged from the UAE Hospitals after complete recovery. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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Borouge awards US$ 1.075 billion contract for ethane cracker in Abu Dhabi to The Linde Group
posted on 03/07/2009
Borouge, a leading provider of innovative, value creating plastics solutions, has awarded a contract worth US$ 1.075 billion to The Linde Group, a world leading gases and engineering company, to build another 1.5 million tonnes per year (t/y) ethane cracker at its production site in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
"The awarding of this contract confirms Borouge's commitment to the Borouge 3 project, a major expansion of our production facility in Ruwais, which will increase the total capacity of the plant to 4.5 million tonnes of polyolefins annually by the end of 2013," said Abdul Aziz Alhajri, CEO of Abu Dhabi Polymers Company (Borouge). "In addition to the ethane cracker, the expansion includes the construction of second generation Borstar polypropylene and polyethylene units, a low density polyethylene unit and a Butene unit, as well as related off-site utilities and marine facilities." "Nowhere else in the world has a petrochemical company installed so much olefins capacity in such a short time as Borouge is currently doing in Abu Dhabi," says Dr Aldo Belloni, member of the Executive Board of Linde AG. "We at Linde Engineering are proud to be the supplier of ethylene technology for the Ruwais complex. Our relationship with ADNOC, enriched by our gases joint venture ‘Elixier', and Borealis is now stronger than ever, thus making The Linde Group the leading gases and engineering company in the Middle East." The contract will be executed on a ‘lump sum turnkey' basis whereby the construction work will be executed by the Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC). The new cracker, the third of its kind to be built by The Linde Group for Borouge in one decade, complements the 600,000 t/y and 1.5 million t/y ethane crackers, the latter of which is currently under construction as part of the plant's expansion from 600,000 to 2 million t/y of polyolefins by mid-2010, and ultimately 4.5 million tonnes of polyolefins annually by 2013.
After completion of the new cracker, Borouge will have the world's largest ethane cracker complex, setting a new benchmark for the industry.
Borouge is a joint venture between the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, and Borealis, a leading provider of chemical and innovative plastics solutions. The awarding of the contract is a major milestone in the Company's growth strategy in the infrastructure, automotive and advanced packaging markets in the Middle East and Asia, and is an important step in the development of the Abu Dhabi petrochemicals landscape. . – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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ZF to publish The White Sheikh in Braile language
posted on 03/07/2009
 The Zayed Higher Foundation for Humanitarian Care will publish the Shaykh Al-Abyad (The White Sheikh), a novel authored by H. H. Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council member and ruler of Sharjah, in Braile language.
'We are extremely exciting to publish the novel after we obtained the consent of Sheikh Sultan,' Sheikha Al Suweidi, Executive Director of the Foundation's Printing Press for the Blind, said 'Publishing the book in Braile alphabet will give sight-impaired persons an insight of the work of Sheikh Sultan,'she added. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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ADNOC announces prices of crude oil for June
posted on 03/07/2009
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) announced today the prices of its crudes oil for June. According to a company statement, the Government Selling Prices for crude oil FOB Abu Dhabi ports for the month of June are as follows: Murban (US$71. 65) per a barrel, Lower Zakum (US$70.50), Umm Shaif (US$71.15) and Upper Zakum (US$69.90) per a barrel. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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Abu Dhabi's pension fund board is reshuffled
posted on 03/07/2009
 The Board of the Abu Dhabi Retirement Pensions and Benefits Fund has been reshuffled, according to an Emiri decree issued by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in his capacity as a Ruler of Abu Dhabi.
The decree named HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan as a chairman and HE Dr Mugheer Al Khaili, HE Abdullah Musleh Al Ahbabi, HE Mohammed Omar Abdullah, HE Omer Abdullah Al Suwaidi, HE Abu Bakr Khoori and HE Saeed Mubarak as members.
Sheikh Khalifa also issued a decree amending some provisions of law number 14 of year 2005 on changing the name of the Khalifa Fund to Support and Develop Small and Medium Enterprises in Abu Dhabi to the Khalifa Fund for Development of Enterprises.
He also issued laws on amending the provisions of law number 2 of year 1998 on regulating water and electricity in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, law number 17 of year 2009 on setting up of the Emirates College for Educational Development, law number 25 of year 2007 on setting up the Abu Dhabi Institute for Educational and Occupational Training and law number 17 for year 2005 on setting up the Abu Dhabi Company for Sewerage Services. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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Ongoing preparations for fifth Liwa Date Festival
posted on 03/07/2009
 Intensive preparations for the fifth Liwa Al Ratab (Date) Festival continue apace, according to the event's Organising Committee.
The festival is held on July 16-27 under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, and organized by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH).
"The festival enjoys simplicity as well as quality and excellence," said Mohammed Khalaf Al Mazroui, Director General of ADACH and Chairman of the Organising Committee.
"The festival directly relates to the visitors and guests through taking their valuable opinion. We deal with their important remarks to improve the image and events of the festival a year after another," said Mazrouei.
"We are putting every effort towards a better understanding of global practices regarding the way of preserving this ancient heritage. The idea of the festival is to encourage people to plant palm trees within the right environmental, to achieve a better quality of ratab production and palm preservation. ADACH aims to instill the culture of palm and ratab into the minds of different generations in the State," he added.
Khalfan Al Mazrouei, Director of the Festival, said that the work "is being carried out fast and to the highest standards by specialized teams. ADACH is continuously following up with all aspects of preparations and the Festival administration is preparing everything, starting from equipping the tents, which will host multiple activities." "The Festival's total area is approximately 43,000 square meters, accommodating the hospitality tent and another for children, which includes a women-only gathering place," said Khalfan Mazrouei.
"The preparations carried out by the Authority are characterized by a strict observance of safety and quality standards, especially in the large exhibition space, which hosts the daily special programme and multiple activities, including rewarding cultural, encouragement and awareness competitions to all festival visitors. High-quality services are also provided, and there are several surprises for children and families visiting the festival, which will be announced in the right time in order not to spoil the element of surprise," he added.
"We now know that ratab baskets will be sold at a decent price. There is no secret for those who are following closely our intensive preparations. This year's festival is more distinguished from the previous years and worthy of the organization of its activities by ADACH," he concluded.
Ahmed bin Mohammad bin Hammouda Al Mazrouei, PR and Hospitality Director, said that the there is intensive coordination between 11 government departments concerned with palm tree plantation and ratab cultivation and a number of professional educational institutions and companies, which will exhibit the latest in ratab cultivations and palm care. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
"Up to 60 companies are all seeking to provide valuable information on the way of caring for palm trees and ratab and maximizing quality in addition to the special presence of The Festival's sponsors and supporters," said bin Hammouda Mazrouei, adding that "The Festival has been coordinating with distinctive event companies, making sure that their hospitality services will fit various ages at affordable prices to all." "Daily shuttle buses for those wishing to attend The Festival will be available between Liwa and Abu Dhabi throughout the event days. These distinguished bus services, while adhering to hospitality at the highest level," he added.
Saeed Al Kaabi, Director of the Traditional Market Committee, said the last touches for productive families' participations were being finalized. There would 140 shops in the market, mostly run by these families.
"Other shops will be distributed between government institutions and participating companies and areas for popular dishes and traditional performances will be allocated," said Kaabi. – Emirates News Agency, WAM
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