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ZAYED URGES ARAB SUMMIT 'HISTORY WILL JUDGE THOSE FAVOURING
DISUNITY'
President His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, in a meeting with Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al Bashir in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, insisted that an Arab summit must be held, warning that history would judge the region's leaders if they failed to reconcile. "The failure to hold a regular summit is the cause of the split and the dispersal which the Arab world is going through," he said. "History will never forgive leaders of a nation whose destiny lies in unity but who deliberately prefer to disperse and are scared to turn their attention to the situation in hand," he said, quoted by the Emirates News Agency WAM. Sheikh Zayed has repeatedly called for a summit to reconcile Arab ranks, which were split by Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. A single Arab summit has since been held but Iraq was not invited to the June 1996 meeting in Cairo. (The 'Emirates News Agency, WAM')
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ABU DHABI TO INVITE BID FOR US$408M PROJECT
Abu Dhabi will invite bids in February for the first phase of a Dh1.5 billion or US$408 million, independent power generating plant. The tender for the first phase of the Shuweihat project will be announced in mid-February according to Abdullah Al Naimi, Director of Privatisation at Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority, ADWEA. The first phase of the project would increase Abu Dhabi's power generation capacity of 5,000 megawatts and 300 million gallons per day. The project included building two power plants which would meet the demand for electricity in the emirate until 2010. Shuweihat is one of three independent power projects planned in the emirate as part of a drive to privatise its heavily subsided water and electricity. (The 'Reuters')
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PRAYERS HELD FOR RAIN ACROSS UAE
Muslims across the UAE performed rain prayers on Saturday morning in line with directives of President His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Government departments and schools remained closed till 9 am as Muslim employees flocked to mosques and Eid squares. There have been only one or two brief rain showers so far this year in some parts of the UAE. Explaining the religious significance of the rain prayers, Sheikh Abdullah Al Hamadi, a preacher in the Ministry of Justice and Islamic affairs and Awqaf, said it was the duty of all Muslims to pray for rain. As ordered by the Holy Quran, the faithful should do so when a call is made by Wali Al Amr (Ruler or Patriarch), he said. He said the turnout for the prayers had been huge, exceeding those held in previous years. He added that when the faithful request God for the blessing of rain, the ever-merciful Allah will respond to their call. (The 'Gulf Today')
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AL AIN AIRPORT AIMS FOR 1M PASSENGERS BY 2003
Ambitious plans have been unveiled by the Abu Dhabi Department of Civil Aviation to increase the use of Al Ain International Airport, enabling it to handle a million passengers annually by 2003. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, DCA Chairman, said the design of three expansion projects had been completed and would be put out to tender within three months. The construction of a 2,000 square metre catering building, a 2,200 square metre cargo centre and the doubling of the size of the terminal would be completed within two years. The expansion, costing an estimated Dh220 million, follows a large increase in the number of airlines and passengers using the airport in 1999. It handles ten airlines and saw a 28 per cent increase in passenger traffic in 1998. Meanwhile, the surge in airlines and passengers has resulted in a profitable spin-off for the duty free section. Revenue generated by Al Ain Duty Free surged 42 per cent last year. Abu Dhabi Duty Free and Catering said travellers spent Dh4,578,302 at Al Ain Duty Free last year compared to Dh3,220,708 in the previous year. The upturn in fortunes for the duty free is the result of a 44 per cent increase in the number of passengers using Al Ain Airport. (The 'Gulf News')
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BOOK ON UAE ARCHAEOLOGY HISTORY LAUNCHED
Work is underway to prepare a federal draft law on archaeology aimed at protecting the country's heritage, according to Peter Hellyer, Executive Director of Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey, ADIAS, and an advisor at the Ministry of Information and Culture. He was speaking at the official launch of his new book 'Hidden Riches'. The book, an archaeological introduction to the UAE, sponsored by the Union National Bank, has been produced both in Arabic and English, and is the first comprehensive book on the archaeology of the country. The foreword of the book is by Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Chairman of UNB. Sheikh Nahyan notes in the foreword: "Under the wise guidance of President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the United Arab Emirates has a very strong commitment to the study of its past and to the preservation of its heritage. "I am pleased to introduce this important work on the history and archaeology of the UAE. From it s beginnings in the late 1950s, archaeology in the Emirates has seen extraordinary activity and results. Peter Hellyer does an excellent job presenting the knowledge gained from many years of archaeological digs," Hidden Riches examines the results of 40 years of excavations in the country. Extensively illustrated with colour pictures, many of previously unpublished sites, the book is divided into seven chapters, each dealing with periods in the country's history. 'From Fossils to Flint' covers the period up to the end of the Late Stone Age – around 5,500 years ago, or 3500 BC. This chapter is followed by 'the Age of Umm An Nar' from around 3500 BC to 2000BC, and 'From Wadi Suq to Iron Age', 2000 BC to 300 BC. (The 'Gulf News')
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INT'L SYMPOSIUM ON ARID ZONE ENVIRONMENTS
The first three-day International Workshop on Arid Zone Environments, organised by the Emirates Environmental Research and Wildlife Development Agency, ERWDA, opens today. The event is part of the country's celebrations for the Third National Environmental Day, with the theme of 'Protected Areas', which falls on February 4. The symposium will discuss the following key issues: the goals of protected areas and how to accomplish these; global views on research of protected areas; and management and research of protected areas. The workshop will discuss issues such as priorities of developing networks of protected areas; research priorities for protected areas; protected areas and the preservation of cultural heritage; and protected areas and legislation. ERWDA has developed a database on terrestrial environments, where a number of environmental elements such as desert animals and plants, and factors such as the soil and water as well as anthropological factors have been studied and documented. (The 'Gulf News')
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UOG DATE PALM VENTURE BEGINS EXPORTS
After initial hiccups, Al Wathba Marionnet, a pioneering offset venture of France's Giat Industries, is on target in its production of date palms and has begun exports to GCC and other Middle East countries. Following the closure of Giat's Offsets office last year, Giat's equity stake in Al Wathba Marionnet has been acquired by the UAE Offsets Group, UOG. Al Wathba Marionnet faced early problems and construction of the laboratory in Al Ain was delayed. However, production began last May and production targets have been met. The company won tenders in Abu Dhabi and Dubai for supply of date palm plants. The production target is 200,000 to 300,000 date palms annually and the company will achieve the target this year. With one distribution centre in Dubai already opened, Al Wathba plans to open its second centre between Abu Dhabi and Liwa this year. Fifty per cent of the production was exported to Kuwait and Jordan last year. Recently, exports began to Yemen, and Egypt is considered a potential market this year. Al Wathba Marionnet was set up in 1998 as an offset venture between Giat Industries (10 per cent), Cyprus-based Kranti Development (39 per cent) and the local Al Wathba Agricultural Materials Est. (51 per cent). The Dh5.75 million-biotechnology joint venture was set up for the production of date palm plants propagated by tissue culture. Technology from France was transferred and technically skilled people were employed. The project is the first of its kind in the UAE. According to Marionnet, the samples of the high-quality plants grown some two years ago at the ministry's research site in Ras al Khaimah have begun to bear fruit, proving that the cloning of palms with French technology is working satisfactorily. (The 'Gulf News')
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U.S. EXPORTS TO UAE FALL, IMPORTS FROM UAE RISE
U.S. exports to the UAE from January to October 1999 fell to $1.69 billion, from $1.84 billion in the same period in 1998. U.S. imports from the UAE, however, rose slightly from $600.2 million to $608.4 million in the same period. According to the latest statistics from the U.S. commercial office in Abu Dhabi, U.S. exports of arms and ammunition soared more than 456 per cent from $16.46 million in 1998 to $91.68 million in 1999. U.S. exports of live animals to the UAE rose 290 per cent, from $5.187 million in 1998, to $20.263 million in 1999. Other exports that increased were precious stones and metals, up 94 per cent from $34.86 million to $67.83 million and chemical products, up 71 per cent from $17 million to $29.31 million. There was also a 57 per cent rise in exports of cereals from $8.6 million to $13.59 million. However, U.S. exports of several items fell. There was a 49 per cent drop in aircraft and spacecraft from $193.76 million to $98.33 million. Exports of vehicles dropped 33 per cent from $187.21 million to $124.4 million. Exports of iron and steel products fell 32 per cent from $25.2 million to $16.97 million. There was also a drop in exports of machinery (-13 per cent), tobacco (-12 per cent), plastics (-24 per cent), furniture and bedding (-29 per cent) fats and oils (-25 per cent) miscellaneous food (-20 per cent), paper and paperboard (-20 per cent) aluminium (-17 per cent) and meat (-14 per cent). U.S. exports to the UAE in 1998 touched $2.37 billion, while the figure for 1997 was $2.6 billion. U.S. imports from the UAE totalled $708.5 million in 1998 and $964.9 million in 1997. The UAE is the U.S.' second largest trading partner in the region after Saudi Arabia. (The 'Emirates News Agency, WAM')
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VISA NORMS FOR ARTISTES EASED
Visas for artistes and music bands do not any more require prior approval of the authorities concerned in Dubai, following the decision of the Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department, DNRD, to relax the rules for obtaining visas for performers, according to a senior official. The department does not any more ask sponsors to provide prior approval of licensing departments concerned for holding concerts and hosting music bands, in order to grant visas for visiting artistes and music bands. The move was aimed at doing away with the bureaucratic bottlenecks and simplifying procedures. Promoters and hotels have widely welcomed the decision, expressing their gratitude to the Dubai government for supporting the hospitality industry and giving all the facilities that would boost tourism in the emirate. (The 'Khaleej Times')
An eight-day exposition on the Emirates begins this Thursday in Beirut. The event comprises nine major exhibitions, musical recitals and folk dances, seminars, poetry readings and discussions and a fashion show. This is the first time that the Ministry of Information and Culture have organised such and extensive programme abroad. The opening of the cultural event will be attended by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Information and Culture. Among the highlights of the opening day are traditional dances, including 'ayala' and the 'harbiya'. The expo will see one of the largest exhibition of books by the UAE. (The 'Gulf News')
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CABLE CAR TO BE READY FOR DSF
The cable car at the Creek Park in Dubai is expected to be commissioned in the first week of March along with the Dubai Shopping Festival, DSF 2000. "Eighty per cent of the work is completed and will expect to have a trial run in the third week of February. The main cables are now being fitted and the electrical work is also going on. There are three towers and three entry and exit points to the cable cars at gates 2, 5 and 7 of the park. Eighteen pillars are erected to run the cables which are 18 to 25 metres high. The journey on the cable cars will be of 21 kilometres in each direction along side the creek. There are three stations and 12 cabins with a capacity of eight persons in each of it. It will be ride of eight minutes between two stations and the operations are electronically controlled from the control room. The seating arrangements in the cabins are equipped to take care of the old and handicapped persons. The riders can also enjoy the Dubai skyline listening to the Dubai FM music. (The 'Gulf Today')