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SHEIKH ZAYED PRESENTED AWARD FROM ARAB STUDIES CENTRE
IN US
Dr. Michael Hudson, Acting Director of the Centre for Contemporary Arab Studies, Georgetown University, Washington, yesterday presented a special award to H.H. President Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan on the occasion of the Centre's silver jubilee celebrations. The award was presented at a meeting today with Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Information and Culture, Dr. Hudson told the Emirates News Agency, WAM. Dr. Hudson, who is also the Saif Ghobash Professor of Arab Studies and the Professor of International Relations at the Centre, said that the award, in the form of a glass plaque, was presented to Sheikh Zayed, as he is the oldest and most generous supporter of the Centre. Sheikh Zayed has also endowed the Saif Ghobash Chair in 1980 at the Centre. During the meeting with Sheikh Abdullah, I expressed my personal appreciation of Sheikh Zayed's support and the support extended by the UAE Government to the Centre, he said. Dr. Hudson described the structure and activities of the Centre and presented Sheikh Abdullah with a collection of studies carried out at the Centre. He said that the Centre is the largest and only centre in the US, which is involved in the study of the Arab world. It also has a very successful academic programme, he said. The aim of the Centre is to promote serious and balanced study of the Arab world in the US, he explained. (The Emirates News Agency, WAM)
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NEW VISA FORM PUTS SPONSOR RESPONSIBLE FOR FACTUAL ACCURACY
The new application form for UAE visa stipulates that the sponsor, along with the sponsored, be responsible for the correctness of the information given in the application and for adherence to the residency law and the relevant regulations in force in the UAE. The General Department of Naturalisation and Residency at the Ministry of Interior will introduce the new unified application form in all naturalisation and residency departments across the UAE from June 3. The application form has been unified in terms of shape an information required, an official of the department said. By approving the new application, the naturalisation and residency departments would be holding both the sponsor and sponsored responsible for the correctness of the information given in the application. Previously, tour operators and other companies used to claim they were not responsible for the information given. The new application will be used for all kinds of visa including visit, employment, residence, tourism, new residence or renewal. (The Gulf Today)
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EXPAT WOMEN SPONSORED BY THEIR NATIONAL CHILDREN NEED
NO JOB VISA
Expatriate women living in the country on the sponsorship of their UAE national children are now allowed to work in private companies without having to be sponsored by their employers, according to a ministerial order issued by Mattar Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of Labour and Social Affairs. This category of expatriate women will no be treated on par with women sponsored by the father or the husband and in accordance with a cabinet order, will be allowed to get residence visa and also to work in private establishment with a special permit issued by the ministry. Expatriate women staying on visa sponsored by the husband or the father were not required to get their resident visas transferred to the sponsorship of employers, but the companies recruiting them would have to obtain a special labour cards for them. Labour cards for this category of expatriate working women are being issued by the ministry for the period on only one year, unlike the three-year work permits issued for other expatriate employees who enter the country on employment visas and are sponsored by their employers. The ministerial order extended this facility to expatriate women who were married to UAE nationals and had children who were nationals. The source said that the order covered expatriate women who were sponsored by their local children irrespective of the children¹s age or sex. (The Khaleej Times)
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The Ministry of Education on Saturday banned the use of mobile phones in schools throughout the UAE. Under-secretary of Ministry of Education and Youth Dr Jamal Mohammed Al Muhairi issued the order banning the use of cell phones by male and female students and teachers during official working hours. The decision aims to provide learning in schools where the widespread use of mobiles is seen as a major source of distraction. (The Gulf Today)
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AGICO GET INVESTMENT COMPANY LICENSE
The Arabian General Investment Company, AGICO, has received the UAE Central Bank clearance to operate as an Œinvestment company¹, which allows it to take up portfolio management, underwriting, brokerage and securities inter-mediation in the UAE. ŒInvestment Company¹ is the new category for which licenses are being granted by the Central Bank in lieu of Œinvestment bank¹. Having won the licence, AGICO is looking to tap inward investments into the country, a process it believes could be speeded up ³as and when the local stock exchanges are opened up to overseas participation². Listed on the Dubai and Kuwait stock exchanges, 40 per cent of AGICO¹s shares are already held by non-UAE, Arab nationals. The new license ³places AGICO in a very unique position to capitalise on opportunities brought about by the nascent capital market of the UAE. AGICO has a strong private equity house in the region, and now wants to leverage this expertise and knowledge in the areas of capital markets and asset management.² (The Gulf News)
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EMARAT PREPARES NEW RETAIL PRODUCTS
Emirates General Petroleum Corp, EMARAT, has lined up a series of products to more aggressively tap the retail market, Abdullah Ali Said Al Akbary, manager of government and commercial sales, said. He was speaking at the launch of a promotion aimed at new fleet owners signing up for Safeer Card membership before July 15. Thrust areas include the phased re-imaging of EMARAT's 172 petrol stations, the Shamil project in which automobile testing and registration are handled for the police, and a range of prepaid and other cards for retail customers. Under EMARAT's new policy, all the newly "re-imaged" stations will be managed directly by the company, although ownership will remain with the dealers. On the Shamil project, the official said the joint venture automobile test and registration centre is likely to go operational within two months. On the Safeer card, launched in 1996, he said the sophisticated product is aimed primarily at vehicle fleet owners and had helped them cut costs by reducing unnecessary paperwork. "It is a totally secure system, and today represents 12 per cent of our total revenues." (The Gulf News)
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EMAAR IN DH70M DEAL WITH FGT, ARABTEC
The property developer, EMAAR, has entered into a Dh70 million agreement with Saudi Arabia¹s First Group Trading and Arabtec. Under the terms, First Group and Arabtec have bought 30 plots of land ranging between 15,000-30,000 square foot at Emirates Hills. They hold options on another 30 plots. The acquired land will be used to build 30 luxury villas, with work staring next month. Plots at Emirates Hills, which also features a golf course were put up for sale last October. (The Gulf News)
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GULF CEMENT COMPANY NET PROFITS DH 34.2 M
Gulf Cement Company recorded Dh34.2 million as net profit in 1999, compared to Dh61.6 million in 1998, according to a report in the Al Ghorfa magazine, published by the Ras Al Khaimah Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture. The May issue of the magazine said in a report that the general assembly of the Gulf Cement Company endorsed a recommendation by the company's board of directors, to distribute cash dividend totalling 11 per cent of the capital of Dh240 million, for 1999. The company's report, presented at the meeting, said that the selling price of cement in the domestic market certified a downward trend in 1999, affected by a fall in cement prices, particularly in South East Asia. The report was delivered by Sheikh Omar bin Saqr Al Qasimi, board director, the magazine said. Sheikh Omar expected the downward trend in prices to continue this year, despite the steady level of the company's total sales in the local market. The company produced 1.1 million tons of cement during 1999 and a similar level will be produced in the current year, Sheikh Omar said, according to the report. (The Emirates News Agency, WAM)
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THURAYA SIGNS SERVICE PACT WITH ALGERIA MPT
Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company has announced that it has signed a service provider agreement with the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications (MPT) in Algeria. Thuraya in a statement said that the service provider agreement provides MPT with the rights to distribute and market Thuraya's mobile satellite services in Algeria. It includes distribution of user terminals and SIM cards, as well as provisions to overseas billing and customer care management. With this agreement, Algeria is the latest African nation to become a service provider for Thuraya. Thuraya signed a service provider agreement recently with Telecom Tunisie, the national telecommunications provider of Tunisia. Sudan, a member of the Thuraya shareholder consortium was Thuraya's first service provider in Africa.
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UAE STUDENT NOMINATED FOR AWARD
The London University¹s nuclear medicine section has nominated UAE student Dr Abdul Rahman Younis Al Muhairi for the Paris-based European League Nuclear Medicine Award for the year 2000. Muhairi has been acclaimed as the first to formulate an injectable substance for women afflicted with breast cancer in the UK that enables diagnosis of the infection before surgery is performed. (The Emirates News Agency, WAM)
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ABU DHABI TO STAGE ITS BIGGEST E-BUSINESS CONFERENCE
Abu Dhabi will host its largest e-business event from May 27, it was announced on Sunday. The three-day event "e-business@gulf.co Conference and Exhibition" is being organised by the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry in association with the Abu Dhabi World Trade Centre, UAE Offset Group and the Churchill Group. The conference will emphasise e-legislation and e-security to protect future e-commerce interests of the emirate, especially in view of the global outbreaks of viruses and hackings. ADCCI Director-General Mohammed Omar Abdullah said e business@gulf.com will fill the gap in the growing e-business conference calendar and become the largest such event in Abu Dhabi. (The Gulf News)
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DH45M SHOPPING CENTRE COMING UP IN AL AIN
Al Jimi Shopping Centre, a world class shopping and entertainment destination at Al Ain, will open to the public by the end of January 2001. Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Under Secretary, Diwan of the Ruler's Representative in the Eastern Province, said in a press conference held yesterday, the Dh45-million centre is "a significant step in a series of initiatives to further develop the economy of Al Ain." "It is part of a development plan to transform Al Ain into a shopping, tourism and entertainment destination within the UAE," he added. The project, owned by Al Ain Municipality and located in the heart of Al Ain, consists of the redevelopment of the existing Al Khabisi market built in 1985 and transforming it into a state-of-the-art shopping centre catering to the residents and visitors of Al Ain. The project is executed in partnership with ADDAR Real Estate who are the developers and operators of the shopping centre. Al three-storey centre will have 36,000-square-metre of prime retail and entertainment. It will also feature a four-screen, 1,000 seat multiplex cinema equipped with the most advanced projection and sound equipment, a family entertainment centre with an edutainment focus and a multi-cuisine food court, which will cater to a wide variety of tastes. The centre will have a parking lot that can accommodate over 1,000 car parks, half of which will be covered. (The Gulf Today)
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ANCIENT SETTLEMENT DISCOVERED IN KALBA
Emerging evidence points to the beginning of potter in Kalba, as well as the manufacture of items in stone and metal dating back to 3000Bc, according to local and British archaeological teams. Dr. Sabah Aboud Jasim, who head the local archaeological expedition said that recent excavations showed evidence of different items dating back to 3000 BC these included pottery and metal and stone items used for hunting, cutting and other purposes. ³There is also significant evidence that the inhabitants of this region enjoyed some kind of trade with other countries in the region, he said, adding that a large settlement, representing over 2,000 years of continuos occupation dating back to 2500 B had been discovered in Kalba. This settlement were built in style of forts, with towers and interior residential structures surrounded by fences. The settlement was inhabited between 3000 BC and 500 BC ³The site in Kalba reflects an important addition to the UAE¹s heritage, including lifestyle and trade practices,² said Dr Jasim. (The Gulf News)
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SHARJAH MUSEUM TO HOLD SUMMER CAMP
Sharjah Science Museum will organise its Summer Camp from June 24 to July 18 to give children an enjoyable science-learning experience. The morning camp programme will be held from Saturdays to Tuesdays for the four-week period. The camp is open to children aged between 10 and 16 years. Each workshop will have specific age requirements. A fee of Dh35 will be charged per workshop, which will be held from 9am to 12 noon. A 20-minute break in between will enable the children to pick up a snack from the cafeteria. Some workshops will have a material fee of Dh5 of Dh10. Bookings for the camp begin on May 24 at the reception of the Sharjah Museum. More information can be had by calling 06-5514777 or faxing 06-5514733. (The Gulf Today)