Sunday, 23rd August 2015
Note: News U Wish to Read is a compilation of articles published in the
press, in the UAE, India and world around. Its purpose is to keep us informed
of important news items which we all wish not to miss. Enjoy reading the below
news items and links. More sections will come as it takes shape and interest.
Your response to this initiative is highly appreciated.
Energy
Weak outlook as oil prices continue to slide
Gulf News
Oil prices are unlikely to recover in the near term as production
continues to rise and demand slows down across the globe. Crude oil in the
United States fell below $40 (Dh147) per barrel on Friday, the lowest since
2009. It recovered later to close at $40.45. International benchmark brent was
at $45.46, down by 2.49 per cent. According to analysts, the very near term
outlook for oil prices is not good. “There is a reasonable risk that in the
coming weeks the West Texas oil price will fall into the thirties, brent maybe
as low as $40 (per barrel),” said Gary Dugan, Chief Investment Officer at
National Bank of Abu Dhabi.
Published: 18th August 2015
Read more:
http://gulfnews.com/business/sectors/energy/weak-outlook-as-oil-prices-continue-to-slide-1.1571574
UAE domestic energy usage doubles in 10 years: Study
Khaleej Times
The UAE’s gross domestic electricity consumption has more than doubled
over the past 10 years, and is expected to grow even more rapidly over the next
five years as the country undergoes substantial population and economic growth,
according to a study by management consultancy Strategy &, formerly Booz
& Company. The study reveals that energy usage in the UAE has grown at an
annual average of four per cent over the past six years, and is projected to
increase to five per cent through 2020. A recent forum organised by the Energy
Working Group of the UAE-UK Business Council and facilitated by Strategy&,
highlighted three key aspects of energy efficiency which comprise of smart
cities, building efficiency and water usage. Although numerous initiatives have
already been launched in the UAE, implementing additional comprehensive
measures and policies can help reap the full benefits of an improved energy
efficiency strategy, as challenges cannot be overcome in isolation. While UAE’s
increased urbanization is a sign of the country’s growth and progress, it also
presents some challenges alongside. According to the UN, 85 per cent of the
UAE’s population resided in urban areas as of 2014, and this is forecasted to
reach 91 per cent by 2050. The UAE, therefore, needs to have integrated
infrastructure planning as a prerequisite to any urban master plan. Per-Ola
Karlsson, a senior partner with Strategy&, formerly Booz & Company in
Dubai, said one of the best way of doing this, which takes advantage of
digitization and the Big Data that urban populations produce, is through the
so-called ‘smart city approach’. “This term typically entails integrated
infrastructure planning that applies digital technologies to deliver better
services and, critically for the UAE, reduce energy consumption. Smart cities
allow city planners and managers to improve efficiency at the intersection of
different infrastructure sectors, such as electricity, water, transport,
telecommunications, cooling and waste.”
Published: 21st August 2015
Read more:
http://khaleejtimes.com/business/energy/uae-domestic-energy-usage-doubles-in-10-years-study
Other Sectors
Government, Apollo Hospitals partner to launch telemedicine services
Economic Times
The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology will launch
telemedicine services in collaboration with the Apollo Hospitals on August 25,
under which people can consult doctors through video link and also order
generic drugs online. Under the service, people can visit Common Service
Centres (CSC) and fix an appointment for seeking expert consultancy with a
doctor. The doctors at Apollo Hospitals will be able to provide consultancy to
the patients using the video link facilities, a Ministry official said. The
Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) has a network of
1.5 lakh CSCs across the country and Apollo Hospitals will provide the services
using the network. To begin with, the services will be launched in 60,000 CSCs
across the country. The initiative will benefit the patients in remote areas of
the country where there is acute shortage of doctors.
Published: 23rd August 2015
Read more:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/healthcare/biotech/healthcare/government-apollo-hospitals-partner-to-launch-telemedicine-services/articleshow/48639432.cms
Bandhan Bank to fund SMEs, create jobs: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
Economic Times
Newly-launched Bandhan Bank will fund lakhs of small and medium
entrepreneurs, create jobs and act as a response to agrarian poverty, Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley said today. “A great institution is being born in West
Bengal,” he said while inaugurating Bandhan Bank here. Bandhan Bank today
launched its operations with 501 branches in the country. The company, which
started operations as a micro finance institution, got final approval from RBI
in June to launch commercial banking operations. Jaitley said Bandhan Bank
Chairman and Managing Director Chandra Shekhar Ghosh has said that the priority
area of the bank will be small and medium enterprises (SMEs). “It is a landmark
initiative in the service of country and state. It is these entrepreneurs in
SMEs, many of them in unorganised sector, who today form the backbone of Indian
economy. “Small entrepreneurs, from shopkeepers to hawkers, they are generating
almost 11-12 crore jobs in this country. The large organised industry is able
to generate only a small fraction of that,” Jaitley said.
The Bandhan experiment – a transformation from a micro lender to a
full-fledged bank, may shape the India’s future banking, felt who’s who of the
country’s financial field who thronged to the city in numbers for the Bandhan
Bank’s inaugural programme. The formation of Bandhan Bank in fact, marked a new
beginning of Indian banking, which in another one-and-a-half year will see
emergence of payments banks and small finance bank. Reserve Bank of India has
decided to offer licenses to entities with different capabilities with a single
agenda in mid: improve financial penetration. “India is home to several experiments
and an MFI turning unto a bank is one such experiment,” former RBI deputy
governor Shyamala Gopinath said at pre-launch event on the eve of Bandhan’s
inauguration on Sunday. Bandhan Bank is
the first to be off the block as the new change happening in the country’s
finance and banking field,” Uday Kotak, executive vice chairman and managing
managing director of Kotak Mahindra Bank, said at the event. West Bengal
finance cum industry minister Amit Mitra, who was present at the inaugural
event, said that Bandhan Bank would serve the twin purpose of women empowerment
and poverty alleviation.
Published: 23rd August 2015
Follow:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/banking/finance/banking/bandhan-bank-to-fund-smes-create-jobs-finance-minister-arun-jaitley/articleshow/48640337.cms
Politics & Economy
Mohammed bin Rashid issues law regulating partnership between public,
private sectors in Dubai Emirate
Wam.ae
Vice President and Prime Minister, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin
Rashid Al Maktoum, in his capacity as the Ruler of Dubai, has issued Law No. 22
for 2015, regulating partnerships between the public and private sectors in the
Emirate of Dubai. The new law aims at encouraging the private sector to
participate in the development of projects and increasing investment in
different fields in a way that serves economic and social development in the
Emirate of Dubai. It also allows the government to implement its strategic
projects effectively and efficiently, as well as harness financial,
administrative, technical and technological expertise of the private sector.
This will also enable individuals in the community to have better access to
services at less cost. The new law also aims to increase productivity and
improve the quality of public services, transfer of knowledge and experience
from the private to the public sector, as well as training and qualifying Emirati
public employees in the areas of management and operation of projects.
Published: 18th August 2015
Read more: http://www.wam.ae/en/news/economics/1395284468285.html
Arabian Gulf markets lose $58 billion as weak oil and global equity rout
spark sell-off
The National
Billions of dirhams were wiped off the value of Dubai shares yesterday,
as stock markets across the Arabian Gulf lost US$58 billion on a day of
calamitous trading. The sharp sell-offs came in the wake of sliding oil prices
and a global equity rout on Friday, spurred by fears of a slowdown in China’s
economic expansion, a key engine of global growth. Dubai’s stock market led
losses in the Middle East yesterday: the Dubai Financial Market General Index
fell as much as 7.2 per cent on the day, before closing down 6.96 per cent at
3,451.48, its lowest level since the end of March.“There’s been absolutely no
discrimination, it’s red across the board,” said Sebastien Henin of the The
National Investor in Abu Dhabi. “Many stocks are back to their lowest level
since December or January.” Emaar Properties, the heaviest-weighted stock on
Dubai’s headline index, ended the day down 8.3 per cent at Dh6.18, its lowest
level since December. The market plunge in Dubai was closely mirrored in Saudi
Arabia, where equities have suffered severe losses in the past month in the
wake of plummeting oil prices.
Published: 23rd August 2015
Read more:
http://www.thenational.ae/business/markets/arabian-gulf-markets-lose-58-billion-as-weak-oil-and-global-equity-rout-spark-sell-off
Inflation climbs to 4.43% in UAE
Khaleej Times
The overall inflation in the country rose to 4.43 per cent year-on-year
in July, highest in six years. In a month-on-month comparison, CPI rose to
126.03 points from 125.66 points or 0.37 points. The chief contributing factors to the rise in
inflation were led by food and beverages that rose 1.37 per cent; followed by
textiles, clothing and footwear that went up 0.33 per cent and rise of 0.13 per
cent in housing rents. Decreases to the CPI came from miscellaneous goods and
services 0.12 per cent; medical care 0.07 per cent and furniture and household
goods 0.01 per cent. Housing and utility costs, which account for over 39 per
cent of consumer expenses, jumped 10.0 per cent from a year earlier in July and
rose 0.1 per cent from the previous month. Abu Dhabi hiked electricity and
water tariffs from January 1. Food and soft drink prices, which account for
nearly 14 per cent of the basket, rose 3.4 per cent year-on-year and 1.4 per
cent month-on-month. At the emirate level, CPI fluctuated highest in Sharjah measuring
0.54 per cent; followed by Ajman where 0.49 per cent growth was witnessed. In
Dubai, it rose 0.45 per cent followed by 0.31 per cent in Abu Dhabi, according
to latest data. Lowest fluctuation of 0.15 per cent was noted in Fujairah,
according to the National Bureau of Statistics. On the rise in food prices in
July which is reflected on the CPI, a leading retailer Wissal Ahmed Khan, chief
executive officer of Alam Supermarkets in Abu Dhabi, said: “The period covered
in the survey includes the second half of Holy month of Ramadan, when the
promotions launched by the retailers came to an end, to normal price levels.”
Published: 21st August 2015
Read more:
http://khaleejtimes.com/business/economy/inflation-climbs-to-443-in-uae
Community, Environment & Society
Ecocity World Summit 2015 to welcome 13 ministers and government
officials as speakers
Wam.ae
Ecocity World Summit, ECWS, 2015 has confirmed a line-up of 13 ministers
and government officials as speakers, in addition to 22 subject matter experts,
up to a dozen from academia, and other visionary leaders from the private
sector. The event is scheduled to take place in Abu Dhabi from 11th to 13th
October, marking its debut in the Middle East. As part of the city-wide
preparation for the summit, the ECWS host committee members conducted their
first official meeting on 19th August with over 15 bodies to discuss their
anticipated outcomes and collaborative efforts towards the successful launch of
the Middle East’s first ECWS edition. ECWS 2015 is to be hosted by the
Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, supported by the UAE Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, the Urban Planning Council, Masdar, and will be facilitated by Abu
Dhabi Environmental Data Initiative with Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority as the
destination host. “The response to the 11th edition of the Ecocity World Summit
conference series has been tremendous, and we are very much looking forward to
the contribution of our list of speakers, from across the globe. By creating an
opportunity for dialogue with the greatest minds in this field, we are
confident that the summit will help pave the way for greener cities across the
globe,” said Ahmed Baharoon, Executive Director of the Environmental Science,
Information and Outreach Sector and Acting Director of AGEDI of Environment
Agency – Abu Dhabi.
Published: 23rd August 2015.
Read more: http://www.wam.ae/en/news/emirates/1395284593286.html
National Archive signs agreement with BP Archive on UAE documents
Wam.ae
The UAE National Archive has signed an agreement with British Petroleum
(BP), allowing it to access documents and records about the Emirate in the
company’s archive. The agreement, signed on the directives of H.H. Sheikh
Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential
Affairs and Chairman of the National Archive, grants the National Archive a
10-year exclusive access to all documents in the BP archive about the UAE. The
company’s documents and records relating to the UAE chronicle a critical era in
the country’s history. The agreement was signed by Dr. Abdulla Al Raes,
Director-General of the National Archive and Peter Housego, BP Archive Manager,
in presence of Abdul Rahman Ghanem Al Mutaiwee, UAE Ambassador to the United
Kingdom.
Published: 20th August 2015.
Read more: http://www.wam.ae/en/news/emirates/1395284541068.html
Technology
Tweets now visible on Google search
The Hindu
Now you can see Tweets in the Google search results as Google has added
Tweets to their real-time search results on the desktop. Google’s results will
now show Tweets along with standard search results on your desktop, especially
when search terms have to do with keywords that are trending on Twitter at the
time the search is made, Slashgear.com reported. For example, searching for
‘NASA Twitter’ will not only show you a link to NASA’s official Twitter page,
it will also show NASA’s most recent Tweets.
Published: 22nd August 2015
Read more:
http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/technology/internet/tweets-now-visible-on-google-search/article7569448.ece
Education+
Government looking to open education, legal services for foreigners
The Economic Times
The government is following a “calibrated approach” to open its education
and legal services for foreigners, a move aimed at boosting country’s services
sector. Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia said that work is under progress for
opening education and legal services for foreign players. In a country like
India, “this (the liberalisation of the services sector) is to be slow and
should have a calibrated approach. It is at a very early stage. A roadmap has
been prepared,” she told PTI. Explaining about the country’s approach to open
education sector, the secretary said, in the beginning, opening online courses
could be an option.
Published: 23rd August 2015
Read more:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/education/government-looking-to-open-education-legal-services-for-foreigners/articleshow/48639907.cms
Money matters
The Hindu
The Youth Money Olympiad (YMO) is a national level competition open to
college students. Its aim is to help students evaluate their personal finance
awareness. The winners of the first edition of Youth Money Olympiad were
honoured by Principal Mutual Funds and Money Wizards at a function in Mumbai
recently. The first edition had the YMO reaching out to more than 7,700
students across 75 colleges, from 41 cities in India. The students were assessed on the basis of a
personal finance IQ test conducted first at the college level, and then at a
national level. The participants were given personal assessment reports and
were provided with educational material to help them understand personal
finance issues. Ranjai Banerji from IIM Calcutta bagged the first prize, while
the second spot was shared by students from IIM Kozhikode and IIM Ahmedabad and
IIM Ranchi, followed by Janani Srinivasan, a student from Ethiraj College for
Women at the third position.
Published: 22nd August 2015
Read more: http://www.thehindu.com/features/education/an-interview-with-janani-srinivasan-a-winner-of-the-youth-money-olympiad/article7569374.ece
Sports – Campaign PASS
Campaign PASS (Promote All Sports Simultaneously) is an initiative
started through my blog to promote all sports(other than cricket – which gets
lot of attention) and sports personnel associated to give them more exposure.
Indian Table Tennis League launched
The Hindu
The inaugural Indian Table Tennis League, offering Rs. 1 crore prize
money, will take off in May-June next year, the organisers announced today
besides boasting that the franchise-based event will be the first ever league
to get a dedicated window by world body ITTF. The announcement came after
months of planning though many questions still remain unanswered for the league
scheduled from May 28 to June 12 in the Olympic year. As of now, the league
will have eight teams battling out for the lucrative prize money. Besides that,
the teams will have a foreign male and female player each as well as an Indian
in both categories. Officials of 11EVEN Sports, the company formed to run the
league and which has the backing of Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI),
said the event format will be worked out soon. “Today we have just announced
the launch of the league. We are still in the process of working out the number
of teams, who their owners will be and players’ participation from all around
the world. Now that we have got the ITTF nod, we are confident the best players
of the world will be a part of this league, which will turn out to be a great
learning experience for the Indian players,” 11EVEN Sports director and former
player Kamlesh Mehta told PTI.
Published: 20th August 2015
Read more:
http://www.thehindu.com/sport/other-sports/indian-table-tennis-league-launched/article7562063.ece
Hope you enjoyed reading the above news items and links. More sections
will come as it take shape and interest. Your response to this initiative is
highly appreciated.
Regards,
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
Do you think there something wrong with our educational system compared to other top universities worldwide?
