8am Worldwide : Web TV Channel Index : Latest Video Releases TV Channel : Rich Media Consultancy VIDEO : HSBC International - Premier Banking : 00:08:17 HSBC International HSBC International has identifed the very specific banking needs of expatriates around the world. To take advantage of this echelon of private banking, HSBC International has developed Premier Banking - a personal financial service that takes care of all apsects of offshore banking - throughout Asia and the Middle East. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : Mashreq reports a Net Profit of AED 453 Million for the first half of 2010 : 00:00:00 Mashreq Customer Relations Mashreq, one of the leading financial institutions announced a first half net profit of AED 453 million. In the midst of the uncertain operating environment and the global economic slowdown, the Bank posted a solid performance and reported an Operating Income of AED 2.3 Billion, 6% lower compared to the Operating Income posted during the same period last year. The Bank’s Net Interest Income and income from Islamic products net of distribution for the review period at AED 1.17 Billion is higher by 10% as compared to the same period last year. The Fee and Other Income to Gross Income ratio at 49% remained one of the highest in the market. Commenting on Mashreq’s first half performance, H.E. Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair, CEO Mashreq said, “In spite of the difficult global financial environment, Mashreq has delivered a robust performance during the first six months of the year. The well diversified and stable revenue stream highlights the sustainability of our operating strategy in these uncertain times.” Continuing with prudent provisioning policy, Mashreq set aside AED 892 Million for Impaired assets at the end of Q2 2010. Mashreq has continued to operate prudently and maintaining its focus on Cost Management, reducing its general and administrative expenditure by 2.5% year on year and Efficiency ratio remained healthy at 39%. H.E. Al Ghurair continued, “We see signs of recovery and are optimistic of early economic turnaround. We continue to invest in people through talent management and employee skills upgrade, and we are also upgrading our technology platform and services to ensure that we are well positioned to seize market opportunities as they emerge.” The net interest margin of the bank for the first half of the year improved significantly to 2.6% as against 2.2% during the full year of 2009. The strategic repositioning of the balance sheet through active assets liability management led to a decline of 8.5% of Total Assets to AED 86.3 Billion. However, critical liquidity measures were maintained at a robust level and bank continues to operate highly liquid balance sheet with cash and balances due from banks standing at AED 25.4 Billion. Advances to Deposit ratio remained at an optimum level of 90% and Liquid Assets comprising of cash and due from banks were strong at 30% of Total Assets, even after repayment of the AED 1.1 billion of EMTN tranche that matured during the first quarter of 2010. Capital Adequacy ratio at the end of June, 2010 under Basel II guidelines improved to 21.52% as compared to 20.18% at the end of 2009. Tier One ratio also improved from 14% at the end of 2009 to 15% at 30th June, 2010. The strong liquidity and Capital Adequacy ratio reflects the Bank’s overall strength and management’s prudent policies in a challenging environment. At an operational level, Mashreq continues to enhance and expand its offering to maintain its leading positioning in the UAE banking industry. At a retail level, during Q2 2010, Mashreq has re-launched its Al Riqqa branch, which opened at the head office in Deira. This was followed by the opening of a new branch in Business Village as part of an initiative under the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Establishment for Young Business Leaders, which combines Mashreq Gold for affluent customers, and SME centre. Commenting on the operational growth of Mashreq, H.E Al Ghurair said, “I am pleased to say that Mashreq is expanding across the UAE in spite of the current climate, and we continue to collect recognition and awards for our efforts. This reinforces our credentials as a strong UAE national bank.” This period also saw the expansion of Mashreq’s unique debt counseling service, Mashreq Assist into Abu Dhabi, a service which, to date, has helped over 5,000 customers ease their financial stress and anxieties. Mashreq Millionaire continues to hit the headlines having awarded its biggest ever cash prize of AED 10 million during June. At a corporate level, Mashreq won the Global Magazine award for “Best Emerging Market Bank Middle East 2010”, recognizing Mashreq’s efforts in providing world class services. The Bank also introduced Mashreq Al Mustaqbal, a management trainee programme to bring on board talented UAE nationals and fast track their growth into top managerial positions. To date this scheme has resulted in the recruitment of 13 UAE nationals. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates TVC - Centre : 00:00:30 Emirates More information to follow soon. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates TVC - Gastronomy : 00:00:30 Emirates More information to follow soon. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates TVC - Comfort : 00:00:30 Emirates More information to follow soon. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates Television Commercial - Journey : 00:00:30 Emirates More information to be provided soon Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : LG And Red Bull Racing Join Forces In Formula 1™ : 00:00:00 LG Electronics, Inc. LG Electronics (LG), a global leader and technology innovator in consumer electronics, has become a Team and Technology Partner to Red Bull Racing in the FIA Formula One World Championship™. The new multi-season partnership extends LG’s successful ongoing relationship with the series. A Global Partner and a Technology Partner of Formula 1™, LG’s brand presence has significantly increased in a sport with one of the largest regular global TV audiences. While LG will supply Red Bull Racing with its latest products at track and at the team’s headquarters, the close working partnership will offer the electronics’ giant further opportunities to raise brand awareness to a broad consumer audience across the globe. A championship favourite with five wins so far this season, Red Bull Racing and its drivers, Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, achieved unprecedented success in 2009, finishing runner-up in both the Drivers’ (Vettel) and Constructors’ world championships. The team is now third in the Drivers’ (Webber) and second in the Constructors’ world championships for 2010. “We are delighted to welcome LG as a partner to Red Bull Racing,” said Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing Team Principal. “LG Electronics is an extremely innovative company that aligns well with the creative innovation that is demonstrated within Red Bull Racing. This partnership shows Red Bull’s appeal to like-minded partners and signifies the progress the team has made in the short space of time to attract premium brands like LG.” Dermot Boden, Chief Marketing Officer for LG Electronics, added: “It is thrilling to see two of the world’s leading innovation brands – LG Electronics and Red Bull Racing – come together as Formula 1 partners. ‘Life’s Good’ is an expression both LG and Red Bull Racing bring to life every day, by using technology to deliver emotional and exciting experiences to the millions of people who watch Formula 1 worldwide.” Mr. H.S.Paik, President of LG Gulf Electronics Gulf commented: “By forming a partnership with Red Bull Racing, LG can better demonstrate its commitment to using technology in delivering amazing experiences to people worldwide, through access to team personnel and drivers. This human focus is central to LG’s brand and is best reflected through a team partnership. This relationship also provides LG with additional business development opportunities and further enhances our at-track and off-track hospitality, media engagement and merchandising activities.” Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates Airline Appoints StrawberryFrog As Its Global Lead Communications Partner : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates, www.emirates.com, the Dubai-based international airline, announced today that it has selected StrawberryFrog, the world's first Cultural Movement agency, as its global lead communications partner. StrawberryFrog will be responsible for developing and rolling out a new brand platform for Emirates that will reflect the airline’s ambition to become one of the world's most recognized global brands. "StrawberryFrog presented some outstanding and innovative ideas that connected with our vision of where we want to take our brand as we evolve and enter a new growth phase,” said Boutros Boutros, Divisional Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications at Emirates. “As our global lead communications partner, we look forward to working with them to define and create a new category in the evolving media landscape, one that reflects our values and global aspirations.” "Like Emirates, StrawberryFrog challenges the traditional legacy agencies. I am very proud of the StrawberryFrog Amsterdam team’s efforts in winning this account," said Scott Goodson, Founder and CEO of StrawberryFrog. "This and a powerful collaboration with our StrawberryFrog New York team, led to a truly global solution.” Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : National Bonds breaks AED One Billion sales mark during first half of 2010 : 00:00:00 National Bonds National Bonds Corporation PJSC, the leading Shari’a compliant savings scheme, has achieved sales of over AED 1 billion in the first half of 2010, taking its total number of customers to more than 590,000, a growth of 5% over last year. This means that around 8.5% of the UAE population is now National Bonds holders. The popular savings scheme increased its number of female savers to 145,000, holding AED 1.1 billion in funds. Another segment that achieved growth in 2010 is minors, customers under the age of 16, who now number 94,000 with a total of AED 350 million in funds. UAE nationals increased to 168,000 and hold over AED 1 billion in funds. More than 83,460 bondholders were rewarded with prizes amounting to over AED 26 million, resulting to 16 new millionaires joining the National Bonds family of winners in the first half of 2010. The positive results follow a host of initiatives, providing customer convenience to purchase National Bonds in the recently introduced electronic point of sales channel. All these activities are aimed at fostering a culture of regular and sustainable saving in the UAE coupled with the opportunity to reward savers. The savings scheme awards 22,250 prizes to its bondholders every month, i.e. 5,135 weekly prizes and a life-changing AED 1 million grand prize per month. Commenting on the successful results, Mr. Mohammed Qasim Al Ali, Chief Executive Officer, National Bonds Corporation PJSC said: “This is a major milestone for National Bonds and one of which we are proud to share with our customers and strategic partners. With such a significant segment of the UAE population already saving with National Bonds, it is testament to the success of our savings scheme that we still continue to achieve growth both in terms of number of savers and fund size. We are now looking to increase our focus on helping more people take control of their finances by promoting financial literacy, inculcating a savings habit, offering secure and rewarding saving plans and providing access for advice to financial protection products.” “We are extremely delighted that 74% of our overall purchases of bonds come from our existing customers and over 70% of these purchases have been with National Bonds for more than a year. This demonstrates two things: first, the uniqueness of National Bonds value proposition leading to higher levels of customer loyalty. Secondly, despite the overwhelming temptations for people to borrow, we are succeeding in our mission to encourage them to save regularly, in order to secure their futures and that of their families,” he continued. National Bonds also announced that the variety of nationalities holding National Bonds has increased significantly from 91 nationalities to 191. The increase comes as more expats in the UAE see the benefits of saving with an institution that provides secure savings, attractive weekly rewards, competitive annual profits and quick access to liquidity when needed for emergencies. National Bonds also achieved growth of 28% in institutional savings, buoyed by the launch of the Employee Saving Scheme late last year. This scheme offers employees the opportunity to save a portion of their salary each month voluntarily & seamlessly with National Bonds through payroll deductions via their employers. Earlier this year, the company announced for its bondholders an additional benefit for their dependants, to provide all existing and new customers with Shari’a compliant Takaful Coverage up to AED 125,000 - under a joint venture with leading Takaful operator, Dubai Islamic Insurance & Reinsurance Company (AMAN) PSC. Since its launch in 2006, NBC has achieved consistently positive annual results & attractive profit rates which took NBC’s cumulative profit rate generated for the bondholders to 16.64 % over the last three years - among the highest payout in comparison to any other similar savings schemes in the UAE. It also expanded its distribution network to more than 560 outlets following a strategic alliance with Emirates Post, which enables customers to purchase National Bonds savings certificates from over 100 Emirates Post offices across the country. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : GoNabit VIDEO : Social Commerce Startup GoNabit Launches in the UAE : 00:00:00 Gonabit Venture-backed GoNabit has become the first group buying platform to launch in the UAE. Bringing one of the Web’s fastest growing retail phenomena to the Middle East, GoNabit sources ultra discounted daily deals from local businesses to be sold to its subscribers within a limited period of time. Having successfully completed beta testing of its Dubai site, GoNabit will launch its Abu Dhabi website imminently and plans to expand to another 10 regional cities by the end of the year. The first online marketing company of its kind in the region, GoNabit uses the power of group buying to negotiate unbeatable deals on things to see, eat and do in the cities in which it operates, while offering businesses a risk-free customer-creation engine. This new selling technique is an approach which GoNabit’s entrepreneurial founders call ‘assured marketing’. Taking the guesswork out of the cost of customer acquisition, GoNabit provides merchants with a measurable platform for communicating a compelling offer to an engaged audience. “GoNabit offers consumers a secure online shopping experience while bridging the gap from buzz to buy for merchants,” explained CEO and Co-founder Dan Stuart. “We use strength in numbers and unbeatable deals to help buyers and sellers benefit from discovering each other online.” The mechanics of GoNabit are fairly straightforward. Buyers subscribe for free to GoNabit and receive a daily email offering them a product or experience in their city with a discount of between 50 to 90 per cent. Deals so far have ranged from massages and beauty products to dining experiences, outdoor adventures and even a visit to the top of the Burj Khalifa. To successfully “nab” the deal, it must first tip – the point at which the agreed number of purchasers opts into buying the deal. Once the tipping point is achieved and the deal goes live, any GoNabit subscriber can purchase it. The deal only lasts for 24 to 48 hours or until it reaches its sales volume target. In this way GoNabit encourages subscribers to share daily deals with their friends via email, Facebook or Twitter, plan joint activities and take advantage of the low prices together. Purchases are made by credit card through PayPal and customers are charged only if the deal tips. Successful transactions on GoNabit receive an e-voucher for the product or service to be redeemed directly with the merchant within an agreed timeframe. This not only enables merchants to accurately track customer conversions, but also increases opportunities for repeat business. Sohrab Jahanbani, COO and Co-founder, says GoNabit offers SMEs one of the most targeted methods for converting clicks into tangible bottom line results. “With no upfront cost, an advertising investment concentrated on actual customers, the largest reach into young savvy buyers, an exclusive spotlight on your business combined with the buzz and power of social media as well as the certainty of a clear and measurable return on investment, there is no better place for local businesses to create real customers than on GoNabit,” he said. GoNabit is already demonstrating the power of its collective user base ahead of its official launch. In its four weeks of beta operation the GoNabit Dubai site nabbed over 100,000 dirhams in savings for its subscribers across 18 deals. “The beta buzz alone has attracted a lot of great partners to register their deals with GoNabit as word of its effectiveness spreads. The time is now for residents of the Middle East to enjoy the benefits of social commerce. We created GoNabit.com to be a pioneering, safe, secure, online group buying platform for the region that helps people come together, save and discover locally,” added Stuart. Backed by initial funding from Bayt.com the number one job site in the Middle East, GoNabit is well positioned to scale regionally. It also boasts the highest level of Verisign’s SSL encryption and was the first company in the UAE to have its data management verified by Trustee. _ltB_gtAbout GoNabit_lt/B_gt GoNabit is an online marketing company that uses the power of social commerce to nab unbeatable discounts of between 50-90 per cent on things to see, eat and do in the cities in which it operates. It is the first group-buying platform in the Middle East and offers businesses a risk-free customer-creation engine. GoNabit was founded in 2010 by experienced entrepreneurs Dan Stuart and Sohrab Jahanbani and is venture-backed by Bayt.com, the number one job site in the Middle East. GoNabit has the highest level of Verisign’s SSL encryption and is also the first company in the UAE to have its data management verified by Trustee. For more information visit www.gonabit.com _ltB_gtMedia Contact:_lt/B_gt Eleanor Jack Mojo PR +971 50 103 3161 eleanor@mojo-me.com Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : NewzPoint : International VIDEO : Oman vessel named in launching ceremony at portsmouth naval base : 00:00:00 BAE Systems The Royal Navy of Oman’s (RNO) second Corvette (Al-Rahmani) was commissioned this morning at Portsmouth Naval Base. It is the second corvette out of three designed and built by BAE Systems for the RNO. The Commissioning Ceremony was held under the auspices of His Highness Sayyed Badir bin Saud bin Harib Al-Busaidi the Minister Responsible Defence Affairs in the Sultanate of Oman. The Ceremony was attended by Lord Astor, the Under Secretary of State for Defence in the UK and Rear Admiral Abdullah bin Khamis bin Abdullah Al-Raisi, Commander of the Royal Navy of Oman (CRNO) in addition to a number of VIPs and representatives of the RNO and the UK Royal Navy. This event reflects the strategic importance given to these state-of-the-art corvettes by the Sultanate of Oman and UK at the time in which BAE Systems is seeking to boost its exports worldwide. The commissioning of Al-Rahmani comes under the contract (Khareef) signed by the two sides in 2007 in light of which BAE Systems has to design and build three 99 metre corvettes. The ships have the capacity to serve for prolonged periods overseas and are designed to reinforce the RNO capabilities and support the Naval Force in the protection of the international waters and the surveillance of EEZ. Alan Johnston, Managing Director of BAE Systems’ Surface Ships division, said: “We have been building ships for the RNO for over 30 years and are proud of the close working relationship we have developed, which is helping us to deliver the extremely sophisticated naval capability to the Royal Navy of Oman that you see here today. “Today’s event reflects the significant progress on this programme and reinforces our position as a leader in the global market to design, build and support warships for navies around the world.” On this occasion, Rear Admiral Abdullah bin Khamis bin Abdullah Al-Raisi said: ‘By the almighty blessing, RNO celebrated this morning the commissioning of the ship (Al-Rahmani), the second ship of the Khareef Project to enter the service and it is a great fortune that this event coincides with the Sultanates Celebrations of the Blessed Renaissance Day anniversary led by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos the Supreme Commander of SAF and no doubt this inauguration is a further milestone to be added to the RNO achievement record and one of the landmarks of this prosperous era. In fact this project comes as an outcome of the continuous military cooperation between RNO and Royal Navy and enhances the excellent ties between RNO and BAE Systems, assigned with Project Khareef.’ The first ship (Al-Shamikh) was commissioned in July 2009 and will set sail for its first sea trials later this year. _ltB_gtAbout BAE Systems_lt/B_gt BAE Systems is a global defence, security and aerospace company with approximately 107,000 employees worldwide. The Company delivers a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. In 2009 BAE Systems reported sales of 22.4 billion (US$ 36.2 billion). Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Rich Media Consultancy VIDEO : Human Synergistics - Celebrating 10 years : 00:11:51 Human Synergistics Australia & New Zealand In 2008, Human Synergistics celeberated their 10th Annual Australian Conferences - in Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. HS commissioned a video looking back at the years as they unfolded - highlighting their exceptional guest speakers and noting how things have changed in Australian business practices and lexicon. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Rich Media Consultancy VIDEO : Emirates Airlines - Making a Public Address : 00:11:06 Emirates Emirates Airlines is dedicated to ongoing education. They noted a need to standardise their public announcements and give employees all the information they needed to make the most of the traveler's experience. This video is an internal educational film seen by inductees and old-hands alike. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Rich Media Consultancy VIDEO : Cemex Middle East - B2B promotional video. : 00:07:25 CEMEX This project was initiated when Cemex (Cement Mexico - the largest cement producer in the world) entered the Dubai construction market. The client wished to show the history and depth of professionalism that Cemex brought to the construction industry. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Rich Media Consultancy VIDEO : Aus Aid Abroad Promotional video : 00:04:12 Union Aid Abroad APHEDA Aus Aid Abroad is a Union-based initiative to bring workers' rights, self-determined organisations and education to countries that have undeveloped industrial regulations and practices. This project was produced by gathering footage from overseas and creating a snapshot of the work that Aus Aid Abroad is achieving throughout Asia and Africa. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates delivers the goods with new service to Dakar : 00:00:00 Emirates With the launch of Emirates’ new route to Dakar now just six weeks away, the airline has unveiled a raft of economic benefits that the service will bring to the Middle East, West Africa and markets throughout the airline’s international network. As the only scheduled passenger service between the United Arab Emirates and Senegal, Emirates’ new route will cut current journey times to Dakar by around the equivalent of an eight hour working day, creating an easy, fast and convenient service for business and leisure travellers. Richard Vaughan, Divisional Senior Vice President of Emirates’ Commercial Operations Worldwide said: “Dakar is a dynamic, emerging destination that we are delighted to welcome as our nineteenth African route. As the only direct air link between Senegal and the Middle East, our new service will play an important role in supporting trade ties and tourism, facilitating the smooth movement of travellers and cargo between Senegal and Emirates’ extensive global network.” Mr Vaughan continued: “This new route launch is a further demonstration of Emirates’ commitment to investing in and supporting the development of its pan-African footprint. Not only is the service already paying dividends through the creation of new jobs, such as our first Senegalese cabin crew and sales staff, but it will provide a significant long-term boost to trade and commerce.” Trade between Dubai and Senegal has followed a steady path of growth in recent years. Dubai’s non-oil trade with Senegal rose from AED 504 million (US$137 million) in 2008 to AED 676 million (US$ 184 million) at the end of 2009. His Excellency Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry said: “Dubai Chamber has long recognised the importance and high potential of the African market. Senegal stood at 76th in the list of Dubai’s top trading partners at the end of 2009 and the launch of the Emirates’ new route to Dakar will strongly enhance trade between the two cities and consolidate Dubai’s status as an international business hub. He added: “Emirates’ direct flights with Senegal will have a positive economic effect as they will cut business costs, facilitate trade and provide the right push for cementing the bilateral commercial ties. We believe that this new route will be a step towards achieving enhanced economic relations with Senegal and the region.” The 18 tonnes of belly-hold cargo capacity on the A340-300 aircraft will support key Senegalese exports such as fresh fish, fruit and seasonal vegetables, primarily destined for Emirates' destinations in Europe and the Mediterranean, including Milan, Madrid, Paris and Beirut. The new service will also facilitate the import of goods into Dakar such as textiles from Asia, electronics from East Asia and Europe and clothing from India. As well as supporting new business opportunities, the Dakar route will also benefit existing collaborations between Dubai and Senegal. For example, DP World was recently awarded the concession to develop and operate the existing container terminal at Dakar’s Port du Futur and invest in a new container terminal, while the Jebel Ali Free Zone is currently developing a special economic free zone connected to Senegal’s new Blaise Diagne Airport. Last year, the Emirates Group signed an agreement with the Government of Senegal to co-operate in the start up and longer term future of Senegal Airlines. Signed in November 2009, this agreement will see the Emirates Group provide commercial support, technical expertise, training and aviation-related goods and services. Mr Vaughan added: “We bring a formidable reputation for service excellence to the market and we intend to live up to it. We look forward to giving passengers from Senegal much easier access to our international hub in Dubai, where they can travel onwards to more than 100 destinations across six continents.” Starting 1st September 2010, Emirates will fly non-stop to Dakar five times a week every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Emirates Flight 797 will depart Dubai at 09:55 and touch down at Dakar's Lopold Sdar Senghor International Airport at 16:00hrs the same day. The return flight departs Dakar at 17:40, arriving in Dubai at 07:15 the following morning. The service connects seamlessly to key centres in the Middle East, the Indian Sub-continent, Asia and the Far East. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research Selects SunGard Higher Education to Create New National Data Warehouse : 00:00:00 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) Milestone Project to Unify Entire UAE Higher Education Data for Improved Planning and Decision Making. The Department of Higher Education Policy Planning and Coordination (HEPPC) under the auspices of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MOHESR), has selected SunGard Higher Education, one of the world’s leading software and IT services companies, to help create a national data warehouse that will integrate data from all segments of higher education in the UAE as well as other data sources. Specifically designed for higher education, the new data warehouse will facilitate a single source of data access across higher education authorities and institutions in the UAE. It will also provide data integrity, security and accuracy as well as help policy makers in strategic planning. Subha Al Shamisi, executive director for Higher Education and Scientific Research Affairs, stated: “A highly skilled workforce is essential for the social and economic future of the UAE, and we must ensure a quality education for the next generation of Emiratis so they can lead the nation forward. We therefore sought an IT partner with knowledge and expertise in higher education to help us build our higher education to world class standards, and SunGard Higher Education has the reputation for delivering the best solutions.” With over a third of the UAE population under the age of fifteen, there is a reinforced strategic focus on education. Government authorities are looking to technology to help them plan and make decisions that will achieve better quality and access to higher education in the UAE. The first stage deployment of the project was completed in November 2008; when implemented, the national data warehouse will combine data from the three federal institutions of higher education: UAE University, Zayed University and the Higher Colleges of Technology – all of which use SunGard Higher Education software solutions to help run their campuses. Among other federal and non-federal organizations that will include data in the national data warehouse are the Commission for Academic Accreditation, the National Admissions and Placement Office, the Scholarship and Cultural Foreign Relations Department, and the Academic Equivalency Department. “This project with MOHESR further reinforces our long-term commitment to supporting the region’s higher education vision,” said Mathew Boice, general manager, Middle East, SunGard Higher Education. “The way data is organized and used is crucial for successful reporting, strategic planning and decision making. The Banner Performance Reporting and Analytics solutions from SunGard Higher Education will deliver one comprehensive environment to help support the use of data by all stakeholders in the UAE higher education space,” Mr. Boice added. The UAE federal government recently reaffirmed its commitment to education with an allocation of AED 7.4 billion to the sector for 2009. It is anticipated that a portion of these funds will be allocated to IT infrastructures to help drive further excellence and opportunity in the delivery of quality education for the next generation of Emiratis. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : SunGard Higher Education Supports Call to Action from the World Conference on Higher Education : 00:00:00 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) SunGard Higher Education joined The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and more than 1,000 participants and 60 ministers from more than 150 countries at the World Conference on Higher Education (WCHE). The global conference, held every ten years, closed with a call to increase investment in higher education, encourage diversity and strengthen regional cooperation to serve societal needs. UNESCO Director General, Koichiro Matsuro, highlighted the changes technology has brought to education, and the increased demand, which is altering the landscape of education. Chris Howgego, senior vice president of international for SunGard Higher Education, commented, “Technology has helped to fuel the growth of international education. SunGard Higher Education supports this growth by offering institutions and their constituents the platform and services for development in an increasingly global landscape. Learning environments must evolve and be developed to help younger generations succeed beyond current boundaries. We share in the responsibility to provide the context in which this can be achieved.” Speakers explored themes including the role of education in addressing today’s greatest challenges, the issues presented by a transforming higher education sector and societal commitment to higher education. Several guests took the platform to call for greater cooperation amongst the educational community and many highlighted the role of education as a critical pillar in resolving the global economic crisis. Dr. Jill Biden, wife of United States Vice President Joe Biden and a community college teacher, spoke of her passion for teaching and stressed the role education would take under the Obama administration. Secretary General of the OECD, Angel Gurria, spoke of the difficulty students face in the current job market and the need for institutions to focus on creating relevant courses. That sentiment was echoed by Benita Ferrero-Waldner; European Commissioner for external relations. The final conference communiqué outlines the critical areas discussed during the conference, and a call for action to key stakeholders including the member states, and UNESCO. You can find more information at the UNESCO Web site, www.unesco.org/en/wche2009. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : SunGard Higher Education and Dell Discuss Technology for Education Sector at GITEX 2009 : 00:00:00 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) E-Learning, Learning Management Systems & Computer Intensive Technology Infrastructure Discussed at Roundtable SunGard Higher Education, a global leader in software solutions and technology management for higher institutions, and Dell, a leading provider of innovative technology and services, have jointly hosted a roundtable discussion for leading thinkers on technology for education. Mathew Boice, general manager, EMEA, SunGard Higher Education, and Josh Claman, vice president, EMEA, public sector, Dell, hosted the event, which was held on 20 October as part of activities during GITEX 2009. The roundtable addressed crucial topics in technology for education, including learning management systems, e-learning initiatives in the Middle East, and high performance clustering. “Global information technology trends are dictating the pace of progression in higher education today; leading universities and colleges are looking to technology solutions to help create digital learning environments that enable collaboration, provide better administrative services as well as deliver 24/7 access to campus resources. SunGard Higher Education and Dell have a common vision to help higher education institutions keep pace with the ever evolving global technology landscape,” said Mr. Boice from SunGard Higher Education. Dell is currently collaborating with SunGard Higher Education in a Unified Digital Campus (UDC) Test Centre. The Test Centre is a state-of-the-art facility designed to simulate real-world higher education technology environments in the use of integrated and proven applications on a single platform, for institutions of all sizes and types. SunGard Higher Education provides one of the world’s most widely-used collegiate administrative suites of student, financial aid, human resources, finance, and advancement systems. Mr. Claman from Dell said: “The core mandate of this roundtable is for participants to emerge better informed with a fresh perspective on using cutting-edge technology solutions to transform their institutions into world class learning environments. This is exactly what the region requires to advance its quest for knowledge economies. Our relationship with SunGard Higher Education creates a viable synergy that helps universities and colleges provide the best education experiences to their constituencies. The UDC Test Centre we have created in collaboration with SunGard Higher Education helps institutions to make smart technology investments and lower their total cost of ownership.” Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : Three Trends Expected to Be Hot Topics at SunGard Higher Education’s Annual User Conference, SunGard Summit : 00:00:00 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) Just days away from hosting nearly 6,000 higher education professionals at its annual user conference, SunGard Higher Education points to 2009 successes as the momentum for 2010 and interest in the company’s new Open Digital Campus vision. “We have identified three strong trends that have emerged over the past year that affirm where our customers are headed, and how we can better serve them through our Open Digital Campus strategy,” said Ron Lang, chief executive officer, SunGard Higher Education. “These three trends include: an emphasis on the value of collaboration and community; an intense focus on improving and extending existing technology investments; and a growing interest in alternative delivery methods. At SunGard Higher Education we attribute our successes over the past year to how well we have delivered against our Open Digital Campus strategy and our quest to become more than a vendor to our customers – to become a true, valued member of the higher education community. SunGard Summit will be an ideal venue to move forward with these and many other exciting opportunities.” SunGard Higher Education’s Open Digital Campus vision and strategy is designed to give customers new flexibility to shape technology choices. It combines modern technologies, modular assets, and alternative delivery models to provide customers with a faster time to value, and to help them create more scalable, sustainable, and cost-effective digital campuses. The strategy has quickly become a driving force with new product initiatives and development directions, and supports the three identified trends. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates Cup brings fresh spurt of top football action : 00:00:00 Emirates The 2010 FIFA World Cup may be over, but the 2010 Emirates Cup is more than ready to lift the spirits of thousands of international football fans later this month. Arsenal Football Club will once again play host to the world’s most exciting pre-season football tournament, which takes place at the Emirates Stadium in London. The annual tournament, which is held on Saturday 31st July and Sunday 1st August, will feature four big name clubs – the hosts Arsenal, AC Milan, Celtic and Olympique Lyonnais. All will be eager to start their domestic seasons on a positive footing by lifting the Emirates Cup trophy. His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group, said: “Our sponsorship of Arsenal Football Club is essential to our global sporting strategy and the Emirates Cup, now in its fourth year, plays a vital part of our association with the club. With our new shirt sponsorship of AC Milan, who will be sporting the new AC Milan Fly Emirates home shirt for the very first time, it will be a pleasure to see them both taking on teams of such high calibre like Olympique Lyonnais and Celtic.” Arsenal Manager, Arsne Wenger commented: “I’m looking forward to these pre-season games already – especially with the excitement of the new season starting to build momentum. With the World Cup now finally over, the Emirates Cup tournament is the perfect opportunity to see which players will be staking a claim for the first team and finding out who has come back from South Africa ready and in good shape to play. Wenger added: "Arsenal loves welcoming back its loyal fans for the first big game at the Emirates Stadium and it’s the perfect environment for the players to get their sharpness back after the summer break. We look forward to welcoming our guests - AC Milan, Olympique Lyonnais and Celtic - to the 2010 Emirates Cup. I’m confident that the fans of all clubs involved are in for a very special football treat.” Emirates will be engaging fans throughout the tournament with a regular fan-favourite promotion - The Emirates Upgrade – which awards two lucky fans from the crowd on the day with the opportunity to have their seats upgraded to the exclusive Diamond Club, all courtesy of Emirates Airline. This includes all the perks normally associated with top football club hospitality. In 2004, Emirates and Arsenal signed the biggest club sponsorship in English football history. In addition to the Fly Emirates logo on the players’ shirts, Emirates also has naming rights of Arsenal’s home, Emirates Stadium. Elsewhere, the airline sponsors AC Milan, Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, Hamburger SV and Olympiacos FC. Emirates’ affinity with football continues as it is an Official Partner of the FIFA World Cup™ and Official Airline and Partner of the Asian Football Confederation. The airline is also heavily involved in rugby, cricket, golf, horseracing, sailing and tennis. 2010 Emirates Cup schedule: Saturday 31st July 2010: 14.00 Celtic vs. Olympique Lyonnais 16.20 Arsenal FC vs. AC Milan Sunday 1st August 2010: 14.00 AC Milan vs. Olympique Lyonnais 16.20 Arsenal FC vs. Celtic Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : RAK Ceramics named UAE SuperBrand 2010 : 00:00:00 RAK Ceramics RAK Ceramics, the world's largest ceramic tiles & sanitaryware manufacturing company, has announced that it has been named as one of the UAE's SuperBrands in 2010, a distinction it has earned for the second consecutive year. The award ceremony was held on 20th of July at the Intercontinental Hotel, Dubai Festival City. RAK Ceramics was presented the UAE SuperBrand award by the SuperBrand Council, the world's largest independent brand arbiter, during the SuperBrand Tribute event held recently. RAK Ceramics has been credited for helping enhance the reputation of Ras Al Khaimah and the rest of the UAE as an ideal manufacturing base through its powerful global brand image and its sustained efforts to set new industry benchmarks and expand its presence in all international markets. Available in more than 150 countries, the RAK Ceramics brand is also renowned worldwide for offering the industry's widest selection of colours, textures and finishes as well as an extensive array of coordinating trim and angle pieces. Dr. Khater Massaad, CEO, RAK Ceramics said: "The UAE SuperBrand award reaffirms the continued success of our brand awareness campaign, which focuses on product quality and service excellence. Moreover, the distinction serves as a powerful endorsement of RAK Ceramics' ability to deliver on its brand promise, which is to be a trend setter and a benchmark for quality in the global ceramic tile industry. RAK Ceramics will continue to pursue its aggressive brand identity programs in parallel with our efforts to maintain the highest quality standards in all our products and services, in line with our mission to enhance customer loyalty and further strengthen our brand image across global markets." In addition to the UAE SuperBrand label, RAK Ceramics has also consistently won several other industry distinctions, including being rated as among the top four brands in the UAE by Brand Finance Middle East of the UK, Company of the Year by Arabian Business Awards, and the MRM Business Award for manufacturing, the topmost manufacturing award in the UAE. Earlier in April 2010, RAK Ceramics was awarded the Best Brand at Middle East Business Leaders Summit and Awards held in Dubai. Moreover, in the latest issue of Ceramic World Review, RAK Ceramics was officially recognised as the world's largest manufacturer of ceramic tiles. The Ras Al Khaimah-based company was established in 1991 by H.H. Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Crown Prince of Ras Al Khaimah and RAK Ceramics Chairman, and Dr. Khater Massaad, CEO, who directed the company towards global competitiveness, technological advancement, and high-quality production. Within just a decade of operations, RAK Ceramics quickly established itself as one of the world's leading manufacturers of ceramic tiles and, ultimately, the largest producer in the global market. RAK Ceramics' products include world-class ceramic wall and floor tiles, Gres Porcellanato, and sanitary ware, which are distributed in Europe, Asia, Australia, USA and Canada. The company uses more than 8,000 production models, with new designs added almost every week to its product portfolio. Renowned as an industry pioneer, RAK Ceramics is the world’s first company to launch Luminous, Golden or Silver Glazed tiles and the Antimicrobial, a super specialty tile for the hospital industry. RAK Ceramics' latest creations include the high-valued brand "Elegance Ceramics", and "RAKSLIM", an eco-friendly 4.5-millimetre thick tile that sets new industry benchmarks in thickness, strength, cost and ease of use. The SuperBrand Council consists of eminent personalities in the world of branding and seeks to pay tribute to established brands all over the world. The SuperBrand Council also produces various publications featuring the world's SuperBrands. Being voted a SuperBrand serves as a powerful endorsement and evidence for existing and potential customers, media, suppliers, investors and employees of a brand's exceptional status. The public-listed RAK Ceramics is currently the world’s largest manufacturer of ceramic and porcelain tiles accounting for more than USD 1 billion global sales annually. The company's global production of tiles exceeds 360,000 sqm and 12,000 pieces of sanitary ware per day from its local and global state-of-the-art manufacturing plants. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : MENA Private Equity Activity Declined in 2009 but Set to Rebound in 2010 : 00:00:00 Dubai International Financial Centre 2010 outlook remains positive as MENA continues to grow amidst an economically stable environment. Private equity in the Middle East witnessed a decline in 2009, with fund managers raising only US$1.06 billion compared to a near-record US$5.4 billion in 2008 according to the 4th annual Private Equity& Venture Capital in the Middle East report released by the Gulf Venture Capital Association (GVCA) in collaboration with KPMG and Zawya. Private equity investments have also regressed from $2.72 billion in 2008 to $561 million in 2009. Private equity investments globally as well as regionally were affected by the cautious investment environment as a result of the continued recession in 2009. However, private equity firms in the Middle East and North Africa raised $1.25 billion in the first quarter of 2010, an 18% percent increase over all of 2009, as regional economies recovered and investor appetite returned. It is estimated that up to USD 10 billion committed to Private Equity funds remains not invested, although some funds are expected to release their investors from their future commitments. Imad Ghandour, Chairman of GVCA’s Information Committee stated: “Private equity has regained its positive momentum despite the results of 2009. The outlook for private equity in 2010 and beyond remains positive as the economic fundamentals of the region have not changed. The story in the region continues to remain one of growth and economic stability, and private equity funds will have ample opportunities to invest profitably in the coming few years.” Fund managers also changed their investment strategies and focused more on sectors that exhibited high growth and stability, and were immune to changes in the economic cycle, such as healthcare, education, transport, and utilities. The report also states that venture capital received significant attention in 2009; 7 transactions estimated at US$25 million were closed, a substantial increase over previous years. “It is encouraging to see that private equity investors are getting back to basics by channeling much needed funds into parts of the economy that received little attention during the boom years. Investing in sectors that serve the needs of the masses, for example healthcare, education and utilities, is important for the common prosperity of the region,” said Ihsan Jawad, CEO, Zawya. “The other positive news from our findings is concrete evidence of the Venture Capital part of the industry gaining momentum. Judging from this, I would say the industry had a turning point in 2009.” Commenting on the recent improvement in market sentiment, Vikas Papriwal, KPMG’s UAE Country Head of Private Equity and Sovereign Wealth Funds, said “We have undoubtedly seen an increase in activity in the market. In the second quarter of 2010, opportunistic investors have been actively looking at transactions in a number of sectors. From virtually no deals throughout 2009 and into the first quarter of 2010, the upturn has been surprisingly fast-paced. Whether this pace can be maintained remains to be seen but, given the number of sell-side initiated transactions coming into the market, it seems that the opportunities are out there to feed the increased acquisition appetite for the time being.” The latest GVCA report supported by Hawkamah and with Abraaj Capital as the prime sponsor, aims to encourage transparency in the Middle East private equity market by delving into the major factors affecting private equity investments in the region. The GVCA report derives its data from Zawya’s Private Equity Monitor, which enables members to gauge investor appetite in the Middle East’s private equity industry by assessing how funds perform against each other. For this year’s GVCA report, an online survey was conducted in May of 2010 with 25 regional private equity professionals, including the top General Partners by funds under management. Asked about their opinion regarding the future of private equity in the MENA region, 72% of respondents expected the situation to improve, showing a significant increase compared to 50% who felt optimistic in 2008. According to Dr. Nasser H. Saidi, Chief Economist and Head of External Relations at the DIFC Authority (DIFCA) and Executive Director of the Hawkamah-Institute for Corporate Governance: “Corporate governance plays a crucial role in the PE industry not only because good governance has a positive effect on company valuation, but also because in most cases, PE funds have limited ability to sell their ownership stakes, and are therefore committed to staying with the company for the medium term. This increases their dependence on good governance, transparency and disclosure in investee companies. Furthermore, in light of the recent financial crisis which largely stemmed from governance failures and malpractices, there now is an increasing emphasis on good corporate governance. We have set-up a PE Corporate Governance Task Force to assist the industry in strengthening its corporate governance and that of its investments” The Private Equity& Venture Capital in the Middle East report released by the Gulf Venture Capital Association (GVCA) in collaboration with KPMG and Zawya, indicates that Private equity investments regionally were affected owing to cautious investments by private equity investors in particular, as a result of the continued recession that impacted markets globally. About GVCA GVCA is a non-profit trade and industry association for Venture Capital (VC) and Private Equity (PE). GVCA's role is to promote a risk-taking investment culture, develop skills and provide information on VC/PE industry. GVCA will cover several aspects of the VC/PE industry such as trends and strategies, legal/fiscal policies and regulations, investment models, management of fund raising and structures, technology evaluation and valuation, contracts and control rights, information/studies, early stage funding and corporate venture capital, among others. About Zawya Zawya enables over 750,000 professionals with the means to find and connect to the right business and investment opportunities in both private and public markets across the Middle East. Zawya's wide range of unique content and tools includes detailed company profiles, timely aggregated news such as Zawya-Dow Jones, leading industry and asset class research, as well as an exclusive online network. Headquartered in Dubai, Zawya has a presence in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Lebanon. For more information visit www.zawya.com About KPMG KPMG is a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax and Advisory services, operating in 144 countries with 137,000 people working in member firms around the world. The independent member firms of the KPMG network are affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”), a Swiss entity. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity and describes itself as such. About Hawkamah Hawkamah, the Institute for Corporate Governance, constitutes a groundbreaking development for institution building, corporate sector reform, sound banking and financial sector development, good governance, sustainable economic development and growth in the region. Hawkamah’s mission is to assist the countries and companies of the region to develop sound and globally well-integrated corporate governance frameworks. Hawkamah is an international association that aims to efficiently coordinate and sequence the designing, planning and implementation of corporate governance reforms and monitoring the outcome of corporate governance policies at the private sector level. Hawkamah is supported by international and regional organizations such as the International Finance Corporation, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, International Institute of Finance, Center for International Private Enterprise, Union of Arab Banks, Dubai International Financial Centre, among others. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : ETIHAD WELCOMES FIRST AIRBUS A330-200 FREIGHTER AIRCRAFT : 00:00:00 Etihad Airways Etihad Airways and Airbus have participated in a handover ceremony at Farnborough International Air Show today, celebrating the first A330-200 freighter aircraft to be produced. Etihad is the launch customer of the A330-200 freighter aircraft, which will enter service for Etihad’s cargo business, Etihad Crystal Cargo, in September. Etihad’s A330-200 freighter aircraft – which can carry up to 64 metric tonnes of cargo and can fly up to 7,400 kilometres non-stop – will allow the airline’s cargo business to increase frequencies and build its presence in the high-growth European and Asian freight markets, in particular China. The handover ceremony was addressed by Etihad Chief Executive Officer James Hogan and Airbus President and CEO Tom Enders. Mr Hogan said he was delighted to welcome the A330-200 freighter aircraft to the Etihad Crystal Cargo fleet. “Etihad Crystal Cargo has been performing very well for Etihad. Over the last quarter there was an 18 per cent increase in cargo tonnage carried, reflecting the strengthening recovery in our industry. We are focused on taking the right steps to achieve strong expansion and growth,” he said. “The new aircraft will become a key part of our freighter fleet and make a major contribution to building the strength and network of our cargo business. The additional capacity will help us significantly expand our footprint in Asia and Europe, including China, as well as enhancing our worldwide charter services.” Mr Enders said: “Etihad’s A330-200 freighter aircraft will allow the airline’s cargo business to increase frequencies and build its presence in the high-growth European and Asian freight markets. Overall, the recovery of freight traffic is gaining significant momentum and this aircraft gives operators like Etihad Crystal Cargo the best product for maximising returns.” Etihad will take delivery of its second A330-200 freighter aircraft in September, which will enter service by October, taking the airline’s fleet number to 56 aircraft. The A330-200 freighter aircraft is part of the airline’s order placed with Airbus at the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget in 2007, for aircraft to be delivered between 2008 and 2011. The A330-200 freighter aircraft will be on display throughout the air show, after which it will undertake final pre-delivery preparation by the manufacturer in Toulouse. Etihad Crystal Cargo currently operates a fleet of four freighter aircraft which includes two Airbus A300-600s and two MD11s. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : Etihad Airways Finalises GEnx-1B Engine Selection and OnPoint Solutions Agreement : 00:00:00 Etihad Airways Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has finalised the purchase of 78 GEnx-1B engines to power its 35 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft order announced during the Paris Airshow in 2009. The total value of the engine order is worth $1.8 billion (USD) list price and the aircraft delivery is scheduled to begin in 2015. Additionally, Etihad Airways has signed a 15-year OnPointSM solutions agreement with GE Aviation for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of these engines. The agreement is worth more than $2.5 billion (USD) over the life of the contract. Etihad Airways chief executive officer, James Hogan, said: “We are pleased to be working with GE for the delivery of these advanced GEnx engines, which offer cost optimisation and fuel efficiency for Etihad’s Dreamliner aircraft. One of the key criteria in the selection of our engines is environmental performance, and the reduced emissions of the GEnx engines will complement our fleet, which is one of the youngest and most environmentally efficient in the world. “Furthermore, as part of our long-term partnership with GE, the OnPoint maintenance agreement will enable technology and skills transfer to our maintenance partner, Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies, for these engine types.” David Joyce, president and chief executive officer of GE Aviation, said: “We are extremely proud to be associated with an airline with such significant growth. “Etihad Airways already operates GE90-powered Boeing 777 fleet, and the selection of the GEnx engine re-affirms the airline’s confidence in the quality of GE products, backed by world-class product support for many years to come.” Etihad Airways has achieved significant growth since it first took to the skies in November 2003, now operating to 64 destinations around its network. In 2008, Etihad announced the largest aircraft order in commercial aviation history for up to 205 aircraft due for delivery by 2020, including 100 firm orders, 55 options and 50 purchase rights. With more than 1,100 engines sold to date, the GEnx is the fastest-selling engine in GE's history. Based on the proven architecture of the GE90, the GEnx will succeed GE's CF6 engine, offering the GEnx will offer 15 percent improved fuel efficiency, which translates into 15 percent less CO2. It is designed to stay on wing 30 percent longer than the CF6, while using 30 percent fewer parts, greatly reducing maintenance. The GEnx emissions will be as much as 95 percent below current regulatory limits. The engine will also be the quietest one that GE has produced, based on a pound-of-thrust-per-decibel ratio. As the world's only jet engine with both a front fan case and fan blades made of carbon fiber composites, the GEnx will also have greater durability, better performance retention as well as lower operating costs than comparable engines in its class. The OnPoint solution is a customized service agreement tailored to the operational and financial needs of Etihad’s fleet. The agreement will lower the cost of ownership and maximize the use of assets. Backed by GE's global support network, OnPoint services for Etihad may include overhaul, on wing support, new and used-serviceable parts, component repair, technology upgrades, engine leasing, integrated systems support and diagnostics and integrated systems. Etihad Airways is the national airline of the United Arab Emirates based in the UAE’s capital, Abu Dhabi. Currently Etihad offers flights to 64 destinations in the Middle East, Europe, North America, Africa, Australia and Asia. For further details visit www.etihadmediacentre.com GE Aviation, an operating unit of GE (NYSE: GE), is a world-leading provider of jet and turboprop engines, components and integrated systems for commercial, military, business and general aviation aircraft. GE Aviation has a global service network to support these offerings. For more information, visit us at www.ge.com/aviation Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : SunGard HE Corporate Video - 2010 : 00:02:48 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) More information soon! Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates orders 30 Boeing 777-300ERs valued at US$9.1 Billion : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates, www.emirates.com, the Dubai-based international airline, today placed an order with Boeing for an additional 30 777-300ER aircraft, worth approximately US$9.1 billion (AED 33.4 billion) in list prices. The new order adds to the fleet of 71 777-300ERs previously ordered, of which 53 aircraft are currently in service. His Highness (H.H.) Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Prime Minister and Vice President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Ruler of Dubai, witnessed the signing at the Farnborough Air Show. The agreement was signed between H.H. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group and Jim Albaugh, President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Emirates Group senior executives, including Maurice Flanagan, Executive Vice Chairman Emirates Airline & Group; Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline and Gary Chapman, President Group Services and Dnata, were also present at the event. “Emirates is the world’s largest operator of 777s and this latest order, adding to 71 777-300ERs previously ordered, affirms Emirates’ strategy to become a world leading carrier and to further establish Dubai as a central gateway to worldwide air travel,” said H.H. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum. “Our latest deal signals Emirates’ confidence in the growth of the thriving aviation sector and our commitment to building a modern, environmentally efficient fleet for tomorrow,” he added. The 777-300ER will be operated in a three-class configuration with eight First class suites, 42 Business class seats and 310 Economy class seats and offers an additional cargo payload of 20.1 tonnes. Emirates has 86 777s in service – three -200s, six -200ERs, 10 -200LRs, 12 -300s, 53 -300ERs and two freighters. “Emirates is today one of the world’s leading airlines thanks in part to the 777. Its ambitious expansion plans have established itself as a global force in the aviation sector,” said Jim Albaugh, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “Emirates has played an important role in the 777’s success with its significant support of the program and valuable feedback over the years. Today’s order serves to underscore the airline’s confidence in the airplane, which forms the mainstay of its fleet.” Emirates is on track to become one of the largest airlines in the world. In addition to the order placed today, Emirates has 79 Airbus A380s, 70 Airbus A350s and seven Boeing freighters on order totaling 204 wide-body aircraft worth more than US$67 billion (AED 246 billion). In a year where the aviation industry was rocked by the economic downturn, Emirates Airline recently reported its 22nd year of profit, up 416 percent to close at US$964 million (AED 3.5 billion) over its 2008-09 profits of US$187 million (AED 686 million). Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates' recent A380 order to be powered by Engine Alliance GP7200s Engines : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates, www.emirates.com, the Dubai-based international airline, has selected the Engine Alliance GP7200 engines to power its 32 Airbus A380 aircraft ordered last month. The deal, announced today, includes a Fleet Management Agreement for the maintenance, overhaul and repair of the engines. The total value of the agreement, including spare engines, is approximately $4.8 billion (USD) over the life of the contract. The agreement was signed today during a ceremony at the Farnborough Air Show by His Highness (H.H.) Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group and Mary Ellen Jones, President of the Engine Alliance. “GP7200 engines are powering the 11 A380 aircraft currently operating in our fleet and the results have been very positive,” stated HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum. “The engine's fuel efficiency, reliability and low noise output were decisive factors in our selection of the product for our additional 32 A380s.” "We're very proud of the GP7200's performance in the Emirates fleet to date, and delighted to be part of Emirates' continued growth and success," said Ms. Jones. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : Etisalat Announces H1 2010 Financial Results : 00:00:00 Etisalat Etisalat today announced its consolidated financial results for the first six months of the year 2010, Growth of 2% in Etisalat net consolidated revenues to reach AED 16 billion compared to AED 15.7 billion recorded during the same period in 2009. Etisalat recorded net profit of AED 3.9. billion for the group compared to AED 4.6 billion recorded during the same period in 2009. Net assets also increased by 2.5% to reach AED 41.4 billion compared to AED 40.4 billion recorded last year. Earnings per share have reached AED 0.49 during the first half of year 2010. In the second quarter, Etisalat’s Net Revenues were AED 8.1 billion and Net Profits were AED 1.9 billion compared to AED 8.1 billion and AED 2.4 billion in the same period last year. Etisalat has 7.8 million mobile subscribers in the UAE, 1.28 million fixed-line subscribers and 1.39 million Internet subscribers at the end of the first half. Commenting on these results, Mohammad Omran, Chairman of Etisalat, said: “Etisalat has followed a powerful strategy to offset the potential impact of today’s global economic conditions which continue to effect the results of companies around the world. We have seized opportunities to stand strong and have faced all the challenges and continue to achieve exceptional results.” “The international markets have seen a great deal of fluctuation, but in spite of this we have been able to deal with this situation through a practical strategy which is based on maximizing positives and reducing the negative impact as much as possible. Despite the unique circumstances that the global economy finds itself, we have received strong contributions from our international subsidiaries well in advance of the business plan. This encourages us to continue our international expansion worldwide.” Nasser Bin Obood Al Falasi, Acting CEO for Etisalat, said: “Since 2005 Etisalat has followed a strategy that looks to diversify its income in the UAE. We have done this by launching new services to increase revenue and reducing our reliance on mobile. Most recently we have introduced the latest broadband services which are supported by our fiber-to-the-home network.” “Etisalat has followed a strategy which is appropriate to the economic circumstances that we have faced. This involved achieving vertical growth in the minutes and activating the packages and offers which increase usage of broadband services. Additionally we launched new bundles and services based on the FTTH network such as the 50 fils international calls offer, increasing the availability and capacities of Internet and TV services while providing added value and innovation to our customer service channels.” Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates launches Family Fares for Summer : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates is helping families in the UAE celebrate summer with the airline offering a 50 percent saving on children’s tickets to three select Middle East destinations. Valid for travel to Syria, Jordan and Lebanon, Emirates’ Family First offer allows children aged between two and 18 years to fly for half price when travelling with both parents. The promotion is valid for bookings up until 31st July, for travel up to 31st August 2010. Khalid bel Jaflah, Vice President Commercial Operations UAE said: “Our Family Fares offer is yet another initiative by Emirates that directly benefits families in the UAE. We know from previous years that Lebanon, Syria and Jordan are extremely popular destinations for travel during summer, especially given the large expatriate community in the UAE. We look forward to helping families enjoy their summer break, starting from their journey onboard Emirates.” When travelling with Emirates families can expect world class inflight services such as special meals suited to young travellers, our award winning inflight entertainment system and superior service from our highly trained team of Cabin Crew. Emirates has a history of supporting families in the UAE and this Family First offer follows the extremely popular Kids Go Free campaign, now in its second year. Kids Go Free is valid for families travelling to Dubai, further information on this and Emirates other exciting offers can be found at www.emirates.com Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates' Airbus A380 receives warm welcome in New Delhi : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates today wrote a new chapter in the history of Indian Civil Aviation as its Airbus A380 landed at the newly inaugurated Terminal 3 at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, New Delhi. With the arrival of EK 516 from Dubai, Emirates became the first international carrier to touch down a commercial A380 flight on Indian soil. Celebrating 25 years of India operations, Emirates has played a catalytic role in enhancing economic ties between India and the UAE. Trade volume between the two countries has significantly increased with a 53 per cent jump in the value of Indian exports between 2007/08 and 2008/09 alone, from Dhs 57.4 billion (US$15.63bn) to Dhs 87.85 ($23.92bn). The UAE now accounts for 13 per cent of India’s total exports. The special, one-off flight of the 517-seat A380 arrived at the IGI Airport to a water cannon salute at 14:50. A senior delegation of Emirates officials led by Richard Vaughan - Emirates’ Divisional Senior Vice President Commercial Operations - and Majid Al Mualla - Emirates’ Senior Vice President, West Asia & Indian Ocean - arrived on this special flight of the Emirates A380, commissioned to celebrate the launch of the new Terminal 3. “This is a proud moment for Emirates as we celebrate 25 years of successful operations in India, one of our most important destinations, not just in Southern Asia, but across our global network,” Mr Vaughan told a 200-strong audience comprising media, travel agents and VIPs, hosted by Emirates and GMR. “We started our operations to India in 1985 with 10 flights a week and have, today, achieved a feat that no other international airline has. “The access that the Indian government has granted over this past quarter century has allowed Emirates to invest and create a significant business by operating 184 weekly flights to 10 Indian cities. “Today, the Emirates Group employs over 10,400 Indians, which is approximately 28 per cent of our total workforce. The opportunity that India presents is one that shall help us further strengthen our ties with this country.” The momentous touchdown of the world’s largest aircraft reiterates Emirates’ commitment to the development of the Indian market. Emirates has always believed in developing markets and creating opportunities in every country it operates. This can certainly be said about the Indian market where the airline has grown from a relatively unknown carrier in 1985 to one of the largest and the fastest growing international airlines in the world. And, with an expanding fleet of modern aircraft, Emirates is well placed to meet the India’s growth requirements in the long term. Speaking about the possibility of introducing the A380 permanently on Indian routes, Mr Vaughan said that with 11 A380s already part of the carrier’s fleet and 79 more to come, Emirates saw a “significant opportunity” to start regular services to India, subject to government approvals. “We do see India as one of the key markets where this product will be able to do full justice,” he said, pointing out that the connectivity that Emirates offers through its Dubai hub is second to none. “Introducing it on the Indian routes is only expected to fuel further growth in the Indian economy and strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries. We are upbeat about our plans and hopeful of being able to offer the product as a regular service to the Indian travellers in the near future.” Emirates’ A380 is renowned for its First Class Private Suites, Shower Spas and Onboard Lounge for First Class and Business Class passengers, offering a wide range of drinks and canapés, as well as space to socialise or simply relax. Passengers in all classes can lose themselves in the quietness of the aircraft and the award-winning ice in-flight entertainment system. There are more than 1,000 channels of on-demand entertainment, including 200 movies from around the world, 100 TV channels, more than 500 audio channels, 100 video games and news, sports and business headlines. Mr Al Mualla added: “The response received by Emirates for this momentous flight has been phenomenal. EK 517 to Dubai was equally well received by travellers from Delhi, with the flight being completely sold out within days of opening of bookings. This is a sign of passengers wanting to experience new technology and better services and Emirates is proud to have been able to extend this to its passengers from India.” Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates takes giant leap with its AC Milan sponsorship : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates is taking one giant leap in the world of sports sponsorship by taking its A380 to Milan for the official unveiling of AC Milan's new Fly Emirates shirt. The super-jumbo gesture, the first chance passengers have had to fly commercially to and from Italy on an A380, will form the backdrop of a high profile event on 29th July at Malpensa Airport. The A380 will replace Emirates' morning Milan service out of Dubai, (EK093), on 29th July. It will depart Terminal 3 at 0640hrs and arrive at 1215hrs in Milan. The double-decker offers 14 lavish First Class Private Suites, 76 new generation fully-flat seats in Business Class and 399 seats in a more roomy Economy cabin. However, the most talked about aspects of the Emirates' A380 are the Onboard Lounge where premium passengers can enjoy a drink and talk business with other travellers, as well as the Onboard Shower Spas where customers can take a refreshing shower at 43,000 feet. Salem Obaidalla, Emirates' Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation, said: "Emirates enjoys making big statements and they don't get much bigger than this. The AC Milan shirt unveiling is a great opportunity to showcase our A380 product and demonstrate our commitment to sport, especially when it is just two days ahead of the Emirates Cup in London on 31st July when the new shirt will be worn by the team for the first time during a game." In the presence of world famous players David Beckham - who was on loan from LA Galaxy at the time - and Ronaldinho, Emirates announced in February a new 60 million Euro deal with AC Milan, giving the airline prestigious shirt sponsor status over five years. The Adidas shirt will be unveiled officially for the first time at Malpensa Airport in the presence of the AC Milan team and VIP guests. Emirates flies to Milan, Rome and Venice as part of its 103 destination network across six continents. Services to Tokyo, Amsterdam and Prague have been launched so far this year - to be followed by Madrid on 1st August and Dakar a month later. The airline is the biggest A380 customer in the world with 11 in the fleet and a further 79 on order. It currently deploys the super-jumbo to London Heathrow, Toronto, Bangkok, Paris, Jeddah, Seoul, Sydney and Auckland. The Emirates' A380 has also made appearances at events in Hamburg, Berlin and Birmingham in the UK. Return A380 fares to Milan on 29th July go from AED 3,280 in Economy, AED 14,500 in Business and AED 21,500 for a First Class Private Suite. All prices are exclusive of taxes. Full details on www.emirates.com Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : BizView TV VIDEO : Marketingco : 00:05:05 Marketingco Jackie Jarvis and Amanda Hobbins explain how Marketingco helps their clients. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : Spain's World Cup victory will fan demand on new Emirates' service : 00:00:00 Emirates Spain's victory at the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ will heighten interest in Emirates' next artery into Europe, the airline said today. Commenting on Spain's triumph in South Africa, Salem Obaidalla, Emirates' Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation, said: "Madrid has already turned to be a fast selling destination with very healthy forward bookings for our 1st August launch - even before FIFA. Now, we expect interest to intensify in our next European destination." Mr Obaidalla continued: "Adding Madrid to our network at a time when Emirates' branding has been so prominent in South Africa is a winning combination. However, Emirates much prefers to hand out boarding cards rather than yellow cards..." Spain scored four minutes before the end of extra time to win 1-0 against the Netherlands in a game that saw 14 yellow cards handed out. The airline also expects further interest in its daily service to the Netherlands, runners up in the world's greatest football spectacle. Emirates holds Official Partner status of the FIFA World Cup™ in an agreement running from 2007-2014. The daily, non-stop service to Madrid is one of five new destinations to be announced by the airline so far this year. The starting whistle for Tokyo was blown on 28th March, Amsterdam kicked off 1st May, Prague scored with the start services on 1st July and Dakar is ready for its opening round on 1st September. Last month, more than 800 guests from across the business and diplomatic community converged on Madrid's Palacio de los Deportes to be introduced to the airline and Dubai ahead of the Madrid launch. Speaking at the road show gala event on 10th June, the eve of the World Cup, Richard Vaughan, the airline's Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Worldwide, said: "We look forward to working with you all to make this route a real success - and a good news story for business, tourism and for travellers. The only thing we can't promise, even as an Official FIFA Partner, is that Spain will win the World Cup!" How a few weeks can change everything. When flights start on 1st August, Emirates will deploy an Airbus A330-200 on the route, offering 12 seats in First Class, 42 in Business and 183 in Economy. Travellers from Dubai will catch EK141 at 0750hrs and arrive in Madrid at 1345hrs. Travelling to Dubai, EK 142 leaves Madrid at 1525hrs and gets into Dubai at 0030hrs the following day. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : NewzPoint : International VIDEO : Global experts set to identify strategies for the right-shaping of the GCC cards industry : 00:00:00 Veritas Events The success of the region’s cards industry is reliant on consistently good service, according to Premal Patel, Executive Director, Bahrain-based Veritas Group, organiser of the upcoming GCC Cards Summit 2010. “The region’s banking sector needs to pump up service delivery and up-the-ante on the value propositions aligned to card products as more and more customers are looking beyond a standard credit facility,” he said. Patel suggested that region’s card industry is facing multiple challenges and said that many latent issues have been uncovered by the economic slowdown – the main driver in shifting spending patterns, especially among the large expat population. “The future of cards is in question. Of course the sector will survive, but in what shape - this is the burning question. Indeed, the opportunity now is for change, and change for the better. “This change is being driven by a simple truth, service differentiation. This is the way forward for cards in the region,” he stressed. He said that as basic as it may sound, the cards industry must get to grips with the needs of consumer, both individual and corporate. “A good place to start is by opening dialogue with existing customers, listen to what is troubling them, and ask what they feel they need in the new marketplace that fast is emerging.” Patel is the weight behind the second GCC Cards Summit, which was successfully launched last year in the height of the downturn. He said that this year’s Summit will bring more than 20 industry speakers to one common platform to discuss debate and share new-world strategies for customer service delivery product innovation and bottom-line management. The Summit has already gathered support from a number of regional and international organisations, including the Bahrain Association for Banks (BAB) and Arab Financial Services (AFS). BAB’s Robert Ainey concurred that service is indeed king: “The only factor that will distinguish the winners in the cards market is the focus on service quality. "Retail banking in the Middle East needs to make the transition from offering identical products - the same current account, the same savings account, the same set of card products, the same consumer loan processing, and so on. “They must want to be a service-oriented organisation, and this requires a radical shift in the mind-set of the way business and process are managed. The winners in the cards market will be those who focus on what today’s customer needs, and not what the bank wants.” BAB is onboard as the Summit’s Associate Partner. Meanwhile, Shankar Sharma, CEO, Arab Financial Services, the event’s the Platinum Sponsor also agreed that banks need to create their own niche products for niche customers, rather than driving mass markets. “Product differentiation and the customer service will enable banks to retain existing users and tap in to emerging categories, thus creating new, win-win relationships.” Patel said that the Summit will also take a look at prepaid cards, as well as contactless and cashless payments. The GCC Card Summit 2010 will be held at the Mövenpick Hotel Bahrain from November 1-3, 2010. More than 150 delegates from GCC, Europe and Asian sub-continent are expected to attend. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : King Abdulaziz University Selects ITS and Solutions from SunGard Higher Education to Create Next-Generation Digital Campus : 00:05:28 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) King Abdulaziz University (KAU) has selected solutions from SunGard Higher Education, a global provider of software solutions, strategic consulting and technology management, to help create a connected digital environment that will help transform the institution into a major centre of excellence in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. International Turnkey Systems (ITS), a leading provider of integrated information technology solutions and software services, will lead the implementation project in close consultation with SunGard Higher Education. “As one of the largest universities in the Middle East, information technology is fundamental to our strategy at KAU and we are engaging leading technology solution providers such as SunGard Higher Education and ITS to help us achieve our vision,” said KAU’s Rector, Professor Osama S. Tayyeb. “This project is a testament to our long-term commitment to create a global centre of excellence in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and thus prepare graduates to cope with the changing needs of the knowledge economy in the region.” Specifically, KAU will deploy solutions from the Banner Digital Campus including Banner Student, Banner Financial Aid, Banner Advancement, Banner Workflow, Banner Operational Data Store and the Luminis Platform from SunGard Higher Education. All of these solutions will help KAU create a digital campus with collaborative communities and virtual research portals for students, researchers and faculty. Furthermore, the digital campus will help administrators work more efficiently as they connect with other campus systems and resources. It will also support business processes needed for knowledge sharing, awarding financial aid and communication with alumni. “KAU has taken on an important role in championing the region’s mission for improved quality of and access to higher education,” said Mathew Boice, vice president, EMEA and India, SunGard Higher Education. “This project is not only helping improve the educational experience for Saudi students, it is also the first step toward building a standardized version of the Banner Digital Campus administrative system for higher education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” To further its strategic commitment to education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, KAU plans to play a central role in defining the Saudi Banner User Group, bringing the user community together and leading an initiative to create a standard Saudi version of Banner Student. This would allow all Saudi universities using SunGard Higher Education’s Banner Student solution to use the same localized version of the software and continue to enhance Banner to support emerging university needs. “As a supporter of the rapidly growing higher education sector in the region, ITS is proud to be part of this project. It strengthens our resolve, based on our philosophy for an integrated digital campus environment that we call ‘one campus,’ to continue deploying our technical expertise to help build first rate learning environments in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and across the region,” said Khalid Al Amiri, Gulf Regional Director, ITS. “As a company we are committed to supporting the development of education. ITS is a major employer across the region and is proud to recruit talented graduates from the Universities that we serve.” About King Abdulaziz University King Abdulaziz University (KAU) carries the name of the establisher of Saudi Arabia- God bless him. This university was established in 1387 H / 1967 G as a national university with a vision to create more opportunities for higher education in the western area of Saudi Arabia. KAU is not only the largest university in Saudi Arabia, but also one of the most distinguished in terms of some of the unique programs it offers. These include majors in Seas Sciences, Geology, Nuclear Engineering, Medical Engineering, Meteorology and Aviation as well as Mineralization. The university is also considered as one of the pioneers of women education in Saudi Arabia. The adoption of the government to this young university and the continuous support was of great effect on changing King Abdulaziz University to a modern university with a number of students that now amounts to 140,000 male and female students. The university also occupies a distinguished place among higher education institutions in Saudi Arabia. King Abdulaziz University includes two separate campuses according to Islamic regulations one for males and another for females. Each of these campuses is provided with all cultural, recreational and athletic facilities, in addition to a big library equipped the most up to date technology to serve students and the teaching staff. Within four decades, the university becomes one of the outstanding higher education institutions on the local and international level. About ITS International Turnkey Systems - ITS established in 1981, with more than 3,000 employees in 24 regional offices, is a leading integrated information technology solutions and software services provider, offers superior products and services that enable organizations to keep pace with the evolving changes in today's competitive business environment, and to meet future challenges and opportunities. www.its.ws About SunGard Higher Education SunGard Higher Education serves colleges, universities and foundations in 40 countries worldwide. Through its Open Digital Campus strategy, SunGard collaborates with the higher education community and provides software and services to help institutions find better ways to teach, learn, manage and connect. www.sungardhe.com About SunGard SunGard is one of the world’s leading software and technology services companies. SunGard has more than 20,000 employees and serves 25,000 customers in 70 countries. SunGard provides software and processing solutions for financial services, higher education and the public sector. SunGard also provides disaster recovery services, managed IT services, information availability consulting services and business continuity management software. With annual revenue exceeding $5 billion, SunGard is ranked 380 on the Fortune 500 and is the largest privately held business software and IT services company. For more information, please visit www.sungard.com. Trademark information: SunGard, the SunGard logo, Banner, Luminis and Open Digital Campus are trademarks or registered trademarks of SunGard Data Systems Inc. or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries. All other trade names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates launches dedicated lounge at Shanghai Pudong International Airport : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates today celebrated the opening of its dedicated lounge for its First and Business Class passengers as well as Gold members of Skywards, the airline’s frequent flyer programme, at Shanghai Pudong International Airport. Located in the International Departure Concourse and located next to Gate 75, it is the first dedicated lounge in Terminal 2 and also the only lounge in the airport that offers an extensive menu of complimentary hot and cold gourmet dishes, as well as a full bar service. Mohammed H Mattar, Emirates' Divisional Senior Vice President, Airport Services, said: “The Shanghai lounge is an integral part of the Emirates experience, putting passengers in the best possible frame of mind for their journey. Today, as the World Expo continues, we are delighted to be adding Shanghai as the 27th Emirates Lounge to join our network of lounges. “With the addition of the Shanghai lounge, well over half of our 18 destinations in the Far East and Australasian region have their own dedicated Emirates Lounge.” Edwin Lau, Emirates’ Vice President, Greater China said: “This is the second lounge that we have opened in China, after Beijing in 2009. It is a very special occasion for us and demonstrates our commitment to our passengers from China. We are convinced that the continued upgrading of our services is the ultimate driving force behind the sustained and robust demand for Emirates flights. And it is our loyal passengers that have made possible our great success in Shanghai and all over China.” The 860m2 lounge, capable of holding 165 passengers at any one time has the same signature touches as all Emirates lounges across the airline’s global network. Its luxurious amenities include designer shower rooms, cream leather lounge couches, 52-inch plasma TVs and a fully equipped Business Centre with Internet access and Wi-Fi. Guests can also enjoy an extensive menu of hot and cold gourmet dishes, as well as a full bar service, supported by a team of dedicated lounge staff. The Emirates Lounge in Shanghai becomes the 27th on the network and the 11th in the Far East & Australian Region. Other Emirates Lounges around the network are Auckland, Bangkok, Beijing, Birmingham, Brisbane, Dubai, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London Gatwick, London Heathrow, Manchester, Munich, Melbourne, Mumbai, New York - JFK, Paris - Charles de Gaulle, Perth, Singapore, Sydney and Zurich. The Emirates Lounge caters for passengers on Emirates' two non-stop, daily flights currently operated between Shanghai and Dubai- EK305, departure at 0715hrs & EK303, departure at 2330hrs. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates cabin crew discover longer term legacy of the FIFA World Cup : 00:00:00 Emirates While football fans across the globe look forward to this weekend’s FIFA World Cup Final in Johannesburg, members of Emirates’ cabin crew have focused on a whole new ball game - one designed to deliver long-term benefits for South Africa. The Football for Hope centre, in the township of Khayelitsha, is funded by FIFA and the six Official FIFA Partners – of which Emirates is one. The project aims to use football for positive social change and earlier this week, four of Emirates’cabin crew visited the centre to find out more about the project. Carolina Rodriguez from Argentina, Joanna Boyd from New Zealand, Vivienne Seiler from Canada and Claire Overton from the UK, met with the volunteers who are helping to make a difference to the lives of children in the township through a shared love of football. The centre is run by Grassroot Soccer which uses the power of soccer in the fight against HIV and AIDS, providing youth worldwide with the knowledge, life skills and support to live healthier lives. Working with the community in Khayelitsha, the centre has a curriculum which focuses on building basic life skills that help boys and girls adopt healthy behaviours and live risk-free. Through a series of interactive activities and discussions students gain a tangible understanding of HIV and AIDS. Vivienne Seiler said: “The kids’ enthusiasm for the beautiful game radiates through their smiles. People young and old will benefit greatly from the Football for Hope centre and it is humbling to see how much this means to the community. It is important to invest in young people and give them the opportunity to reach their full potential. I think this centre is the perfect launch pad to achieve that.” The Football for Hope centre in Cape Town is the first of 20 centres to be built throughout Africa as part of the legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The aim of each centre is to promote public health, education and football in disadvantaged communities across the country, and the centre in Cape Town is already having a major, positive impact on the township. Abigail Smith, from Grassroot Soccer, said: “Since the centre opened in December, we have had hundreds of children and adults from the area come to use the facility. We have a fantastic turf pitch, which is the main attraction and the driving force of our social engagement, but we have a strong education programme in place which particularly focuses on educating the members of the community about HIV and AIDS. The Grassroot Soccer model has proven to be both successful and sustainable for communities, as we use the popularity of football, especially here in South Africa at the moment, to increase our impact. She added: “It was fantastic that the Emirates crew were able to come and visit the centre and see what Emirates has helped to deliver, through their sponsorship of the FIFA World Cup.” The Emirates cabin crew were given a tour of the facility and met with some of the children who were making the most of the facility during their school holidays. UK-born Claire Overton enjoyed the experience, saying: “The Football for Hope Centre provides children from Khayelitsha with the opportunity to channel their focus on to something constructive, be it football or education. This will benefit the community in the long run as the youth of Khayelitsha and the surrounding communities will be able to develop their skills in a safe environment.” Carolina Rodriguez added: “I used to be a volunteer back home in Argentina, where I helped underprivileged kids. People don't realize how much of a difference any financial support makes to these children. A little goes a long way. The Football for Hope Centre is located near the local children’s homes, providing them with a safe environment in which to play sport and be educated.” New Zealander Joanna Boyd summed up the experience on behalf of her colleagues saying: “This was a truly brilliant experience". Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : The Superjumbo finally set to arrive in India : 00:00:00 Emirates The launch of Terminal 3 at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport just got bigger! Emirates is all set to become the first international carrier in Indian Civil Aviation history to bring to India the world’s largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380. To celebrate the launch of the new terminal at the IGI Airport, Emirates has commissioned a special commercial service of the 517-seat A380 offering passengers flying from Delhi to Dubai a one-off opportunity to experience the aircraft’s grandeur, not to mention its luxurious onboard amenities. The A380 will operate EK516 on the Dubai-Delhi route on 15th July, 2010 departing Dubai at 10:10 hours and arrive in Delhi at 14:50 hours. The aircraft will be at the IGI Airport for three hours before it returns to Dubai as EK517 departing Delhi at 17:50 hours. Bookings for this special flight will open on 6th June, 2010 with a special one-way fare from Dubai for AED380 plus taxes or return for AED990 plus taxes. The fare is valid only for bookings made on the special flight of the Emirates A380. Mr. Majid Al Mualla, Emirates’ Senior Vice President - West Asia and Indian Ocean, said, “Emirates has been flying to Delhi since our first day of operations in 1985. Twenty five years on, 10 destinations and 184 weekly flights certainly represent the efforts and investment that have gone into building a strong relationship with India. “The fact that we are bringing the A380 here is a reiteration of the potential that we see in the Indian market and our intent to partner with the nation in its growth. Over the years, Emirates has evolved to become a company that is global in its operations but firmly connected with the Indian mindset and the consumer.” Emirates recently placed an order with Airbus for an additional 32 A380s, taking the total firm order for the iconic airliner of the 21st century to 90 and signalling the carrier’s confidence in the long-term growth of air travel. The order, valued at $11.5bn at list prices, reaffirms Emirates’ status as one of the world’s leading carriers and of Dubai as a central gateway to worldwide air travel. The massive bird, which will fly into the Indian skies for the very first time, is expected to attract huge crowds. The event will be a momentous occasion not just for Emirates and the IGI Airport, but for Indian aviation. Emirates’ A380 is renowned for its First Class Private Suites and Shower Spas. The much-acclaimed super-jumbo offers an Onboard Lounge for First Class and Business Class passengers, with a wide range of drinks and canapés, as well as the space to socialise or simply relax. Passengers in all classes can lose themselves in the quietness of the aircraft and the much-enjoyed, award winning ice in-flight entertainment system. There are more than 1,000 channels of on-demand entertainment, including 200 movies from around the world, 100 TV channels, more than 500 audio channels, 100 video games and news, sports and business headlines. Emirates, the largest operator of the A380, currently flies 11 of the aircraft serving popular destinations for travellers including London Heathrow, Toronto, Bangkok, Paris, Jeddah, Seoul, Sydney and Auckland. It will fly to Beijing from 1st August, to Manchester from 1st September and resume services to New York from 31st October 2010. The airline recently inducted a brand new A380 into its fleet, taking the total number of A380s to eleven. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Dubai Chamber VIDEO : Dubai Chamber holds 'Establishing Companies in the UAE Seminar : 00:04:51 Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry Despite the economic slowdown there are still many investors looking to set up new companies in the Middle East. Dubai remains the preferred location for the majority of companies moving into the region and the Dubai Chamber is recognised as a valuable resource for organisations seeking information and support. The Dubai Chamber are constantly running events to help organisations find out more, such as the 'Establishing Companies in the UAE Seminar' held on July 5th. This one-day Seminar provided details on how to go about setting up in the UAE covering all relevent issues involved in the process. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : Early intervention is key : 00:00:00 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) Recent reports have established high dropout rates in some of UAE’s institutions of learning. This trend is mostly prevalent in other GCC countries as is the case in many parts of Europe and America. Colleges and universities have an obligation to help at-risk students succeed both academically and socially; hence the student success remains one of the most visible markers of any institution’s ability to meet the growing demands for improved quality of academic outcomes and better accountability. Classification ‘High-risk’ or ‘at-risk’ students are those whose probability of withdrawal from college is above average; for such students to succeed, they often need to be supported academically and sometimes socially. Therefore, helping under-performing or ‘high-risk’ students get back on track and graduate successfully has become a key metric for institutional reputation and growth. This has inspired a variety of support structures within the campus to identify at-risk students and provide appropriate intervention. Academic support systems on campuses can range from freshman seminars, writing centres, remedial curricula, and academic support centres, to peer tutoring among others. Students are also being supported to engage fully in the social life of their campus as this strengthens their overall academic performance and success. Intervention For an early intervention and student support programme to be effective, institutions need to establish the right model for detecting and assisting under-performing students. A survey conducted by SunGard Higher Education indicated a perception by academic administrators that most at-risk students don’t take advantage of available support services even when they are aware of such support. In addition, we know that when institutions are able to identify at-risk students, resources for delivering early interventions are often limited. For those institutions that have no systematic way of identifying at-risk students early enough to make a real impact on their success, retention problems are further compounded. By anticipating the needs of students, institutions can reach out with appropriate resources – perhaps a study group, or a peer support programme, or even a half hour of technical support – rather than expecting students, who may not know that such support even exists, to stumble into it on their own. Technology Today, information technology plays a key role in facilitating effective intervention and student success programmes. Information technology is used for processing data from student information and course management systems (CMS) to build highly predictive models. These predictive models address the unique character of students in a way that highlights at-risk indicators like absenteeism, poor grades, and changes in behavior etc. For instance, using available data about factors that contribute to a student’s success or failure, software programmes like Course Signals from SunGard Higher Education can warn students at-risk of under-performing and also prompt timely faculty intervention. Strategy Developing a viable student retention and success strategy requires a substantial amount of planning, and very often institutions are faced with challenges in terms of how, they can design, develop, and deploy retention strategies that recognise and foster the potential of all students. It is important to note that helping students to remain in study and succeed is not the exclusive reserve of a select few within the university community. Thus, each institutional stakeholder — from the president, dean and faculty members, to non academic staff — must understand and support the institution’s vision for student persistence to degree completion. Also, the intervention strategy for high-risk students must be clearly defined at various levels; by course, by department, by majors, etc. In addition, institutions must make optimal use of technology to facilitate relevant reports and records that can help in understanding student persistence, learning, and success. Innovation The GCC region recognises that building human capital to drive innovation is critical to steering further economic progress in the right direction. For policy makers, ensuring graduation and student success should be as important as creating access to higher education. Evidently, students who complete their university programmes can expect to earn higher salaries than those who don’t progress beyond high school certificates; and more importantly, they can contribute more to knowledge-based activities. The process of building a knowledge economy in the region is enhanced with adequate access to quality higher education. With increased access comes the challenge to ensure successful outcomes for all students. Mathew Boice is vice-president - Europe, Middle East and Africa and India, SunGard Higher Education Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Islamic Finance Roadshow Forecasts Industry Growth : 00:00:00 American University of Cairo When many countries expected a drop in the Islamic finance industry during the world economic crises, it proved otherwise, sustaining its success in the market. Given the future of this expanding area, AUC’s School of Business recently hosted the third annual Islamic Finance News (ISN) Roadshow. The daylong educational event, which travels to 17 countries, provided an opportunity for banking professionals, governmental bodies, insurance companies, lawyers, consultants and others to understand the role they play in the global growth of the industry. Explaining the rationale for the School of Business to partner with ISN and to hold this event at AUC, President David D. Arnold said, “The market for Islamic financial products has grown remarkably over the past decade; assets of the top 500 Islamic banks were $822 billion in 2009, which had risen from the previous year. To see growth during a recession sends a message, one we’re paying attention to.” Arnold also added that as a community of educators, AUC has a strong interest in gaining insights and skills that can be transmitted to students to help them succeed in future careers. Islamic Finance News Roadshow is a daylong educational event that travels to 17 countries providing sessions educating delegates on the ways in which these locations can improve their Islamic financial markets. They are held in many places around the world including Bahrain, Brunei, Dubai, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Karachi, Labuan, London, Kuala Lumpur, New York and Singapore. The road show featured panel sessions that explore topics such as the current state of Islamic finance in Egypt, the trends and ways in which the market here can be further developed. In one session, Islamic Finance Regulatory and Infrastructure Developments in Egypt, the moderator Walid Hegazy, managing partner at Hegazy & Associates explained, “Despite being the birthplace of Islamic finance, Egypt has not focused on the industry…yet.” Other panelists, such as Ashraf Mohamed Talaat, manager of the Islamic banking unit, treasury, National Bank of Egypt, explained that the reasons include a lack of knowledge and the failure of government to encourage these products until recently. “There was no strategic decision to promote Islamic banking as a government policy, but the market demand is strong so there needs to be education about real Islamic banking, not the perception,” he explained. Free and open to the public, the event provided delegates with the opportunity to generate ideas in order to develop new and alternative ways to improve their business, as well as explore and analyze the latest developments in the Egyptian Islamic financial market. Through question and answer sessions with panel members and during networking sessions, attendees were able to further discuss and promote the development of the Islamic finance market in Egypt. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Research Shaping the Future : 00:00:00 Nile University Nile University (NU) organized on June 8th, 2010, its first Research Day hosted at the NU campus in El-Sheikh Zayed City. “The Research Day was intended to provide an open dialogue with national academic, industry and business communities to ensure relevance of research work and to maximize its impact on economic development and competitiveness”, says Dr. Hazem Ezzat NU’s V.P. for Research. The event was honored by the visit of their Excellencies, Dr. Tarek Kamel, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Dr. Hani Helal, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and Eng. Alaa Fahmy, Minister of Transport who toured NU's research exhibits. Throughout the day, the six NU research centers exhibited their research projects and achievements allowing discussions with the community at large. In addition, sessions was delivered by NU’s faculty and research scientists covering contemporary research topics: “Wireless Technology: Present and Future”, “Informatics Science: Bringing Order to Chaos”, “Electronics System Design: Up and Down the Nanoscale”, and “Nanotechnology: A Game Changer”. “Research shaping the future is a mere fact.” adding, Dr. Tarek Khalil, NU’s President and Provost says, “the distinguishing difference between countries with developed economies and those with developing ones is the mastery of technology and the ability to convert know-how into value-added products and services traded in local and international markets. NU has launched six specialized research center intending to carry its mission to conduct leading edge research.” Twenty two research assistants and five faculty members in NU’s Wireless Intelligent Networks Center (WINC) presented their state of the art research work on wireless communications. WINC has several research thrusts with the objective of designing new algorithms and systems that allow more users to access the wireless medium, provide higher data rates, increase efficiency and offer new and enhanced services. The center's research activities are supported by the Wireless Technologies graduate program offered at NU in collaboration with Ohio State University. Exploring the application of information technology in health, agriculture and environment, NU’s Center for Informatics Science (CIS) exhibited projects for its six research groups; the Bioinformatics group that develops novel software tools for the analysis and integration of biological data, the Data Mining and Machine Learning group, the High Performance Computing group, the Medical Image Processing group that develops novel methods for noninvasive, sensitive, and precise imaging method for detecting and diagnosing diseases, the Peer-To-Peer Networking group, and finally the Ubiquitous Computing group. The Center for Innovation and Competitiveness (CIC) demonstrated studies on improving competitiveness in Egypt and the MENA region. CIC works on identifying, researching and promoting innovation practices at the company, industry and country levels. Part of NU’s vision is engaging with the industry in the region, as well as international corporations. The Nanoelectronics Integrated Systems Center (NISC) operates with major support from industries such as Intel and Mentor Graphics. NISC adopts the view that the training of students is a joint endeavor between the center and industry. It is fundamental that the curriculum, research, and development efforts are done in close contact with industry to meet their needs. Thus preparing well trained human resources and securing a share for Egypt in the fast-growing global electronics industry and economy. The center’s projects are about the design and testing phases of electronic product development. Addressing the Egyptian transportation challenges, NU launched the Intelligent Transportation Systems Research Center (ITS), which links communications technology, management mechanisms, transport planning, and engineering. The ITS main objectives are safety and efficiency of the system. Finally, aiming at strengthening Egypt's regional leadership initiatives in nanotechnology, NU launched the Center for Nanotechnology (CNT), which tackles the wide variety of applications in technologies that could be implemented through the use of the nanoscale. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : General Motors Agreement : 00:00:00 Nile University Nile University (NU) and General Motors Holdings LLC (GM), USA signed a Master Agreement on March 6th, 2010, that establishes a strong relationship in cutting-edge scientific research. Representing NU at the signing, Dr. Tarek Khalil, President and Provost, and Dr. Hazem Ezzat V.P. for Research. From GM Dr. Nady Boules, Director of GM R&D’s Electrical and Controls Integration and Mr. Rajeev Chaba, CEO and Managing Director of GM Egypt. Under the agreement GM will provide funding for NU’s faculty and research assistants to perform research of special interest to GM and the scientific community at large. The agreement also brings together researchers from both organizations, another milestone in GM’s long history of supporting intellectual diversity and good citizenship. On NU’s part the agreement is one more step in NU’s participation with the global technical community in the development of new knowledge and valuable intellectual property. On the same occasion, the first of the research projects under the agreement was launched. The project under the title “Reliable and Secure Vehicular Networks” will be conducted by Professor Hesham El-Gamal NU Research Fellow, and Drs. Amr El-Kei, Tamer El-Batt, and Moustafa Youssef, Assistant professors at NU. NU’s research faculty will be assisted by some dozen research assistants from NU’s Wireless Intelligent Networks Center (WINC) who will closely work with their GM counterparts in the Electrical and Controls Integration Research Laboratory at GM’s Global R&D Center. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : IIM Bangalore inaugurates PGSEM 2010 : 00:00:00 Indian Institute of Management Bangalore Indian Institute of Management Bangalore inaugurated the PGSEM batch of 2010, the 13th batch of this prestigious executive general management education programme offered exclusively to professionals in the IT sector in India. The PGSEM course endeavors to provide the most current executive general management education to middle and senior professionals from the software and information technology industry who seek to pursue a career in management. The programme aims to transform professionals with strong technical knowledge to business leaders possessing equally strong management knowledge and a global perspective. IIMB is proud to have partnered with the Indian software and information technology industry on its journey towards becoming a dominant force in the global market. Mr. Harsh Manglik, Chairman of NASSCOM Executive Committee, was the chief guest for the event and delivered the keynote address. He congratulated the incoming batch of students wishing them a successful journey and presented his views on India, Indian IT industry and the very critical need for next generation leaders in shaping the future of emerging India. Mr. Manglik said that India has the youngest population with around 600 million below the age of 24, surging forward towards rapid economic growth. "Inclusion in economic growth and creating conditions for a stable society are the key challenges ahead for our nation and the IT industry is expected to provide the right solutions such as TeleMedicine, Remote Learning and Diagnostics," he added. Last year the Indian IT industry grew to about USD 50 billion and is expected to generate total revenue of USD 175 billion according to a conservative estimate in a NASSCOM and McKinsey report. Mr. Manglik highlighted that about 80% of this growth will come from Engineering Services, Telecom, Health and Medical technologies. Professor Pankaj Chandra, Director IIMB welcomed the new batch of students and spoke about the challenging and exciting journey during the PGSEM course and stressed the importance of building on their strong domain knowledge and expertise to become good decision makers. The PGSEM student community that is acclaimed for creating entrepreneurs showcased their new ventures in an interactive session with Mr. Manglik. The ventures presented were: Adaptive Marketing (www.adaptivemarketing.in) Adaptive Marketing creates next generation product management and marketing professionals, critical catalysts for the fast growing IT product ecosystem in India. "Enabling aspiring, new and existing PM/PMMs with pragmatic methodologies and field tested best practices, is critical as MNCs in India look at augmenting their technical execution with business focus and as Indian products go global.." said Vishwanathan who decided to cofound the venture with other industry veterans. vRideAlong (www.vridealong.com) vRideAlong aims to provide a convenient, reliable and secure ride-sharing solution for multiple avenues. Parashar Shah, co-founder said, "Access to information anytime and anywhere and finding the best ride share partner is our motto. We want to make ridesharing convenient to people even with flexible work schedules. We want to help organizations reduce parking problems and carbon footprint." Dhonuk (www.dhonuk.com) Dhonuk was formed as part of a cultural entrepreneurship initiative by a group of IIM Bangalore students and an artist. In essence Dhonuk is a unique online art ecosystem with an in-built social network that enables art content from member artists to be showcased and made saleable. It also provides art lovers and art connoisseurs the unique experience of interacting with artists, buying readymade artwork or getting customized artwork created at affordable rates from young and budding artists in easily useable formats. MeshLabs (www.meshlabsinc.com) "We develop innovative enterprise software products to solve complex information management, research, business intelligence, and regulatory compliance problems across several industries" said Shantanu co-founder, Meshlabs. Incubated at NSRCEL, IIM Bangalore, the company builds advanced solutions using emerging trends in text analytics, semantics, natural language processing, business intelligence, and enterprise social computing. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Laws' Club Wins Club of the Year Prize : 00:00:00 King Abdulaziz University The Laws' Club, Faculty of Economics and Administration, has won the first place in a contest staged to choose the student club or committee of the year. Prof Hussam A. Al-Angari, the faculty's dean, presented the prize during a prize-giving ceremony held on Sunday, June 17th. The ceremony was attended by Prof Tawfeeq A. Al-Khayyal, the faculty's vice dean, Dr Suleiman A. Al Sheikh, the faculty's vice dean for development, in addition to heads of departments, supervisors of the students' clubs and committees and a number of administrators and students. The prize was awarded to the Club for holding a series of events, including the First Lawyers' Forum, attracting over 300 attendees. Dr Mohammed H. Al-Qahtani, the Club's Supervisor, expressed his delight with the achievement, adding that it was an honour to the club and wouldn't have been made without the efforts of its outstanding members. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Workshop.Info. Tech & Comm : 00:00:00 Al Baha University The University of Al Baha launched a workshop on the Master’s Degree programe Info.Tech & Communication) under the auspices of his Excellency, Dr. Abdullah Salih) Al Qamdi, the university vice president for higher studies and research and at the presence of his Excellency, Dr. Ali Farrag Al Ugla, the university vice president for Academic Development & Community Service. The workshop was conducted at the college of Education with the cooperation of the American Ohayo University. The target of the workshop was to give access to the teaching staff members of Al Baha University so that they are in a position to cope with the recent developments in Education Technology and that academic competence and productivity are hopefully to be raised among the University staff members. Other Deans attended the workshop as well. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : American Delegation Visits BU : 00:00:00 Al Baha University A high American delegation of experts in assessment and academic reliance for the programes of the English Language, visited Al Baha University. The Ohayo & Origon University delegation was received by his Excellency Dr. Abdullah Salih Al Qamdi, the University vice-president for higher studies & research. His Excellency the vice-president briefed the visitors on the establishment of Al Baha University & the series of achievements done so far. After the briefing, Dr. Kessler paid a visit to the males’ preparatory year premises and was received by his Excellency Dr. Abdulaziz Yahya Al Qamdi, the Dean for the preparatory-year. Dr. Opp/peckman, on the other hand, visited the females’ premises and was received by her excellancy Dr. Maqbulla Salim Al Zahrani, the vice-dean for the preparatory year. The delegation will soon be dipped in assessing the English language programe for the preparatory year as well as running training courses on Education Technology for some of the University teaching staff, taking into consideration the Masters’ degree programe. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Notable Achievements Witnessed by the Kingdom at all National and International Levels : 00:00:00 Gulf News Unparalleled Support to Higher Education for the sustainable Development of the Kingdom On the occasion of the anniversary of the pledge of allegiance "Bay'a" to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah ibn 'Abdul 'Aziz, KFUPM’s Rector Dr. Khalid S. Al-Sultan said that Saudi Arabia has achieved great prosperity and acquired fame as one of the most important countries through the decades since its founding by the late king 'Abd al-'Aziz Al-Sa'ud until our present time, in which Significant and far-reaching achievements have been attained in various fields under the wise guidance of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, who works in the interest of his country and citizens. "Significant successes have been achieved in this great time of uncountable ingenious achievements, in particular in the field of education which King Abdullah considers, as the key pillar for the advancement of our beloved country. Out of his strong belief, King Abdullah always encouraged higher education, scientific research, innovation, and every initiative that contributes to the progress of education and its institutions to serve the Kingdom's development plans and fulfill the needs of the present and future generations." HE KFUPM’s Rector added, "This impressive progress and notable achievements are national and international triumphs, and the path of reform and development will never come to an end, but will continue forward leading to more progress and prosperity." Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : KFUPM Wins the Fifth Award of Charitable Works Services : 00:00:00 King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals Prince Muhammad ibn Fahd ibn ' Abd al-' 'Aziz sponsored on Tuesday 16 June 2010 the 9th award cycle of Prince Muhammad ibn Fahd ibn ' Abd al-' Aziz Award for Charitable Works Services. A celebration was held in the conferences auditorium at the Eastern Region Amirate in honor of this year's winners in various branches. KFUPM had the honor this year to receive the award of private and governmental sectors for supporting and encouraging charity works. HE KFUPM's Rector, Dr. Khalid S. Al-Sultan received the award from HRH prince Muhammad. Dr. Al-Sultan expressed his deep thanks and appreciation to HRH Prince Muhammad for his significant and highly valued role in encouraging charitable works and for the provision of all kinds of support to accomplish its noble objectives. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Imam Rector Hails Contributions of University Retired Officers : 00:00:00 Gulf News The university retired officers are always been welcome to benefit from their long-term experiences and knowledge, and they are thankful for what they were doing in the past days and years for the university progress and advancement, said H.E. Prof. Dr. Suliman Aba Al-Khail, Rector of Imam University, during the annual ceremony held by the university honoring its retired officers. On the significance of the ceremony, Dr. Aba Al-Khail stressed that, our noble Islamic religion had lain out strong foundations and bases of the relations and interconnection between human beings, and as such Imam University is owes all of its retired officers an enormous debt of gratitude far greater than any acknowledgment can bestow. “I’m convinced that, this is not a mere usual ceremony that can be hold for an ordinary event, but it’s an honorable ceremony for all of our retired officers because they were doing their best to make a difference in the progress and advancement of the university”, stated he. The university annual ceremony was started with recitation of some verses of the Glorious Quran, after which Dr. Mohammed A. Al-Fuhaid, representative of the retired officers, delivered a speech where he praised Dr. Aba Al-Khail and all member staff of the university for holding the event. After which Dr. Abdul-Rahman Ad-Dawud, Imam Vice-rector of Studies, Development and Academic Accreditation delivered a speech where he thanked Dr. Aba Al-Khail for his ample support and due care to all university activities. At the end of the ceremony, Dr. Aba Al-Khail handed out some momentums to the retired officers. The ceremony was attended by Imam University vice-rectors and deans of Imam Colleges and, beside, a number of officials and officers. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Imam SJI Targeting Highly Graduated and Qualified Judiciaries, Dr. Aba Al-Khail : 00:00:00 Al Imam Islamic University The university Supreme Jurisdiction Institute (SJI) is always been backing by the government of the H.M. King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, The Custodian of The Two Holly Mosques, and it seeks to enrich the Saudi judiciary phenomena with outstanding and qualified graduated students, stated H.E. Prof. Dr. Suliman Aba al-Khail, Rector of Imam University, when received a high – level delegation from SJI heading by Dr. Abdul-rahman Al-Muziny, SJI Dean, and Dr. Abdul-rahman As-Sanad, Imam Distance Learning Dean and Head of Comparative Jurisprudence (Fiqh) Dept. In statements after the meeting, H.E. the university rector said that, the project of developing the curricula of the comparative jurisprudence department is appreciable to the extent that it aiming to serving and enriching the new Saudi judiciary regulations and system. “All should faithfully work harder on the days to come to serve the religion and creed upon which Imam University had established since 60 years ago”, noted he. On the exclusiveness of Imam SJI, Dr. Aba al-Khail explained that, SJI is amongst the well-qualified and distinguished units and it have has a significant mission and objectives, that’s why the university senior administration have always been supporting the institute and putting it on the top priorities of the university’s progressive agenda. On the steps adopted and undertaken to develop and enhance SJI and its various departments, H.E. the university rector highly hailed the untiring efforts of the all members of the institute starting from the executive administration to the officers and students. “All should unite to tearing down the barriers that standing in the SJI’s progress and determination, that is consider nothing beside the staunch support from H.M. King Abdullah Abdulaziz Al-Saud, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and H.R.H. Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, and H.R.H. Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, Saudi second premier”, concluded he. From the other side, SJI Dean had acknowledged Dr. Aba Al-Khail for receiving the delegation members and he stressed the continuity of the developmental curricula project. Dr. Abdul-rahman As-Sanad from his side had presented a brief about the key figures of the project. “All curricula had been re-modified to go side-by-side with the regulations of new Saudi judiciary system and Saudi Board of Grievances. New curricula are introduced for the first time such as Judiciary system curricula in addition to expanding the existing ones like administrative judiciary, execution judiciary, criminal procedures and applied judiciary”, announced he. In closing words, Dr. As-Sanad affirmed that, SJI will keep pace on completing the developmental project and finally adopting it through the SJI council. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Ali Abdunnabi: Four decades in AUB's service, and he wishes for more : 00:00:00 American University of Beirut There are heroes that you read about in newspapers and history books. And there are heroes that you rub shoulders with on a daily basis, without suspecting who they are and what they did. Ali Abdunnabi belongs to the second category. A soft-spoken gentleman employed as a guard in AUB's Protection Office, Ali has served AUB for 41 years. And he wishes he could serve more: "AUB is the only employer I have known in my life and this is good enough for me." Ali Abdunnabi joined AUB on September 4, 1969, serving first in the House Keeping department headed by Karima Tomey. By then the very tumultuous decade of the 1960s was coming to an end. Bright milestones such as the first manned landing on the moon and the first heart transplants were largely swamped by the unending bloodshed in Vietnam and the global student unrest. Student dissent spread to AUB with vociferous demonstrations. Students occupied some University buildings. At the time, the number of Protection Office personnel was small (around 40) and Ali was among several janitors who were detailed to stand guard in front of vital University buildings. He tested his diplomatic skills in 1971 when he kindly but firmly kept students from entering the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences late one night. Afif Saghiri was head of the Protection Office and was impressed by Ali's cool-under-fire attitude. He asked him to join his staff. Ali did. Ali clearly remembers when he wore his dark blue AUB protection uniform for the first time. He was in love with AUB and now he would help protect it. His immediate superiors at the start of his service were Mohammad Abbas and Riad Halabi. Ali remembers his induction in the rank, with the customary guided tours around campus to familiarize him with the buildings and the gates in this idyllic oasis.But the storm was gathering outside the gates. Armed clashes in May 1973 were followed by the outbreak of the long Lebanese war in April 1975. The war dragged on and gunmen gradually took control of the streets. Ali often stood guard at AUBMC's Emergency Unit. He remembers well the increasing numbers of casualties arriving there by the truck-load and the angry gunmen toting their weapons and threatening doctors and personnel alike. More often than not, Ali slept on campus as the road to his home village of Deir Doureet in South Lebanon was blocked or extremely risky. But this did not bother him: "AUB is home," he says. His cousin Qassem Abdunnabi was also serving AUB, as a nurse. One day, Ali was at the hospital's gate when his supervisor Joseph Abdulkarim asked him to get another guard to replace him and to go immediately to the campus gate "near the faculty building facing the sea." When he arrived there, there were no AUB guards but a cohort of gunmen. Ali approached them with apprehension. They wanted to enter AUB. His diplomatic skills came to his support again. He told the gunmen: "I cannot stop you if you want to enter. But we have employees inside: civilians and women. Do you want it said that your party scared them away?" The gunmen stopped and were reconsidering. Shortly later protection supervisor Wahib Daou arrived on the scene and completed defusing the volatile situation. Ali remembers the tragedies that befell AUB during the long war. He was standing guard at the hospital's emergency unit on January 18, 1984, when AUB President Malcolm Kerr was assassinated by unknown assailants outside his College Hall office. Ali was on guard duty in summer 1989 when a total of 84 shells and countless rounds of bullets hit the campus. Still he moved from gate to gate and did not leave his assigned post. Around that time, he was serving under Iskandar Abdallah and Dumit Antoun. He was on guard duty at the hospital's entrance on November 8, 1991, when College Hall was destroyed by a car bomb. Ali is full of praise for the University community's role during the summer 2006 war, when assistance of all kinds was channeled to destitute and displaced families. But Ali also remembers happy milestones in the university's life, such as the inauguration of the Charles Hostler Student Center, the Outdoors, and the Folk Dance festival. He enjoys watching children discovering and re-discovering the beauty of the campus and considers them the cornerstone of the future of the institution; and he is optimistic about it: "I have seen AUB sustain grievous loss only to bounce back on its feet again and continue to prosper. It is a resilient establishment." Now near his retirement from AUB, Ali speaks about it with affection and warmth. "I wish I could extend my service," he says: "I love AUB. It allowed me to raise a family and took care of me. In return, I took care of it. Every building and every tree of AUB is part of me. I have never had a problem with anybody in it. I was never absent and never wanted to be away from it. I have served with pride under all my supervisors, up to Captain Saad Shalak." Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : OSB conference promotes knowledge creation and performance management analysis : 00:00:00 American University of Beirut Minister of Information Tarek Mitri emphasized the need to modernize the public sector in Lebanon during the opening of the 8th international conference on Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) held at the American University of Beirut on June 10, 2010. "We won't be able to meet the modernization challenge unless there are greater synergies between the public sector, private sector, and the academic world," said Mitri. "I trust that an initiative such as your own help in creating such synergies." Mitri, who was representing Prime Minister Saad Hariri, said that public services in Lebanon are still behind and as far as modernization goes "we have a lot to learn from the private sector and we have a lot to draw on the experience of people in the academic community." The conference, which was attended by high-level government officials, bankers, and academics from over 30 countries in the world, was organized by the Olayan Business School at AUB. It aimed at discussing the importance of applying DEA to performance management and measurement in both public and private sectors. DEA is a nonparametric method in operations research and economics for the estimation of production frontiers. It is used to empirically measure productive efficiency of decision making units. DEA was defined by Professor Ibrahim Osman as being "an ongoing management improvement process of the overall health of an organization unit by comparison to best practices of peer alternatives." Osman underlined the importance of DEA by saying that one cannot manage what one cannot measure. "Around 45 percent of people make decisions according to their feelings and hence, 67 percent of companies who are supposed to be more efficient than governments achieve only 60 percent of their goals," he said. "I leave it to your imagination to assess how the government's performance would be." Osman called upon Hariri and Mitri to establish a center in Lebanon specialized in decision making. For his part, Rajev Banker, who is Merves Chair in Accounting and Technology at Fox School, explained that there are a wide range of resources that are required in order to produce what is desired by the various constituents of an organization. "This is done in the context of a wide range of external forces that impact organizations. The way you take all that into consideration at the same time is the challenge that DEA has been addressing over the past 30 years," he said. OSB Associate Dean Khalil Hindi praised AUB's role in knowledge creation and knowledge transfer in addition to the university's efforts in organizing such international conferences. "For us, this particular conference has additional significance, for we seek to provide a business education that is steeped in the disciplines and that emphasizes analytics," he said. "What can better serve this purpose than a conference that introduces our students and faculty to an area of intellectual endeavor that is deeply rooted in the science of planning better, doing better, and evaluating better?" he asked. Provost Ahmad Dallal also commended the conference saying: "It provides societies in the developing world ... with the tools, methods, and knowledge needed to combine quality and productivity for progress." Dallal added that DEA is extremely relevant in today's world. "I am confident that the participants in DEA 2010 will contribute to the enhancing of our understanding of the performance management techniques to establish better decision-making tools for resource allocation and to identify best work practices in addition to monitoring progress and measuring alignment with set goals and objectives." At the end of the opening, a gift of appreciation was offered by AUB professors to Mitri who received it on behalf of Hariri. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : LAU celebrates accreditation by major U.S. regional agency : 00:00:00 Gulf News LAU community members gathered yesterday in Beirut to celebrate the New England Association of Schools and Colleges’ decision to grant the university full accreditation, following over four years of tireless efforts by faculty, staff and administration officials. The ceremony marked one of the most significant achievements in LAU’s recent history as speakers took turns to describe how the accreditation process has lifted the university and created new opportunities to realize success. “The granting of accreditation is a milestone in our sustained drive for academic excellence,” said LAU President Dr. Joseph G. Jabbra to the staff, faculty, students, and dignitaries before him. “The accreditation process was very arduous, but it engaged, involved, informed and excited the entire university community. It helped us understand better our institution, and it helped us foster our strengths and address our weaknesses,” he said. On April 15 the NEASC Commission on Institutions of Higher Education completed its deliberation on LAU’s request and recommended to the NEASC Board of Trustees that LAU be given full accreditation as of November 2009. The decision was ratified on May 13. Jabbra said that the commission recognized LAU’s grasp of the fact that “accreditation was not really a destination in and of itself, but was rather a continuous process for self-improvement.” The commission accredits over 230 colleges and universities in the New England region of the United States, in addition to several universities outside the country. LAU began pursuing accreditation in 2005 and received candidacy status in 2007. At that time, a first team of NEASC representatives visited the university and reported back to the commission, which made a number of recommendations for LAU. A steering committee was then formed at LAU to oversee the process. Due to the rigorous and intense nature of the process, one of the steering committee’s early challenges was to “convince people that receiving accreditation was an achievable goal,” as Dr. Elie Badr, Assistant Provost for Academic Programs and co-chair of the steering committee, explained in an interview. “Once we did that, and people could see that it was possible, we really started to drive forward.” “We’re celebrating what we have learned institutionally and at the personal level,” said LAU Provost Dr. Abdallah Sfeir. “We have learned the power to see ourselves without any filters. I think this is really the major accomplishment.” He said that during the accreditation process, LAU learned to properly assess, question, gather evidence, and come together and agree on what actions must be taken to improve the university. “LAU will never be the same from now on because we have this framework for excellence that will guide our steps,” Sfeir said. Lebanese Minister of Education Hassan Mneimneh said he was “proud and extremely pleased” about the Lebanese people, the higher education sector and LAU in particular. He added the achievement was not surprising, given the university’s well-known drive towards international standards. CIHE Director Dr. Barbara Brittingham made the overseas trip to congratulate LAU on the achievement at the ceremony. “The commission’s decision was based not only on the fact that LAU met the standards for accreditation, but also that it will continue to meet those standards,” she said. Brittingham reminded the audience that LAU attained accreditation on an accelerated schedule, which she attributed to Jabbra’s “vision and leadership,” Sfeir’s “determination and sensitivity” and Badr’s “dedication and hard work.” “You’ve used this opportunity presented by accreditation to strengthen the institution, and for that as well, congratulations,” she said. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Communication: Key to successful multi-generational family businesses : 00:00:00 Lebanese American University Thirty percent of family businesses survive one generation and only three percent persist for four generations, according to research findings voiced during the seminar on “Success of Multi-Generational Family Business” held at LAU’s Byblos campus on June 19. Organized by LAU’s Institute of Family and Entrepreneurial Business, the seminar gathered business owners and entrepreneurs to hear Dr. Joseph Astrachan, executive director of Cox Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University in Georgia, USA, share his long-standing expertise and professional advice. In her opening note, Dr. Josiane Fahed-Sreih, IFEB director, highlighted the significance of the seminar, marked by the presence of E.M.B.A. students from Kennesaw State University who were visiting Lebanon. The 18-month E.M.B.A. program at Kennesaw State takes 15 students, who hail from family businesses worldwide, to the home country of each student, allowing them to learn firsthand about family dynamics and communication. In presenting his study “Separating Myth from the Reality of Family Business,” Astrachan refuted the myth that planning assures effective succession. “The three keys to successful succession are: Board of directors, strategic planning, and family meetings, which I dub as the ‘Diet,’ ‘Exercise,’ and ‘Don’t Smoke’ of family business,” he said. Strategic planning entails opening the lines of communication with the top management about the direction of the business, while family meetings help to set expectations, Astrachan explained. He added: Board meetings, ideally taking place three–six times per year, are meant to keep management accountable. According to research, having two outsiders to each family member on the board improves performance, not to mention that outsiders increase financial value. “Family businesses don’t survive because of bad family dynamics and hard-fought trust,” Astrachan said, adding: “Relationship quality is needed to withstand the stress on family life and is highly dependent on the frequency of communication, average length of each communication, and average depth of communication.” “It is important to be aware of the challenges and deal with them as they arise through open communication,” commented one of the attendees, Momtaz Daaboul, managing director of his Damascus-based family business, Madar Coil Coating. For Georgina Ibrahim, a self-employed soft-skills trainer and a faculty member at LAU’s School of Business in Beirut, the seminar allowed her “to gain an insider look into family businesses.” Although it depends on each case, “there is no doubt that the role of communication is paramount for the success of any family business,” she added. Since its inception, IFEB has had a packed calendar of activities. High on the list are educational programs and seminars about family business featuring local and international speakers. This year, IFEB is launching the Family Business Network and an arbitration chamber to assist family businesses in conflict resolution Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : Etisalat boosts telecommunications advancement in the UAE through infrastructure sharing : 00:00:00 Etisalat As the architect of UAE’s telecommunications infrastructure over the last three decades, Etisalat today welcomed the positive step towards telecom infrastructure sharing, that will further stimulate telecommunications advancement in the UAE. Etisalat has over the years invested in building nation’s core fiber-optic network backbone that can now be extended to an entire spectrum of customers in the UAE. Etisalat will also soon extend the benefits of its fixed-line and broadband services to both individual and business customers who currently do not have access to Etisalat’s wide array of services. Etisalat will now be able to expand its reach within Dubai free zones like Dubai Internet City, TECOM and the new residential areas through innovative products and services that provide a strong differentiation and superior value, from the services that are currently available to them. Abdulla Hashim, Senior Vice President, Business Solutions at Etisalat said, “Etisalat welcomes true competition in the UAE. This is a progressive step that will provide a rightful choice to our customers and open up the market to become more technologically innovative and customer centric. Etisalat, with its promise of providing unmatched value and superior service to its existing and new customers, looks forward to expand its footprint in the new locations in Dubai. This is indeed a very positive chapter in the UAE’s telecoms history.” “Infrastructure sharing is also an encouraging news from an enterprise perspective, since businesses now will have a wider choice of ICT services, based on technology capabilities and intellectual expertise, rather than limited to service availability within a specific location. Etisalat looks forward to offer enhanced ICT services to business customers in the free zone areas like Dubai Internet City and TECOM.” Etisalat has invested more than AED 5 Billion in its fiber-optic network to offer the region’s fastest broadband Internet speeds of up to 32MBps, advanced high definition voice services and next generation TV services such as 3D, through its eLife bundles, to its customers. “Etisalat is geared to be the first in the region to complete its nation-wide fiber-network in 2011, therefore distinguishing our customers with unique home entertainment possibilities and placing them amongst advanced device users globally. This is yet just the beginning of Etisalat’s innovation and value pyramid. We currently offer broadband access speeds of up to 100 Mbps for our business customers and may soon extend the highest-speed in the region to our individual eLife customers, coupled with voice minutes of use and many more value-added services.” “We welcome the move to share Etisalat’s fiber-network with competition, a move which is rightly aimed towards accelerating the nation’s telecommunication progress on the back of our robust fiber-optic network”, added Hashim. As UAE’s first and experienced telecom provider, Etisalat provides the best-in-line customer centric solutions. The emerging telecommunications landscape in the country will now empower customers to avail Etisalat’s competitive fixed-line services and lucrative offers that are supported through its wide network of customer care centers and advanced online solutions. Amongst other valuable propositions, Etisalat offers 20 minutes of free international calls with every eLife double play or triple play subscription and the lowest international calling rate through the ‘50 fils’ per minute promotion. In addition, Etisalat customers have the beneficial international calling options whereby they can subscribe to any of its special IDD (International Direct Dialing) plans such as Super Off peak and Favorite Country Plan. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates' summer flights to Al Medinah al Munawarah take off : 00:00:00 Emirates Emirates’ summer service to the Saudi Arabian city of Al Medinah al Munawarah made its first flight over the weekend, touching down at Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport. In step with strong demand an additional two services to Medinah Al Munawarah will be added effective 3rd August 2010, bringing the destination to a four times weekly service. Flights to the city will be active until 24th September 2010 in line with the routes temporary summer schedule. Ahmed Khoory, Emirates’ Senior Vice President Commercial Operations Gulf, Middle East and Iran said: “Forward bookings over summer for Medinah Al Munawarah are extremely strong, particularly from key markets including the UAE, the Sub-continent, Far East and parts of Africa. We are extremely pleased with how this short term destination looks set to perform and all going well we may look to make this a more permanent route. “The first flight to a new destination is always special and this first flight to Medinah Al Munawarah has been no different. We are confident that our passengers will continue to be impressed with our award winning standard of service as well as our convenient connections when travelling from outside Dubai.” From August 3rd the two additional flights will depart Dubai each Tuesday and Saturday at 0705 hours and will arrive in Medinah Al Munawarah at 0850 hours. On the return journey the flight will depart Al Medinah al Munawarrah at 1015 hours, arriving in Dubai at 1355 hours. Emirates’ currently has two scheduled flights to the city departing on a Friday and Sunday. The service is operated by an Airbus A330-200 aircraft, offering 27 seats in Business Class and 251 seats in Economy. Emirates currently operates to three destinations in Saudi Arabia including; Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. The airline first began operations to the Kingdom in 1989 with services to Jeddah. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : Du launches real broadband for all : 00:02:33 Du Demonstrating its commitment to The United Arab Emirates and its customers, du today announced the dawn of a new era in the national broadband services landscape. du’s “Real Broadband Services” will provide upto 16 times faster speed at current customer spend levels, and will be available within its current fixed services footprint from August 1 , 2010 for Enterprise customers and August 15 for all its Home service customers. Speaking on this occasion, Farid Faraidooni, Chief Commercial Officer, du, said, “Broadband is a key enabler today for businesses and the common man alike. We have today announced a broadband proposition that will not only provide an edge to our customers and our business partners, but has also set a regional benchmark in terms of broadband prices and value provided. du’s Real broadband services will offer better value than similar broadband services offered in the ME region. It will be even more competitive than similar services provided in some developed markets such as Ireland and Canada. du’s Real Broadband can be availed of by subscribing to Surf & Talk, or Surf, Talk and Watch packages. Surf& Talk will offer Real Broadband and Landline services with bandwidths starting from 8Mbps for which a du customer will pay AED 199/-, per month, 16Mbps at AED 259 p.m. and 24Mbps at AED 349/- pm. “Over the last three years, du’s endeavour has been to provide – tailor made solutions to its customers. We believe that with this announcement not only are we providing attractive pricing but providing a stimuli to the UAE’s economy. Our business broadband packages, broadband unlimited professional and broadband unlimited premium will lower the business’s total cost of ownership, by offering upto 16times faster speeds at existing prices bundled with the best international calling rates to the world which will enable higher productivity and contribute to the efficiency of businesses in the UAE. “We believe, that this major move by du, will reinforce the competitiveness of businesses in the UAE by increasing business productivity and will further enhance the image of the UAE as an incubator for business growth and development here ,” added Mr. Faraidooni. du is also offering new triple play package “Surf, Talk and Watch” that includes Landline, Real Broadband and its award wining du TV plus service at a single price. du TV plus offers a wide array of TV channels with features such as pause, rewind and record live TV, Movies-on-Demand, Unlimited Videos on Demand, HD and 3D services. The 3play packages will be available at AED 249 per month for 8Mbps, AED 309 per month for 16Mbps and AED 399 per month for 24Mbps. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : flydubai Names Ancient Erbil as Newest Destination : 00:00:00 flydubai flydubai, Dubai's first low cost airline, has announced flights to destination number 22, Erbil in Iraq. Flights to Dubai from Iraq's third largest city and capital of the Kurdish region of Northern Iraq, will start on Friday, July 16. A one-way fare is priced at US$315. flydubai's CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith, said: "Erbil is reinventing itself and undergoing an economic boom with new hotels, leisure and healthcare facilities, commercial towers and trade centres. The city's rapid development has been compared with that of Dubai and it is a beacon of progress for the rest of the country. "In 2009, the UAE was the top foreign investor in Iraq and according to reports, the UAE is set to double investment in IraqiKurdistan to around AED22 billion in the next three years. flydubai's new service will not only help to strengthen the relationship between our two nations but will also give the many Iraqi expatriates living in the UAE another affordable, quality air travel alternative to visit friends and family back home." More than 6,000 years of history and the region's natural beauty has made it a regional retreat for centuries. With the advent of a more stable period in the country's history and increasing numbers of direct flights, the city is opening its doors to a new wave of travellers and tourists. Flights to Dubai will operate twice a week on Fridays and Mondays. On Fridays, FZ202 will leave Erbil at 2115hrs, arriving Dubaiat 0055hrs local time. FZ201 will depart from Dubai at 1830hrs, landing in Erbil at 2030hrs local time. On Mondays, FZ202 will depart from Erbil at 1415hrs arriving in Dubai at 1800hrs local time. FZ201 leaves Dubai at 1130hrs landing in Erbil at 1330hrs local time. Flights are available for purchase from the website www.flydubai.com and call centre in Iraq (0750-425-5445, 0770-745-8888 or 05-33194301) from today. About flydubai: flydubai, Dubai's first low cost airline, was established by the Government of Dubai in March 2008 and began commercial flights on June 1st, 2009. flydubai aims to make travel a little less complex, a little less stressful and a little less expensive, and thereby increase the number of people travelling to and from the UAE. flydubai currently has a fleet of nine brand new Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft and operates to 21 destinations: Beirut-Lebanon,Amman-Jordan, Damascus and Aleppo-Syria, Alexandria, Luxor and Assiut-Egypt, Djibouti, Doha-Qatar, Baku-Azerbaijan,Khartoum-Sudan, Bahrain, Kathmandu-Nepal, Muscat-Oman, Kabul-Afghanistan, Kuwait, Lucknow-India, Istanbul-Turkey, Latakia-Syria, Karachi-Pakistan and Colombo-Sri Lanka. Bookings can be made on www.flydubai.com, through the call centre (+9714-3010800) and with travel partners. For further information, please contact: Zahabia Motiwala or Andrew Kennedy at the flydubai press office at Polaris PR. Telephone: (+9714)-341-5555. Zahabia Motiwala mobile: (+971)-50-768-9440. Andrew Kennedy mobile: (+971)-50-9659104. E-mail: z.motiwala@polaris-me.com or a.kennedy@polaris-me.com Heather Redpath, PR Manager for flydubai at mobile: (+971)-50-9508420 or email: heather.redpath@flydubai.com or Nawaf Altamimi, Arabic PR Manager for flydubai at mobile: (+971)-50-1811215 or email: nawaf.altamimi@flydubai.com SOURCE flydubai Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates Aviation College holds graduation ceremony : 00:00:00 Emirates Aviation College 384 graduates ready to support the global aviation and tourism industry 34 UAE national Emirates employees graduate from Computing Software Development programme Helping to develop future business leaders, the Emirates Aviation College hosted the 19th graduation ceremony last night under the patronage of HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group. This year the ceremony has been split over two days, to cater for the large amount of students graduating from a variety of specialised Diploma, Bachelor and MBA programmes offered by the College. HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum said; “Each of the students honoured has worked incredibly hard to fulfill their potential and realise their dreams and I am extremely pleased to congratulate and applaud their individual achievements. "I would also like to extend a special word of congratulations to our 34 UAE national Emirates employees graduating from the Computing Software Development programme, which was developed by the College in collaboration with Emirates Group IT. I am very proud to see such wonderful opportunities being made available to educate UAE Nationals with valuable and relevant skills for their chosen careers.” The glittering ceremony, attended by VIPs, Emirates’ senior management and proud family members, marked the very first time that students have graduated from the MBA in Aviation Management programme. This particular MBA was recently established in direct response to the growing demand from students wanting to specialise in Aviation Management, as the Middle East continues to strengthen its position as a global hub for aviation. Dr. Ahmad Al Ali, Senior Vice Chancellor, Emirates Aviation College said: “With just over 2,000 students from all over the world currently enrolled at the College and a 20% student growth rate over the past 12 months, the past year has been an extremely successful academic year for us. “We pride ourselves on being the number one aviation educational institution across the entire GCC region. Our wide range of postgraduate, academic and vocational programmes are tailored to meet the personnel industry requirements of aerospace, travel and tourism, and aviation and business management, providing the strongest of foundations, practical knowledge and education for our students.” The ceremony for students graduating from MBAs, Bachelor degrees and Computer Software Development programmes took place last night, with Higher Diploma and Diploma students to be honoured at another ceremony this evening. The range of courses that students will graduate from include an MBA in Aviation Management; Bachelor degrees in Aerospace Technology, Avionics Technology, Aeronautical Engineering, Aviation Management and Applied Business; Diplomas and Higher Diplomas in Aerospace Engineering, Electronics Engineering and Computing, Computing Software Development, Business Management and Tourism Management. All programmes are accredited and recognised by the Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research, the Ministry of Education, Edexcel Foundation: and the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA). Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Emirates Airlines VIDEO : Emirates launches discounted pre-paid additional baggage service online : 00:00:00 Emirates Passengers who travel with additional baggage can now enjoy a discount when they plan ahead. Emirates has launched a new pre-paid additional baggage tool on its website. The discount represents a 15 percent reduction on standard airport rates and is only applicable to purchases on www.emirates.com “Advance planning can make a journey more enjoyable and hassle-free. Now passengers with additional baggage can also save money when they pay for the extra weight in advance of their trip. We encourage passengers to weigh their suitcases, and check the website for details on costs of additional weight,” said Russell Sheldon, Senior Vice President, Network Passenger Sales & Development, Emirates. Emirates customers departing from most Emirates airports will be able to purchase discounted additional baggage online on Emirates.com. Ticketed customers may log-in to ‘Manage a Booking’ on Emirates.com within 24 hours of departure to purchase selected amounts of additional baggage. For routes that charge for additional baggage by weight, customers may purchase 5, 10, 15, 20 or 25 kilos. The customer must purchase one of these five amounts to suit the additional weight they wish to take. For routes that charge by the piece, customers may purchase one, two or three additional bags of up to 32 kilos each. Purchases are non-refundable and non-transferrable, and must be made between 24 hours and 90 minutes prior to flight departure. Adults and children only qualify, not infants. Only one online purchase of additional baggage per passenger per continuous journey is permitted. Purchase is not available for departures from select cities. To see how the new additional baggage tool works, visit “Manage a Booking” on www.emirates.com. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SITL Dubai VIDEO : SITL Dubai 2011 : 00:00:00 Reed Exhibitions FZ-LLC Place your corporate or promotional video here. Contact ria.andaya@reedexpo.ae for more information... Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : ISNR Abu Dhabi VIDEO : The ISNR Abu Dhabi Exhibition 2011 : 00:00:00 Reed Exhibitions FZ-LLC Place your corporate or promotional video here. Contact ria.andaya@reedexpo.ae for more information... Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : International Jewellery & Watch Show VIDEO : Internation Jewellery and Watch Show - Abu Dhabi : 00:00:00 Reed Exhibitions FZ-LLC Place your corporate or promotional video here. Contact ria.andaya@reedexpo.ae for more information... Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Middle East Cleaning Exhibition VIDEO : Middle East Cleaning Exhibition 2010 : 00:00:00 Reed Exhibitions FZ-LLC Place your corporate or promotional video here. Contact info@cleantechme.com for more information... Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Ziad Hawat and his action plan of the new municipal council of Byblos : 00:00:00 American University of Technology The young new chief of the Byblos Municipal Council, Ziad Hawat was hosted by AUT to expose to the audience his action plan for the city. The rehabilitation of the old center, the creation of jobs, the environmental protection were all themes that students asked Hawat about. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Power Breakfast with Roger Edde : 00:00:00 American University of Technology Businessman and politician Roger Edde shared his success story with a group students placed on the Dean’s List for the fall semester of 2009. From his early beginning as a lawyer to his becoming an international contract maker, his life story was exposed in all openness. Edde also gave details about his new project north of Byblos, a new enclosed city with restaurants and hotels and announced that work on Edde Snow, the new ski resort in Laklouk, would begin soon. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Abu Dhabi International Motor Show VIDEO : Abu Dhabi International Motorshow : 00:00:00 Reed Exhibitions FZ-LLC Place your corporate or promotional video here. Contact lubna.makarem@reedexpo.ae for more information... Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : New Interim Dean, School of Business and Entrepreneurship : 00:00:00 Gulf News Interim President Bettina Espe has announced the appointment of a new Dean for the School of Business and Entrepreneurship (SBE) at AUN. He is Dr. Leo Ukpong a Professor of Finance who joined American University of Nigeria in the fall 2009 semester. Professor Ukpong replaces Dr. David Smith who will be leaving the University in June 2010. The outgoing SBE leader has been the third successive Dean of Business at AUN. Bettina said Leo’s appointment will be in interim capacity and it takes effect from July 1, 2010. In announcing the appointment of Professor Ukpong, the Interim President said: ‘Dr. Ensign and I have identified our joint support for this interim appointment and believe the School of Business and Entrepreneurship will be well-served with his leadership.’ While felicitating with Dr. Ukpong on his new appointment, Bettina also congratulated Dean Smith and his family for a successful completion of their service at American University of Nigeria, wishing them profound success in their new endeavour. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Dr. Margee M. Ensign Appointed President of the American University of Nigeria : 00:00:00 ABTI American University of Nigeria The Board of Trustees of the American University of Nigeria (AUN) announces the appointment of Dr. Margee M. Ensign as the third president of this innovative African university. A distinguished scholar and administrator, Dr. Ensign was appointed after a broad, thorough and highly competitive search that spanned three continents. Chairman of the AUN Board of Trustees Ahmed Joda said: ‘Dr. Ensign brings to American University of Nigeria highly valuable international experience, expertise and excellence which are critical to meeting the unique challenges of building a world-class University in a rural region of Africa.’ The new president comes to AUN from the University of the Pacific in California, where she is Dean of the School of International Studies and Associate Provost for International Initiatives. Dr. Ensign has developed educational partnerships benefiting several universities in the United States, Rwanda, and Uganda. She helped establish a graduate program in international development at Tulane University, which is now offered on four continents, and has worked on development projects in Central America and in Central, East and West Africa, including a PEPFAR project in Rwanda. She has recently completed a path-breaking book, Rwanda: History and Hope that documents the progress and challenges in Rwanda fifteen years after the genocide. The American University of Nigeria is a private non-profit institution whose mission is to be a “Center of Learning Excellence” in Africa. Located in Yola, Nigeria, AUN attracts the best students from all over the African continent. Students receive a world-class education at a reduced cost without having to travel abroad. The university gives future African leaders a real chance to retain their cultural values while educating themselves and acquiring the leadership skills they would need to uplift the continent. From its own resources, AUN provides scholarships to at least ten percent of the students each semester. Founded in 2005, the American University of Nigeria is the only university in the country with a wireless campus, a robust information technology infrastructure, a faculty of mostly United States educated professors, and undergraduate academic programming that requires that all students, regardless of their majors, must pass courses in Information Technology, Business and Entrepreneurship. AUN has a management contract with the American University, Washington DC. Dr. Ensign holds a PhD in International Politics and Economics from the University of Maryland where she also earned a Masters degree in Political Science. She received her Bachelors Degree in Peace Studies and International Relations from New College in the United States. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Educators share action research experiences : 00:00:00 Gulf News Improving the environment for teaching and learning Over 14 schools represented in CED's 3rd Annual Action Research Conference. QU's 3rd Annual Action Research Conference held on Saturday at Ibn Khaldoon Hall was attended by Vice-President and Chief Academic Officer Dr Sheikha Jabor Al-Thani, Education Institute Director Sabah Al-Haidoos, CED Dean Dr Hissa Sadiq, education professionals, policymakers, teachers, CED faculty, and students. The event was organized by the Center of Educational Development and Research (CEDR) at QU College of Education (CED) in conjunction with the Education Institute of the Supreme Council of Education (SEC). The purpose of the conference was to provide an opportunity for attendees to discuss developments in action research in Qatar and to share their experiences on incorporating action research into their existing roles and responsibilities, organizers said. In the opening remarks, CED Professor of Curriculum and Instructions Education Dr Eman Zaki stressed the importance of action research in improving the environment for teaching and learning, and enhancing the concept of life-long learning. CED Dean Dr Sadiq pointed to the College’s efforts to provide teachers with the support to develop action research through a number of workshops and seminars organized by its Center of Educational Development and Research. She noted that following last year’s event, teachers felt challenged by having to incorporate action research into their work priorities. Schools must exert a targeted effort to integrate action research in teacher career development, Dr Sadiq said, adding that it would lead to a creative and innovative professional body of educators who can fulfil the objectives of Qatar’s education reform. Dr Muna Al-Kuwari of the Education Institute stated that the conference was an opportunity to celebrate the work of the teachers. The partnerships that exist between the schools, the SEC and Qatar University advance the quality of the education process in Qatar and promote a stimulating environment in the classrooms, Al-Kuwari said. She encouraged participants to open a dialogue of support among themselves so that they can achieve more successes and better educational outcomes for their students. In her presentation “The power of one to the power of a million”, keynote speaker Prof Jean McNiff of York St John University UK discussed the influence each person has on the process of achieving the best standards and practices in education. She stressed the importance of building a body of knowledge that will inform policy and make it relevant for teachers to put into practice. With this in mind, a set of case studies by teachers in Qatar was collected and will be published in a new publication Tribal Teacher Enquiry Bulletin and disseminated among the relevant quarters. The day’s program included presentation of papers and posters by representatives from Al-Shaqab Primary Independent School for Girls, Abdullah Bin Ali Al-Misnad Preparatory Independent School for Boys, Al Maha School for Girls, Alahnaf Bin Qais Independent Prep School for Boys, Al-Bayan Secondary School, Al-Eman Independent Secondary School for Girls, Zainab Independent Prep School for Girls, Abu Baker Asedeeq Independent School, AbdulRahman Bin Jassim Independent Prep School, Al-Wafaa Model Independent School, Al-Salam Independent School for Girls, and Alrazi Prep Independent School for Boys. Topics included reading strategies, the effectiveness of instructional activities and procedures, improving ESL writing, improving achievement in science, student responsibility towards learning, peer tutoring, and improving low achievement in Math. A presentation by educator Julie Pearson of St Mary’s College and Tribal Education on “How do I improve my practice by encouraging others to become critical of their learning experiences? was also included. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : QU receives highest number of NPRP awards : 00:00:00 Qatar University The award is double that of the 2nd cycle and more than 5 times of the 1st cycle Sixty-four awards out of a total of 126 submitted proposals. QU received the highest number of awarded proposals among academic institutions in Qatar in the 3rd cycle of the National Research Priorities Program (NPRP), the Qatar National Research Fund announced last Wednesday. QU was awarded 64 out of a total of 126 submitted proposals, which translates into 51%, the highest among the 5 awarded academic institutions, Director of Research Dr Moumeh Hasnah said. The total award amounts to US$ 54,094,876. In his remarks in which he thanked QU leadership and College Deans on the achievement, Dr Hasnah said: “QU has again demonstrated its commitment to advancing research in teaching and learning and providing its students with opportunities to participate and collaborate on research activities that promote excellence in scholarship, research and creative endeavors”. The total number of QU’s Cycle 3 awards is double that of the 2nd Cycle which amounted to 31 and more than five times that of the 1st cycle in which QU received 12 awards. QU Vice-President for Research Dr Hassan Al-Derham commented: “This is further indication of the momentum of our research objectives, and that we are aligned with meeting the needs of Qatar’s knowledge-based economy and invested in research activities and initiatives that will further society at home, in the region, and internationally”. The breakdown of the awards indicate the bulk to engineering and technology (39), followed by natural sciences (17), social sciences (7), humanities (2), medical and health sciences (2), and agricultural sciences (1). Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Innovation Design Lab presentation to journalists in St. Petersburg : 00:00:00 Gulf News Saint-Petersburg, June 17, 2010. - More than twenty Russian journalists gathered to learn firsthand about the partnership between the Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO and Intel Corporation. The main subjects of the Innovation Design Partnership between Intel and SKOLKOVO are innovative products and services and successful start-ups. The presentation was opened by Christian Morales, Intel Vice President and General Manager of Intel Europe, Middle East, and Africa. He spoke briefly about corporate social responsibility at Intel and then gave the word to Kamil Isaev, General Director for Research and Development at Intel Russia, who emphasized the importance of consumer side, especially in software, for Intel's business in the future. Summerazing, Alexey Nikolaev, Head of Intel Russia Academic Programs told a few words about many successful programs that Intel had in the past with technical universities in Russia, saying the partnering with a leading business school is a new major step on the academic side. The starting point of the Intel-SKOLKOVO partnership, the Innovation Design Lab was presented by Dmitry Repin, SKOLKOVO Professor and Start-up Projects Director. His informal, cartoon-based presentation described the key ideas of the new Lab: human-centered approach, cross-disciplinary collaboration, use of rapid prototyping. In his speech Professor Repin put forward the thesis about "innovation being the social process". Final accord of the joint presentation was delivered by Intel Russia and CIS Regional Director, Dmitry Konash. He surprised the audience by pulling a prototype of a one-of-kind tablet device (iPad style) built on Intel's Atom processor and Linux-based operating system. According to Mr Konash, the open architecture and the innovative features of the new device symbolized the nature of the partnership between Intel and SKOLKOVO. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : SKOLKOVO and Intel open Innovation Design Lab : 00:00:00 Skolkovo School of Management Saint-Petersburg, June 18, 2010. - Today within the bounds of St. Petersburg International Economic Forum the Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO and Intel Corporation have signed an agreement on Innovation design partnership. The partnership involves several stages, with the first stage spanning three years and involving a project to create a unique laboratory on the Russian market, tasked with developing and implementing process of creating innovation—methodology that will eventually be at the core of start-up projects pursued by SKOLKOVO MBA students. They will also be put to use in SKOLKOVO Executive MBA and Executive Education programmes. 'Education at SKOLKOVO is learning by doing. Our students do not merely listen to theory in the classroom. They acquire practical experience of absolutely realistic situations, which includes work on their own business projects. We hope that with the innovative product development experience of Intel and the educational experience of SKOLKOVO, the Innovation Design Lab will sustainably contribute to the emergence and development of the start-up potential', says Ruben Vardanian, President of the Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO. 'Intel Corporation has been involved in technological entrepreneurship programmes for a long time and considers them to be of vital importance for the world in general and Russia in particular', says Renee J. James, Senior Executive Vice President, General Manager of Software and Services Group, Intel Corporation, adding: ‘The creation of the Laboratory is the starting point of a partnership between Intel and the Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO in innovation design, which has a big future. The methods developed by the Laboratory will be subsequently used to create innovative business as part of Innograd’. One of the project features is the very location of the Laboratory, which will work at the SKOLKOVO Campus. The absence of space limitations and the full-fledged technical resources of the Campus will enhance the effectiveness of interaction among project participants while enabling them to work comfortably within groups. A showroom of innovations, prototypes and methodology will also be opened at the Campus as a special exhibition environment where all SKOLKOVO residents and guests will be able to see the most successful projects. The Laboratory will be open in the summer of 2010. Already this autumn, students of the first Full-time MBA course will be able to use its functionality in pursuing their start-up projects. After that the most successful projects can be financed from a special Venture Fund for independent projects. Strategic management of the Laboratory will be carried out by a joint Steering Board consisting of representatives of SKOLKOVO and Intel. Laboratory Director is Dmitry Repin, SKOLKOVO Start-Up Projects Director. From Intel side, the Board will be headed by Kamil Isayev, R&D CEO, Intel Russia. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : TÜ Ufuk Güldemir Yaban Hayat Müzesi’nin Temeli Atld : 00:00:00 Gulf News Habertürk TV’nin kurucusu gazeteci Ufuk Güldemir, ölümünün 3 üncü ylnda stanbul Teknik Üniversitesi’nde düzenlenen törenle anld. Törene Eski Babakan Yardmcs Hüsamettin Özkan, Vali Vekili Hikmet Çakmak, TÜ Rektörü Prof. Dr. Muhammed ahin, Rektör Yardmclar Prof. Dr. Ahsen Özsoy ve Prof. Dr. Mehmet Karaca, Ufuk Güldemir’in ailesi ve gazeteci dostlar katld. Törenin sonunda Ayazaa Kampüsü’nde yer alacak TÜ Ufuk Güldemir Yaban Hayat Müzesi’nin temel atma töreni de gerçekletirildi. stanbul Teknik Üniversitesi Enerji Enstitüsü’nde düzenlenen törende, Yaban TV Yönetim Kurulu Bakan Melih Meriç, Güldemir’in en büyük hayalin gerçekleen hayal olduunu söylediini belirterek “Hayallerimizi gerçekletirme inanc verdii için O’ndan hiç kopamyoruz” dedi. Ufuk Güldemir Ailesi adna söz alan kardei afak Okaygün, Ufuk Güldemir Eitim ve Kültür Vakf’nn Güldemir’in üç isteini yerine getirerek gazetecilik, eitim ve kültür alannda çalmalara imza atacan söyledi. Kurulacak müze hakknda da bilgi veren Okaygün “Müze, dünyadaki örnekleri gibi sürdürülebilir yaban hayat konusunda ziyaretçilerini bilgilendirecek. Yalnz yaban hayat deyince aklnza sadece hayvanlar gelmesin. Aaçlar, orman, çöl, binbir çeit böcek gibi yaban hayatnn vazgeçilmezleri de müzenin bir parças olacak. Müze, bata Anadolu Bölümü olmak üzere Asya, Avrupa, Afrika ve Amerika ktalarndan oluacak. Afrika Bölümü’ne müzeye youn emei geçen ve Üniversite ile aramzda köprü olan TÜ’lü hocalarmzdan Prof. Dr. Antonio Trupia’nn ad verilecek.” dedi. TÜ Rektörü Prof. Dr. Muhammed ahin de müze projesinin hayata geçirilmesinde emei geçen herkese teekkür ederek Türkiye’ye yeni bir müze kazandrlmasnn önemine vurgu yapt. Açl konumalarnn ardndan Ufuk Güldemir’in gazeteci arkadalar Hürriyet Gazetesi yazarlar Sedat Ergin, Erturul Özkök, Sabah Gazetesi yazar Mehmet Barlas ve Milliyet Gazetesi yazarlar Güneri Civaolu ve Hasan Cemal ‘in katld bir anma paneli düzenlendi. Panelde, Hasan Cemal, Ufuk Güldemir’in avclkla habercilik tutkusunun temelinde haberi ve avn yakalamaktaki atakl, öngörüsü ve tutkusunun yattn belirtti. Sedat Ergin de “Ufuk Güldemir yaasayd, olaylara farkl analizler getirecekti. Batl bir açyla yerel dokuyu anlatan bir sentezi yanstrd. Bu, douyu da baty da ruhunun derinliinde yanstabilin bir sentezdi. O’nun adna müze yaplmas çok önemli, O’nun hatras yaatlmal” diye konutu. Panelin ardndan temel atma alanna canl balant yaplarak temel atld. Müzenin bir ylda tamamlanmas bekleniyor. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Avrupa Üniversiteler Birlii TÜ’de Topland : 00:00:00 Istanbul Technical University stanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Avrupa Üniversiteler Birlii (EUA)’ nin Aratrma Politikalar Çalma Grubu Bahar dönemi toplantsna ev sahiplii yapt. Avrupa’nn aratrma çalmalarna yön veren kurulun 11 Haziran 2010, Cuma günü TÜ’de gerçekletirilen toplantsna birliin üyeleri katld. Yaplan toplantda, 2013 ylnda balayacak olan Avrupa Birlii’nin 8. çerçeve programlarnda süreçlerin basitletirilmesi, ortak aratrmalarn yaplandrlmas, ortak programlarn gelitirilmesi, doktora programlarn destekleyecek yeni finansal mekanizmalarn yaratlmas ve uluslararas gündemi oluturan enerji gibi konularda görü al veriinde bulunuldu. Avrupa Üniversiteler Birlii, AB içinde yürütülen tüm aratrma faaliyetlerinde Avrupa üniversitelerini temsil ediyor. Birlik ayrca, yeni çerçeve programlarnn yaplandrlmasnda ERC (European Research Council), ERAB (European Research Area Board) ve EIT (European Institute of Technology) gibi önemli aratrma aktörleriyle payda bir rol üstlenerek faaliyetlerde görü bildirerek ve toplantlara temsilci göndererek etkin bir rol oynuyor. Avrupa Üniversiteler Birlii, üniversite aratrmalarnn yürütülmesi aamasnda kaynak çeitlendirilmesi ve tam maliyet modellerinin uygulanmas için de aktif olarak çalyor Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Khalifa University, EADS Defence & Security and Emiraje Systems to advance Cyber Operations in the GCC : 00:00:00 Khalifa University of Science,Technology and Research MOU includes formation of a Centre of Excellence for Cyber security, Student summer internships within EADS Europe, postgraduate studies sponsorship and international lecture programmes. Khalifa University of Science, Technology & Research (KUSTAR); EADS Defence & Security and; Emiraje Systems L.L.C., a partnership between C4 Advanced Solutions (C4AS) and EADS Defence & Security, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for a collaborative programme in Cyber Operations. This initiative is set to increase the local capability in specified technology areas associated with Cyber operations at KUSTAR in particular, the rest of the UAE and the GCC in general. The programme includes various activities. Primarily, an EADS Defence & Security-KUSTAR Centre of Excellence will be created with a world-wide focus on competence in the field of Cyber Operations, with particular emphasis on the protection of Critical National Infrastructure and Critical Information Infrastructure. From an educational standpoint, summer internships will be provided for KUSTAR students at EADS Defence & Security’s facilities throughout Europe, and the company will also sponsor pertinent postgraduate programmes at other leading Universities in the same field. EADS will also sponsor an international lecture programme on Innovation in Cyber Operations for Critical National Infrastructure. Emiraje Systems L.L.C. will facilitate the development of the Cyber Operations Centre of Excellence. The MoU was signed by Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi, KUSTAR’s Interim President, Mr. Mark Alexander, Chief Executive Officer, Emiraje Systems and Mr. Franz Peraus, Chief Executive Officer Middle East of EADS. KUSTAR’s Interim President, Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi said: “The MOU is aimed at further strengthening the capabilities of our students and providing them with professional opportunities within the Cyber field. The agreement with Emiraje Systems and EADS Defence & Security is an integral part of our objective to partner with industry leaders that foster innovative research within the UAE and beyond.” KUSTAR was established in February 2007 by a decree issued by the UAE President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan to complement Abu Dhabi’s 2030 vision, which aims at building a knowledge-based economy that effectively contributes to the development of the UAE. KUSTAR’s main campus is located in Abu Dhabi, while it operates with another campus in Sharjah, and presently offers bachelor degrees in Computer, Communication, Electronic, Software, Mechanical, Aerospace and BioMedical Engineering, Master’s and Doctorate degree programs in Computer, Telecommunication and Electronic Engineering, in addition to the Master’s degree in Information Security. In the future, KUSTAR will also offer degrees in other disciplines of Engineering, Logistics and Management, Life Sciences and Homeland Security. Moreover, KUSTAR will include research centers in disciplines such as Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Energy, Nanotechnology, Aerospace and Health Sciences. KUSTAR is open to men and women from all nationalities with particular emphasis being placed on educating young UAE nationals. EADS Defence & Security (EAD DS) is a systems solutions provider for armed forces and civil security worldwide. Its portfolio ranges from sensors and secure networks through missiles to aircraft as well as global security, service and support solutions. In 2009, EADS DS– with around 21,000 employees– achieved revenues of €5.4 billion. Emiraje is a joint venture (JV) established between C4 Advanced Solutions LLC (C4AS) and EADS Defence & Security Systems for the purpose of bringing the most advance C4ISR solutions to UAE and wider MENA markets. It exists for the purpose of prosecuting joint projects identified by the JV Board of Directors as suitable target activities within its defined geographic boundary. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Khalifa University shores up senior faculty team with new Chair of Biomedical Engineering : 00:00:00 Khalifa University of Science,Technology and Research Prof. DeWeerth from Georgia Institute of Technology will oversee the Biomedical Engineering Department of the regionally-leading science, technology and research university. Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research (KUSTAR) has confirmed the appointment of its founding Chair of Biomedical Engineering. Professor Stephen P DeWeerth, currently a Professor in the Wallace H.Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering and in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology, United States, will join KUSTAR faculty for the 2010/2011 academic year. In his new role, Prof. DeWeerth will help set-up the curriculum for KUSTAR's biomedical engineering programme and research facilities in the field, as well as recruit and manage biomedical engineering faculty members. He will be based at the university's Abu Dhabi campus. Prof. DeWeerth joined the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1991 as Assistant Professor at its School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and was a founding member of the Wallace H.Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory in 1999. He holds a Ph.D. in Computation and Neural Systems from the California Institute of Technology, which was awarded in 1991, an M.S. in Computer Science also from the California Institute of Technology (1987), and a B.A. in Mathematics and Chemistry from Wartburg College in Iowa, USA (1985). In addition to his academic achievements, Prof. DeWeerth is an active member of the engineering community in the United States. He holds a number of related society fellowships, memberships, and senior memberships, including in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the American Society for Engineering Education, the American Institute for Biomedical and Biological Engineering, and the Biomedical Engineering Society. He has authored over 100 refereed publications in the field of neuroengineering, and is a founder of a biosystems private-sector company that develops neural interfacing systems. Professor DeWeerth's appointment is the latest in a raft of senior personnel hires at KUSTAR, reflecting the university's drive to be the leading regional science, technology, and research institution. KUSTAR's new President, Prof. Tod A. Laursen from Duke University (USA), and its new Dean of Engineering, Prof. Miroslaw Skibniewski from the University of Maryland (USA), were also recently confirmed as taking up their new roles. Commenting on the announcement, Dr Arif Sultan Al Hammadi, KUSTAR's Interim President, said: "Professor DeWeerth's appointment demonstrates KUSTAR's commitment to attracting renowned international faculty talent to join its team. Given the UAE's ongoing interest in healthcare system investments, we see biomedical engineering, which relates the application of engineering principles to the medical field, as a key strategic component of our academic offering, ultimately benefiting everyone in our society." Prof. DeWeerth adds: "KUSTAR presents an exciting opportunity for me to help develop an important new engineering field in the UAE, creating a future generation of top biomedical engineers and researchers who are sure to contribute to the development of the region. I look forward to both the opportunities and the challenges, and, most importantly, to being able to inspire young minds and to develop knowledge in this rapidly expanding field." Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Mansour Bin Zayed Emphasized the Importance of Qualifying National Cadres : 00:00:00 Gulf News His Highness Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, Vice Chairman of ADEC, highlighted the important role of VEDC, under the umbrella of IAT; in qualifying UAE national cadres in technical and technological fields. He pointed out that VEDC’s graduates are valuable support as they provide the national industrial institutions with their needs for well-trained human resources. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Mohammed bin Saud Witnesses IAT-RAK Graduation Ceremony : 00:00:00 Institute of Applied Technology His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Saud Al Qasimi witnessed yesterday the graduation ceremony of the Institute of Applied Technology - Ras Al Khaima branch which took place in the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Community Development center, in the presence of Dr. Abdullatif Al Shamsi, IAT Director General and a number of officials from ministries, bodies and local departments in the Emirate. The Institutes of Applied technology launched yesterday its graduation ceremonies for 768 students in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaima, out of which, 152 students were from IAT Ras Al Khaima. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : UOS Khorfakkan branch organizes Second Annual Singing Forum : 00:00:00 Gulf News Sharjah-UOS As part of its social and cultural activities, the University of Sharjah (UOS) in Khorfakkan organized the Second Khorfakkan Annual Singing Forum in association with Al Nahham Singing Band at the Theatre of Khorfakkan Cultural Center. A number of known performers participated in this event including Osama Al Safi, Ahmed Al Mansouri and Ibrahim Al Marzouqi in addition to the Al Nahham Emirates Band. Attendees praised this event and found it reflects a distinctive image for the modern signing movement in UAE in particular and has a positive impact on the social and economic developments on the society. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Master Thesis about Censorship on Financial Markets : 00:00:00 University of Sharjah Sharjah-UOS: In the recommendations of his master thesis at the College of Law at the University of Sharjah (UOS), Mr. Othman Saeed Al Husaini, claimed to establish a department at the financial markets to supervise and censor information, data and announcements before publishing to detect incomplete or incorrect data. This thesis was supervised by Dr. Fateeha Gourary, and discussed by Prof. Mohammed Shalal Al Ani from the College of Law at UOS and Prof. Mohammed Abu Alwafa from UAE University. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Middle East Pool and Spa VIDEO : Middle East Pool & Spa 2010 : 00:00:00 Reed Exhibitions FZ-LLC Dubai International Convention Center 2010 Place your corporate or promotional video here. Contact info@mepool.com for more information... Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Kleindienst Group VIDEO : Construction of first Villa on The World begins : 00:00:00 Kleindienst Group First Villa Now Under Construction on Germany Island... Kleindienst Group Appoints City Diamond Contracting LLC to Build First Luxury Holiday Villas on The Heart of Europe Project Construction of the first luxury holiday villas on The World islands development began on Germany Island today, following the appointment of City Diamond Contracting LLC by Kleindienst Group, developer of The Heart of Europe project. A specialist turnkey design-build contractor headquartered in Dubai, City Diamond Contracting LLC. has begun work on the first of 20 exclusive villas on the six island luxury holiday project, following the successful four-month stabilization process completed by Foundation Construction Group (FCG) last month. Josef Kleindienst, Chief Executive of the Kleindienst Group said: “The start of construction on Germany Island is a defining moment, not only for the Kleindienst Group, but for all the government bodies of Dubai who have been facilitating the processes and procedures necessary to get this unique project off the ground. We are delighted to have reached this milestone in a project that has attracted worldwide attention since we launched The Heart of Europe last year.” Construction of the first luxury villa is scheduled for completion in Q4 2010 and will be used as a show home for the project to enable investors to select the premium fixtures and finishes for their holiday homes. The 20 villa development on Germany Island will be handed over in 2011, with 13 villas already sold. Deepak Arora, CEO of City Diamond Contracting LLC. commented: “Being the first contractor to begin construction of the first holiday homes on The World is a true honour. We look forward to a long and mutually beneficial partnership with the Kleindienst Group as we bring their vision of The Heart of Europe to reality.” A family-owned business founded in 1983, City Diamond Contracting LLC has earned a reputation for the construction of high-end luxury residential, commercial and industrial projects in the UAE. These include 65 ultra-luxury villas in Emirates Hills – the most exclusive millionaire’s residential suburb in Dubai; the world’s largest logistics facility for Emirates Airline; a number of academic institutions for the Knowledge Human & Development Authority, and a range of commercial and industrial developments for multi-national companies in Jebel Ali Free Zone and Dubai. The Heart of Europe project has attracted global media attention since it launched in December 2009, with more than 20 international TV crews from afar afield as Canada, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Japan and Germany travelling to The World islands to cover the ambitious Dubai project. The six first-class resort and leisure destination islands making up The Heart of Europe are scheduled for completion in 2015, with the exclusive Monte Carlo Island, the first dedicated luxury entertainment resort within the project, set to open by the end of 2010. -Ends- About The Heart of Europe The Heart of Europe is a six-island, 12-site luxury holiday development by the Kleindienst Group on The World project in Dubai. Situated on the islands of Germany, Monte Carlo, Switzerland, Austria, St Petersburg and Sweden, the first-class destination offers an unrivalled resort and leisure experience. Kleindienst Group has partnered with some of Europe’s foremost architects and technology providers to give The Heart of Europe its signature style of modern design infused with characteristics of the host countries. A celebration of the continent’s artistic and cultural treasures, each country captures a different facet of Europe’s unique character – innovation in Germany, luxury leisure in Monte Carlo, romance in Switzerland, style in Austria, wonder in Russia and tranquillity in Sweden. When complete The Heart of Europe will house 75 private holiday homes, six apartment buildings, six hotels, six lighthouses and six floating palaces as well as a diverse range of retail, entertainment and F&B outlets. For more information visit www.thoe.ae About Kleindienst Group Kleindienst Group is an established real estate company with interests in industrial, commercial, hospitality, vacation and residential segments of the industry. The company was established in Dubai in 2003 by Josef Kleindienst and has grown from two to 25 staff responsible for several developments and real estate investments in 11 countries. Kleindienst Group was originally launched in Austria and Hungary in 1996 as a property broker and investor and has since expanded to include property development across all real estate segments. Within the UAE the company owns industrial, commercial and residential sites at Dubai World Central, Dubai Investments Park, Jumeirah Village, Dubai Waterfront and The World. Completed developments include the European Business Center and the European Logistics Center in the Dubai Investments Park. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : AUS students enjoy live broadcast of FIFA World Cup 2010 on campus : 00:00:00 Higher Colleges of Technology Students and community members of American University of Sharjah (AUS) are gathering at the university’s Student Center to watch the live broadcast of what’s often called the world’s biggest sporting event, the FIFA World Cup. Representing the university’s a multicultural community, students from different nationalities are happy to have the chance to watch and cheer for their favorite teams together with friends and members of the AUS community. Crowds gather every day in the Student Center, creating a lively indoor atmosphere during these hot summer months. The students said they are thankful to the university for providing them with the opportunity to experience the World Cup fever in a very accessible and convenient location on campus. “It is encouraging to see how the AUS community supports sporting events; the daily turnout in the Student Center is a testimony of this. We wish to introduce more exciting summer activities for our students’ benefit and to provide them with recreational activities during this off-season of the year” said Dr. Moza Al Shehhi, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. The live broadcast of the FIFA World Cup 2010 in the Student Center will continue to cover the whole period of the event. The activity was arranged by the Student Council through the Office of Student Affairs. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : AUS hosts ATIC summer boot camp on microelectronics for UAE nationals : 00:00:00 American University of Sharjah The Advanced Technology Investment Company (ATIC) and American University of Sharjah (AUS) Microelectronics Summer Boot Camp for aspiring Emirati talent began yesterday at the AUS campus in Sharjah. The 10-day camp will offer 20 distinguished 11th and 12th grade students from Abu Dhabi exposure to knowledge, critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, practical applications and a bit of fun, all aimed at giving them an intense introduction to the world of microelectronics and the modern applications of technology. “ATIC is committed to offering young Emiratis world-class educational opportunities in the highly competitive and innovative field of technology. Our collaboration with AUS in this boot camp aims to engage some of our brightest talents in the technology of microsystems, asking questions, hands on experience and really thinking about what goes in to making many of the gadgets they use in their daily lives,” said Ibrahim Ajami, CEO of ATIC. Dr. Peter Heath, Chancellor of American University of Sharjah, said that AUS was very pleased to partner with ATIC. “I am confident that this partnership will yield positive results for both our organizations. We hope that this partnership will prove beneficial not only for ATIC and AUS but also for UAE society at large,” he said. Lectures will be led by AUS faculty working alongside representatives from AMD, one of the world’s largest global suppliers of microchip technology and the Institute of Applied Technology (IAT), the UAE’s science and engineering specialist education provider. The distinguished Emirati participants have been drawn from schools across Abu Dhabi. Living on campus for the duration of the 10-day course, the students will participate in lectures, audio-visual presentations, technical workshops, debates and open discussions with experienced industry leaders. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : UAE Business Post VIDEO : ETIHAD AIRWAYS AWARDED FOR WEB EXCELLENCE : 00:00:00 Etihad Airways Etihad Airways has won first prize in the ‘airlines’ category at the 6th Pan Arab Web Awards, one of the top awards programs for digital developments in the region. The Pan Arab Web Awards recognise excellence in web design, development and web ownership skills. Etihad Airways, in conjunction with its supplier Amadeus, was awarded for the airline’s innovative website, etihad.com, for excellence and leadership in the following areas: •concept and creativity; •technical, ease of use and navigation; •content and structure; •visual design and aesthetics; and •interactivity. Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways’ Chief Commercial Officer, said: “We recognise etihad.com’s importance as an integral sales, service and marketing channel for the airline, and we have made a significant effort to ensure our website contains the right information and user-friendly features to make the travel experience easier, smoother and more convenient for our customers. “This award shows that our continued development efforts in etihad.com is the right approach for us and for our passengers, and we will continue to innovate to confirm Etihad’s position as a leader in online travel solutions.” Antoine Medawar, Amadeus’ Vice President, Middle East & North Africa, said: “This is a milestone for Etihad’s online identity worldwide. We are greatly proud of partnering with Etihad and providing it with Amadeus’ latest e-commerce solutions and web design services. With its modern look and feel and user-friendly features, etihad.com leads the way in terms of usability and brings great value to both travel agencies and customers.” Etihad.com is currently available in seven different languages, including English, Arabic, French, German, Chinese, Japanese and Russian, and has over 36 specific country websites. Customers can book flights on the site, as well as hotels and insurance or shop with miles and cash from thousands of products at the airline’s award winning online Reward Shop. Other features including ‘Experience Etihad’, an interactive onboard and ground experience, route maps and timetables, as well as other online services such as web check-in, which have become very popular. The Pan Arab Web Awards ceremony was held at the Shangri-la’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa in Oman. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Dubai Chamber VIDEO : Dubai Chamber brings the business community face to face with Dubai Customs : 00:04:47 Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry Dubai's non-oil trade in Q1 of 2010 goes up by 19% The economic recovery is strongly making its presence felt on the business horizon, maintained HE Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry citing examples of positive indicators like the Chamber members' export figures of recent times and sectoral performances that sum up the trend showing encouraging figures of a 18% increase amounting to AED 17.5 billion May exports in comparison to the same period last year. Buamim was speaking at the third round of Talk Business at Breakfast at the Chamber premises in Dubai on Tuesday. The networking event, attended by representatives of Dubai Business Groups and Councils and various public and private sector organizations, had HE Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Executive Chairman, Ports, Customs and Free Zones Corporation and Director General Dubai Customs presenting an overview of Dubai's non-oil trade for the 1st quarter of 2010. The meeting came as part of the Chamber's initiative of building bridges between the public and private sectors while seeking common solutions to the problems faced by the business community in regards to the smooth operations of their businesses. Buamim stressed on the fact that the export sector has regained its momentum and its long tradition of being the driving force behind Dubai's developed economy as the Certificates of Origin issued by Dubai Chamber to its members in May 2010 recorded 7% increase touching 55,777 certificates of origin from 52,143 issued in April this year. He informed that Dubai's economic growth scenarios for 2010 are also indicated through sectors like manufacturing, utilities, transport, finance, social and government services that have positive contribution to Emirate's total GDP. Said Buamim, "As part of its efforts in facilitating free flow of trade and serving the business community to the best international standards, the Chamber is hosting the bi-annual World ATA Carnet Council (WATAC) meeting and workshop in Dubai at the end of the year which will help in promoting and implementing the adoption of the ATA Carnet system in the region besides facilitating global trade." Buamim further highlighted the benefits of the Carnet system which he said will speed up the Customs procedures through the use of a single document like the ‘Merchandise Passport' thus saving the businessmen's time, money and efforts in the temporary admission of goods. The system also facilitates the free movement of business people and their representatives for participation in trade fairs and overseas exhibitions which directly supports their exports and business competitiveness in the international arena, he said. The Director General of Dubai Chamber also focused on the cooperation existing between the Chamber and Dubai Customs which he said has formed a joint working team to support the implementation of the ATA Carnet system as the UAE which has, over the past few years, seen a substantial inflow of goods and has firmly established itself as a reputed regional and international exhibition centre. On his part, HE Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Executive Chairman, Ports, Customs and Free Zones Corporation and Director General Dubai Customs highlighted the resilience of Dubai's economy and its commercial activities in withstanding the recent challenges and coming out of it smoothly while citing the Emirate's direct imports and re-exports as indicators of the current recovery trend. He said the figures of the first quarter of 2010 shows a remarkable increase in the non-oil trade which touched AED 136 bn with a 19% rise comparing to the same period in 2009 which also included AED 15 bn direct exports; AED 87.4 bn direct imports with an increase of 10% from the AED 79.7 bin in Q1 2009 while the re-exports increased by 14.6% to AED 34 bn. Ahmed Butti further said that Dubai's economy is strong and promising as these recent numbers reflect the real status of the Emirate which is witnessing an increased demand for consumer products due to the strong purchasing power and proves that all the negative rumours about Dubai's economy are incorrect. The Director General of Dubai Customs also touched upon the important role of the Dubai Customs Consultative Council which is made up of Customs officials and the chairman of the 24 affiliated business groups and the benefits that the Council offers to the business community and serves as a platform to enhance the communication between the authorities and the business people. Ahmed Butti sounded very hopeful about the Dubai economy coming full circle as he referred to the soon-to-be-opened Al Maktoum International Airport as part of Dubai World Central which will directly help increase the volume of air cargo and add to the competitiveness of Dubai businesses. These networking meetings organized by Dubai Chamber from time to time helps build strong alliances, open communication channels with key regional and international trade partners and facilitate networking opportunities for the business community while enhancing their competitiveness in the global trading arena. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Dubai Chamber VIDEO : Dubai Chamber seminar focuses on the revised version of demand guarantees : 00:03:22 Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry Seminar highlights the importance of Uniform Rules for Demand Guarantees (URDG 758) for payment security in international trade. With the International Chamber of Commerce's revised version of the Uniform Rules for Demand Guarantees coming into effect next month, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry's Legal Services Department organized a seminar on URDG 758 highlighting the importance of demand guarantees in a wide array of international and domestic contracts at its premises on Monday. The seminar that was attended by bankers, lawyers and representatives from several companies and was facilitated by Vincent O'Brien, a member of the ICC Banking Commission and a well-known figure in trade finance circles in the UAE, who updated the participants with the obligations of the bank under the new URDG 758 and its various articles that set out the liabilities and responsibilities of the parties at each key stage of the lifecycle of the guarantee. He also touched upon the subject of the application of the demand guarantee in international sales, where a documentary credit assures the exporter of being paid upon the presentation of complying documentation showing that shipment is made, as the document provides protection to the importer against non-performance, or late or defective performance, by the exporter. Jehad Kazim, Legal Services Director of Dubai Chamber said, "As part of its strategic objectives of creating a favourable business environment, supporting the development of business and promoting Dubai as an international business hub, Dubai Chamber has organized this seminar for the benefit of businesses that are exposed to global trading partners and need to make use of guarantee tools that provide maximum payment security in foreign trade transactions." She further added that with the dramatic increase in the usage of independent guarantees and standby letters of credit, the newly revised URDG 758 of the International Chamber of Commerce will provide the perfect balance of risk coverage and the flexibility to support the increased global demand for demand guarantees. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : SunGard Higher Education VIDEO : Début des inscriptions dans les universités belges, exemple à l'ULB : 00:02:04 SunGard Higher Education (Middle East) The Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) is collaborating with global higher education specialist SunGard Higher Education (SGHE) in an exciting initiative to introduce a new registration system, X-pr3ss (Express), which streamlines and accelerates the registration process. Students are able to complete their customized registration in a quick process which targets just 3 clicks, 3 documents and 3 minutes. It is estimated that 20,000 students will benefit from this new service by September 2010. ULB is implementing Banner Student (French), Luminis, Banner Workflow, and Banner Document Management Suite to enhance constituent service and help create a digital campus. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Al Ghandi Auto VIDEO : National Auto relaunches Fiat with a dedicated showroom : 00:05:46 Al Ghandi Auto The award-winning, iconic Fiat 500 spearheads the major re-launch of the brand in the UAE The Fiat brand, which has had no serious presence in the UAE for the last 5 years, signalled its return with a high-profile presence at the Dubai Motorshow in December last year - now National Auto, part of the Al Ghandi Auto Group and official Fiat distributor for Dubai and the Northern Emirates, has formally opened the UAE’s first dedicated showroom for the brand in Ras Al Khor, Dubai. “These are very exciting times for Fiat,” said Graham Turner, CEO of the Al Ghandi Auto Group, speaking at the launch of the stylish new facility. “For the re-launch of the brand we couldn’t have asked for a more exciting, fun and innovative vehicle than the 500 - quite literally the car that Europe went crazy for.” Confirming its reputation as an Italian style icon capable of winning the hearts and minds of the public and the international motoring press, this remarkable car recently set a new record, the 500,000th vehicle rolling off the production line earlier this year, demonstrating the incredible demand for this truly iconic vehicle, which is on sale in more than 80 different countries around the world. In addition to success on the sales front, the Fiat 500, which features best in class safety features including 7 airbags, and delivers leading fuel economy and emission standards, has already won 40 international awards and has received the prestigious EuroNCAP 5 star safety rating, taking top spot in its segment. This production record and the model’s unquestionable popularity are the result of the 500’s great ability to generate new versions, and National Auto will soon add the 500 Cabriolet and high-performance Arbath versions to the 500 range on offer in the UAE. “Fiat is back, rejuvenated with its best ever line up of vehicles and is determined to succeed in the UAE,” added Turner. “This determination will see us significantly expanding the Fiat range over and above the 500 - the new Fiat Bravo, also on display in the showroom, has literally just arrived in the UAE, and in the coming months we also plan to launch the all-new Fiat Linea, enabling us to strongly compete in the UAE’s key vehicle segments.” Fiat has a long tradition of producing models that combine practicality, affordable technological solutions and unmistakable Italian design - models that are practical, versatile and responsive, and perfectly suited to customers who are increasingly in tune with technological innovation and environmental issues. “Returning to the company’s original mission, namely to build cars with attractive styling and exciting engines, cars that are accessible and improve the quality of everyday life, Fiat has seen a profound change in corporate culture and mentality, and is today focused on a continuous, rapid overhaul of its products, on technological research, on the quality of its designs and on a new, constructive relationship with the customer,” concluded Turner. The new dedicated National Auto Fiat showroom, with plenty of free customer parking available, is conveniently located on the junction of Nad Al Hamar Road and Al Awir Road in the Ras Al Khor Complex in Dubai. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Billions invested into university research : 00:00:00 Gulf News ABU DHABI // Dh4.9 billion will be pumped into research and development by 2018 under a new strategic plan for higher education unveiled today. By 2018 public expenditure on research will exceed 0.75 per cent of the GDP. Federal and private universities will be invited to submit tenders for grants. Dr Mugheer al Khaili, the director general of the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC), said the vision was in line with the emirate’s plan to build a knowledge-based economy. “It’s very important to have the human resources that will support this,” he said. “It aims to limit the number of people seeking a job in Abu Dhabi, ensuring that graduates contribute directly to the economy.” With 70 per cent of the workforce in low-value occupations such as construction and the service industry, the plan aims to correct the current misalignment between educational output and the labour market’s needs. The top priority is producing more graduates in science and technology, an area in which the UAE lags. A new funding model for universities will also be drawn up. However, because of the new tendering process, it is unclear whether that will benefit the federal universities. They have recently suffered from budget cuts and freezes across the board. The plans prioritises four key sectors: health, aerospace, semiconductors and renewable energy. The education council hopes to address a number of “challenges” facing local universities. They include poorly prepared school-leavers, limited and “unfocused” courses, difficulty in attracting and retaining quality teaching staff, insufficient funding, and a dearth of research. There will be new, tougher licensing conditions and regulations for universities setting up in the capital. ADEC plans to set up a framework for inspecting universities by next year. It will also establish a number of public libraries by 2014. Officials from the education council also hope to address the high rate of college drop-outs. They want to reduce the current rate, around 20 per cent, to around 15 per cent. Other plans include developing community colleges, similar to those in the US, producing standards and curricula for special education for both staff and students as well as a programme to attract and retain better-qualified university staff. The strategy is, however, scant on details, such as how many libraries or community colleges there will be. Dr al Khaili said committees would be formed over the summer to develop an implementation plan. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : UAEU chiefs to discuss the future of teachers : 00:00:00 The National ABU DHABI // Management at the at UAE University (UAEU) will meet with their counterparts at the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) today to discuss the fate of its foundation programme teachers. More redundancies and a possible stream of resignations are expected at UAEU following the decision to merge its foundation programme with HCT’s, which was announced to staff on May 25. At least 20 of the 270 Al Ain-based foundation staff have been told they will be relocated to HCT colleges in remote areas such as Fujairah, Ras al Khaimah and Madinat Zayed by September, meaning up to a three-hour round commute to work. And although UAEU teachers who are moved will remain on their existing UAEU contracts, they say working at HCT also means longer hours and less holiday time. They were also told that those teaching maths, information technology (IT) and Arabic would not be kept on after June 2011, a move teachers say could result in more job loss. The Government had previously announced long-term plans to phase out the foundation programmes, which serve as a bridge to prepare high school graduates for university. However, many of the students who come from high school have extremely limited computer skills and poor English, which hinders the process as the courses are taught in English, said a teacher in the IT department. “Upper management took this decision without coming to the classroom to see what’s really happening,” said the teacher. “I don’t know what they based their decision on to take out IT. They’ll be doing a disservice to the kids.” When contacted for a response, UAEU – which has a staff 1,073 – responded by issuing a statement from the provost, Prof Rory Hume, who said the programmes were being merged to benefit students. “The partnership between UAEU and HCT will allow students to be nearer their high schools and homes,” he said. “We are honouring all staff contracts and working with them to minimise any disruption. This move is for the benefit of the students.” In an announcement on the merger last month, UAEU said: “The change will also allow HCT and UAEU to work more closely with schools throughout the UAE to help prepare their students for university.” In February, Prof Hume announced that without an increase in government funding, the university may shed nearly 200 of its staff to bolster research capacity and launch PhD programmes. Yesterday, 14 teachers, five of whom had volunteered, were given relocation forms to be signed by 5pm. Those who refused risked having their contracts terminated. They were given a Dh7,200 relocation incentive to be paid in two instalments next year and an additional Dh12,000 in September to cover “other move-related costs”. A document circulated acknowledged the “timing is less than optional”. One English teacher said staff were told relocation decisions were up to HCT. “It’s not been thought through properly,” she said. “They don’t even know if there’s enough housing in Fujairah and they’re talking about people living in a hotel.” Another teacher, who has been in Al Ain for six years, could not comprehend a three-hour commute. “It’s totally uprooting our lives and honestly, I’m not sure we’ll stay. The hours will change from six hours a day to nine or 10 and we’ll all lose nearly a month of our summer vacation.” Staff say they have been left uncertain of their rights or where to turn. Many went to the Ministry of Labour but were redirected to the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, who told them nobody was available to speak with them. “We just don’t know if our contracts will be honoured,” said another teacher. Other federal universities have also been subject to cost-cutting measures in the wake of the financial downturn. In May, HCT announced to its staff that a pay freeze had been implemented and scrapped a merit bonus scheme. A pay freeze has also been implemented at Zayed University. Staff at UAEU have been told they cannot turn to Zayed University for alternative employment, as the institutions have an unofficial non-poaching agreement. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Beyond imagination : 00:00:00 Gulf News Imagine Cup is a student technology competition which aims to bring technological innovations that can make a difference in the world to life The regional finals were held in Dubai recently, and conducted by Microsoft. Its an Olympics of great ideas. It may look like a simple cash point machine but it can give you a lot of things that money can't buy. All you need to do is feed it empty cans. For each ‘deposit' you make, you get points, which can be redeemed for gifts and vouchers. And, perhaps more importantly, this smart invention helps boost your feel-good factor, because every time you use it you are making the world a better place in your own small way. Designed and built by a small group of youths from the University of Bahrain, the prototype of this smart trash bin, called Cash Trash, was the winner of the regional finals for the Microsoft Imagine Cup. The finals are scheduled to be held in Poland in July. The Cash Trash project "The project is basically a smart trash bin,'' explains Mohammad Anwar Shaikhaldeen, who was part of the team named Genius Touch representing University of Bahrain which created the smart bin last year. (Shaikhaldeen dropped out of the team this year.) "The idea for a smart bin struck Ahmad Majdi, the team leader, when he once saw a lady dropping a trash bag just near the trash bin and not in the bin. He found the sight quite upsetting, and wondered if there way to motivate people to put their trash into the bin and not just near it. "Majdi learnt about the Imagine Cup when Microsoft [represented by Lana Khalaf] visited our university's IT Symposium 2 last year. He had a potential idea and wanted to participate. In the process of developing his team he met me and, after learning about my technical skills, roped me in. I was initially hesitant because I had never worked in a development role before, let alone invented a device! "But I realised that it would be a good opportunity to test my abilities and it looked like a promising idea. So I joined the team. We decided to make a device that gives people points for each can they drop into it. We limited ourselves to cans because with our budget that was the only thing we could programme the machine to detect. "Detecting plastic or glass requires more sophisticated hardware and that would drive the price of the device up considerably. Also, aluminium is the biggest concern in the world of recycling and there's no one who doesn't drink cold drinks."The Cash Trash project won the regional finals last year but lost out in the final due to circumstances beyond the team's control: "The prototype got stalled in customs,'' recalls Shaikhaldeen, and so could not make it on time for the judging. They were celebrated nonetheless for being the first Bahraini team to ever win the regional finals. The project held quite a lot of promise, which is why Majdi chose to enter the invention again this year. His persistence paid off: the team is once again in the finals. Pride of the emiratesThis year, Dubai has something to celebrate too. Among the semi-final winners is a four-member team from the University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD). They developed a software model that assesses hearing levels using an application that can be downloaded to a mobile device. "Hearing concerns of people are often overlooked,'' says Bhavik Salvi, one of the four students on the team. "If steps are taken early on, loss of hearing can be ruled out. We have had inputs from ENT specialist, Dr Rana Batterjee of American Hospital Dubai as we developed our application."The human ear can usually detect sounds within the range of 20Hz and 20,000Hz. However, the ability to hear the lowest decibel decreases with age. We can use this application to detect hearing loss at an early stage and collect statistics on hearing impairment in the UAE," said Salvi. The team says that they are all very excited to be heading to Poland to participate in the finals. Overcoming fears Bahrain's Shaikhaldeen was in charge of the technical aspects of the Cash Trash device (both in terms of the software and hardware). "Frankly, I was sceptical about my work because when you are deeply involved in making something you cannot help but see the flaws in your work. You keep pushing yourself to better it and improve something that may already be working well. "The habit can become hard to break. During the course of the competition, as we progressed from one stage to the next, I learnt to tame my anxiety and fears and move on.'' The ideas that made it to the finals Cash Trash is one of the four projects that were selected to represent the region in the global finals. Ten universities from across the Middle East participated in the regional finals - five from the UAE, one from Bahrain, two from Oman and two from Kuwait. Each team was given 15 minutes to present their work to a panel of judges comprising senior members from the business and government sectors. The fourth place went to the team from University of Wollongong, Dubai (UOWD) for their project ‘Ear-It'. The programme provides a low cost, easy-to-use mobile phone application to test a user's degree of hearing at several frequencies and pitch bands. It also prevents users from acquiring noise-induced hearing loss by generating pure white noise to cancel out the harmful noise in the surrounding environment. The third runner-up was the team from University of Bahrain for their ‘Cash Trash' project. The project is currently on trial at various college campuses and malls in collaboration with the Bahrain Municipality. Second place went to the team from Sultan Qaboos University, Oman, for their project ‘Show me the traffic'. The ‘Show me the traffic' project is a web application that provides graphic information describing the level of traffic using Microsoft ‘Bing Maps'. The application relies on existing modes of traffic communication to notify commuters about traffic issues. It is also less expensive for the end-user. First place in the regional finals was taken by the three-member team from the American University of Kuwait for their project ‘Multi-touch tutoring system'. This educational software programme uses markers and web-cams as methods for physically challenged people to interact with computers. The initial prototype was tested in Kuwaiti schools and includes lessons in English, Maths and Science. A global competition Now in its eighth year, the Imagine Cup has grown to be a truly global competition focused on finding solutions to real world issues. Last year, more than 300,000 students from 142 countries entered the Imagine Cup competition. It is the premier student technology competition in the Middle East. This year about 9,000 students registered to participate. Of those who registered, only ten teams made it to the regional finals. The four finalists will advance to the world finals in Warsaw, Poland, from July 3-8, 2010. "The Microsoft Imagine Cup is a year-long programme where participants compete through various levels of local, regional and online contests to go on and attend the worldwide finals," says Azza Al Shinnawy, Public Sector Education Lead at Microsoft Gulf. "The intensity of the work brings the teams together and motivates them to give it their all. The bonds formed here often last well beyond the competition itself. "With the competition, we empower students to use their abilities to make a positive impact on society. Students from the world over come together to show how technology can help make a difference in people's lives - in the way we think, work and communicate. They work in keeping with the eight Millennium Development Goals. "These are universally-accepted human rights objectives that were agreed upon eight years ago by 189 nations around the world. A target date of 2015 was set to achieve them - we are now more than halfway towards it. Each year, students work to become part of the solution for these goals. New ideas are aired, new initiatives are launched and projects shouldered. "We believe that education is the cornerstone of economic opportunity, so any efforts to help young people realise their full potential must begin here and now. "Through this competition, we aim to inspire the next generation of technology and business leaders and innovate and stimulate local knowledge economies while having a profound and positive impact on society." The World Cup of software "The Imagine Cup is a student's chance to show the world what he can do. No matter which team comes up with the best solutions - the world wins," says Charbel Fakhoury, general manager at Microsoft Gulf. "The world today is better place because some men took the courage to take their ideas beyond the drawing board and make their innovations a reality. All that we have achieved and are yet to achieve is the outcome of a vision." The United Nations has outlined some of the biggest challenges in the world today in its Millennium Development Goals - ranging from reducing poverty and halting the spread of HIV/Aids to providing universal primary education. The Imagine Cup challenges all programmers, designers and technologists to consider the UN's development goals as their inspiration when creating innovative software solutions. "The Imagine Cup begins just as any other competition - with a burst of inspiration and a lot of hard work. But it has the potential to become a future software breakthrough, a future career or even a flourishing new industry. By applying their imagination, passion and creativity to technological innovations, young people can make a difference in the world today," says Fakhoury. Life-changing moves "Since working on Cash Trash for the first time last year, I have tackled many projects,'' says Shaikhaldeen. "So, yes, this was the spark that changed my life and I will always value it. But due to other work commitments, I have not been able to be on the team this year. I do wish them well and hope they come through as winners this time." "Being on this project taught me a lot: it polished my presenting skills and [my ability to] market my work to both technical and non-technical audiences as we were practically hammered with presentation skills tutorials and tryouts!" With one success came many more and today he is in the process of setting up his own company all thanks to the support of Microsoft and the experience and camaraderie of Imagine Cup 2009. Indeed, life has changed for not just Shaikhaldeen but also for several other students who have taken part of the Imagine Cup. Today, he and his partner, Aymen Al Ansari (who was also a student at UoB and a participant at the Imagine Cup) are one step closer to establishing their own company Advanced Technologies Software Developers. Speaking about his partnership with Al Ansari, Shaikhaldeen explains, "We studied at the same university and, coming from a common IT background, we bonded well. "Lately, Shaikhaldeen and I have been going through extensive training on Microsoft Technologies," says Al Ansari, "And we are also forming a specialised company where we aim to utilise cutting edge technologies which represent both our specialities. The plan is to focus solely on our company as soon as we finish our training period in that company.'' At the moment, the company specialises in developing mainstream high-performance computing through graphic processing units and voice-enabled Windows or web applications. "The first specialisation focuses on getting performance from as little hardware as possible. So, this should align with the Environmental Stability millennium goal," says Al Ansari. "The second one is mainly used to create educational software for visually-impaired people, which falls under Universal Education goal. "However, these technologies are not limited to these two goals: they can be aligned with any other goal as long as you know how to utilise them in a given field." Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : Dubai Chamber VIDEO : Dubai's Economic Comeback Hinges on Conventional Growth Sectors : 00:04:18 Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry Dubai, UAE: The economic condition of the UAE is strongly on the mend with the country's focus shifting to trade, tourism, service sectors, logistics and financial services and industries which played a greater role in achieving 1.3% GDP growth as this year's real GDP growth is projected to rise to 3.2%, maintained HE Eng Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry, further stating that the post global financial crisis era is expected to bring about fundamental and structural changes which will lead to the creation of new business environment and private consumption in the UAE. Buamim was speaking at the second Economic Seminar of the year at the Dubai Chamber premises on Wednesday. The seminar that examined the emirate's economy before, amid and post the global economic crisis, also shed light on trade and investment Opportunities for UAE Businesses in Comesa countries and the general dynamics of private consumption in the UAE. The seminar was attended by the Chamber's members comprising of traders and the panel of speakers from the Chamber's Economic Research and Sustainable Business Development Sector. The Director General of the Chamber said that for the first time in many years the non-oil sector's contribution to the GDP rose to 71% in 2009 - A clear indicator underlining the country's resilience and ability in recovering from the economic challenge. First quarter exports of Dubai Chamber members touched AED 50.7 billion registering a 15% rise from the preceding quarter of 2009 with May exports surging to 18% compared to May of last year, clearly signifying a strong recovery in trade and exports sectors. Said Buamim: "The global economy is transforming and many of the previous rules of engagement are no longer applicable. That is why our role of a business facilitator becomes more prominent and our strategy of helping strengthen the trading sector's competitiveness in local and international trade remains one of our most important priorities. A bright example of this objective is the exploring of trade and investment opportunities for UAE businesses in Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa countries (COMESA)." The presentation on Dubai's economic growth scenarios for 2010 highlighted the economic sectors that have positive economic growth contribution to Dubai's total GDP before, amid and post the economic crisis and include manufacturing, utilities, transport, finance, social and government services. The presentation further revealed that all business sectors are expected to contribute positively to the economic growth except construction, real estate, mining, and domestic services. Starting this year, it is expected that Dubai's economy will gradually emerge from the financial crisis into a more positive and vibrant economy in the coming years. The second presentation on Trade and Investment Opportunities for UAE Businesses in COMESA Countries highlighted key trade and investment opportunities for UAE business in COMESA, which includes 19 diverse countries. The presentation also highlighted opportunities in other sectors such as agriculture, minerals and energy, infrastructure and trade and tourism for UAE companies to benefit from this emerging region in this recovery period. The seminar also examined the UAE's private consumption and demographics in light of the increased government spending in 2009 and this year on healthcare, education and other social services sectors and its support for infrastructural and transport projects, which is expected to translate into higher aggregate demand. Also, firms are anticipated to react by increasing their demand for labour thus leading to an increase in the real wage which raises real incomes of households and lead to an increase in private consumption hence a rise in overall GDP. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Kuwait establishes national authority for academic accreditation : 00:00:00 Kuwait Manama: Kuwait has established a national authority for academic accreditation and education quality. The new authority will ensure the highest educational standards for Kuwaiti nationals and will be accrediting overseas academic institutions in which Kuwaiti students are enrolled as well as the private universities and academic programmes in Kuwait, Moodhi Abdul Aziz Al Hmood, the education minister, said on Monday. The cabinet approved the decree on the establishment of the authority on Sunday evening, the minister told Kuwait News Agency (Kuna) The decree named a board of directors for the new authority, headed by the education minister. Board members will include representatives of Kuwait University, the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training, the Private universities Council and academics from educational institutions and three representatives from the private sector. Kuwait has in the last two years stopped recognising several sub-standard universities and colleges. The decision was deeply resisted by MPs whose constituents said that it affected the results of their sons and daughters. However, the minister stood firm and insisted on higher standards. The decision subsequently affected private colleges in Bahrain after the education ministry launched a massive clean-up of irregular management and academic activities. Several colleges in the Arab world, Eastern Europe and the Far East were also affected by the Kuwaiti minister’s decision. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Architect creates a bio brick : 00:00:00 Gulf News The bricks that we see today are most commonly made out of clay, but soon in the near future we may be able to see buildings made out of bacteria and waste products. Ginger Krieg Dosier wants to do just that. She's an assistant architecture professor at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) who has grown a brick by cultivating easily accessible bacteria, mixing it with waste products and dispensing it over dry sand. Her sustainable creation has already been fruitful for Dosier as she recently won the 2010 Metropolis Next Generation Design Competition. Her bio brick was chosen because it has the potential to globally revolutionise the future of buildings. In a lab at the university, Dosier shows her successful eco-bricks that are currently small enough to fit in your palm. However, the full-scale tests are being conducted in a different lab because of the large size of the materials. "I'm only making bricks, but I plan on making larger concrete units that they use in construction," she explained. It's hard to believe that block of sand will be able to sustain large buildings, but she's confident that once she's created larger units, her brick can be used for any type of infrastructure. Creation Her first creation took 11 days to grow. With more testing, they now take between 4-7 days to form. She chuckled when pointing towards the array of failed attempts, which were tested with different kinds of sand. "I'm so amazed how many different sands there are in the UAE, it's insane — like some are bright red, they're really pretty." So far, from all the kinds she's tested, the type of sand she found to be the most successful is the one that is being excavated where the new business school is being built on the AUS campus. Since the bacteria used in the process eventually die, the brick would seem to be harmless. However, Dosier does admit that if it reaches the ground water it would be harmful as the product contains waste ammonium, which in large concentrations would be dangerous. "Anything in large concentration, even if it's a bunch of sesame seeds, would be bad." She said she needs to work with more environmental engineers to find ways of filtering the waste and recycling it. How it all began Dosier started this experiment five years ago. When she was doing her graduate studies at Cranbrook Academy, she started using biodegradable formwork for concrete. "I was really interested in having a formwork that dissolved as opposed to [materials which are] a lot of waste." She started making furniture out of salt that dissolved, but didn't just want to leave the salt outside. So she talked to chemists and material scientists on how to make the salt non-harmful to the environment. This triggered the idea of whether "we could grow materials as opposed to dissolve them". She then began studying crystal growth and eventually this led her to want to make a brick, as it's the "lowest common denominator" in architectural materials. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Emirati students share their private lives : 00:00:00 Gulf News Dubai Women's College students are currently holding a photography exhibition that reveals their innermost thoughts on sensitive issues. Power, fear, domestic violence and identity issues are topics that some Emirati women chose to share with the public through the means of a photography exhibition. Eighteen students from Dubai Women's College recently held the exhibition entitled Private(ly) to showcase issues that have affected their private lives at the Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre (Ductac). The co-curator of the show, Shammi Samano, said that in her opinion this exhibition is probably the first of its kind to showcase Emirati women's talent. "It's a very gutsy show," Samano said. One of the student exhibitors, Ameenah Taher, also believes that this is the first time women like her have got the chance to showcase their work. "We didn't have this chance before… [this exhibition] makes us more self-confident about our work and to show it." ‘Need to interact' Samano, who is also the professor of the first-year Applied Communications students, believes that "young local women need to interact with them [the public]" as people are interested in the local community and want to know what young Emirati women are thinking about. She wanted her students to have the experience of holding an exhibition and being able to have a dialogue with the public. Some students were inspired by things that happened to their friends or someone close to them. Eman Al Shamsi chose to portray domestic violence in her photograph because she was inspired by someone close to her who went through that experience. She also chose this topic because she fears domestic violence and believes that it's a private issue to many people in the UAE and outside the country. In Reem Abdullah Al Falahi's photograph, she shows Arabic words that mean pride, vanity and hatred, which "live deep in [her] heart." She also believes that "these feelings are not only for Emirati people, it's for everybody." Marwa Mohammad was inspired by the idea of women's strength and decided to show in her picture how women don't need to be guided by men. She said it is believed that in her culture "women shouldn't study media because here we [Emirati women] can talk to men or work with them a lot more than in other jobs." However, she believes that even if local women are in public places, they can show their personalities and represent their country in a good way. Three students organised the event. One of them, Nawar Al Shamsi, is a fourth year Applied Communications student who will be graduating soon. She took part in organising this event because it was her graduation project. She said her project could be translated as a "farewell gift from the graduate class to the first year". Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : UAE business graduates compete to win $50,000 in Cairo : 00:00:00 Gulf News Dubai: This weekend, Arab entrepreneurs from 13 countries battled it out in Cairo to win more than Dh183,000 ($50,000) in start-up seed money as well as mentoring support from successful business leaders. Nine finalist teams from the UAE, Lebanon, Egypt and Yemen participated in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Arab Business Plan Competition in partnership with Abdul Latif Jameel (ALJ) Company. "Given the current economic climate globally, the Arab world has never been more in need of entrepreneurial talent to lift its competitiveness and financial prospects" ALJ representative Fadi Jameel said. More than 1,800 budding entrepreneurs entered the competition. Ideas ranged from the energy sector to engineering, health care, internet-based business solutions, software, and telecommunication. Winners The Lebanon team was deemed the most promising entrepreneurs and won the $50,000 while the Egypt team took home $15,000 (Dh55,000) to help realise their business dreams. "Taking part in the MIT Arab Business Plan Competition has enabled us to refine our entrepreneurial vision while really understanding the dedication and attention to detail required to create and manage a successful business. We hope to help inspire our fellow entrepreneurs in the Middle East and encourage them to be a part of the 2011 competition — it's been an incredible learning and development experience," Rana Al Chemaitelly, The Little Engineer, said. Although the UAE team's hopes to build their empire have been temporarily delayed, they are still confident of their idea to build a specialised search engine, Vastry, which connects online publishers and advertisers. Team leader Mohammad Hawass said online publishers, that have websites, can register for a fee and post media kits containing information about their advertising rates, contact numbers and profile, among other details. Advertisers would also be able to efficiently search for legitimate online publishers to negotiate a profitable advertising deal. "All these details will provide a shortcut for both parties," Hawass said. The Vastry search engine would play an important role in digital media buying he said. Hawass, who is a Cairo University graduate, is joined by his brother Hussam, who is currently a student at the University of Alexandria, and Pakistani national Syed Shah. "We got the idea after the pain we experienced in previous jobs where we had to search for key online publishers for our online campaigns. It was extremely difficult trying to source legitimate publishers," Hawass said. The team members have experience in online media and internet marketing, programming and managing websites. Click here to view this video release... TV Channel : EME360 VIDEO : Students entering university still stuck on remedial treadmill : 00:00:00 The National ABU DHABI: Government efforts to end the need for remedial English and maths courses for most students entering federal universities have had a minimal effect so far, according to results for the UAE’s university entrance examination released yesterday. They show little change from last year’s scores. Maths results fell slightly from last year’s results; marks in English remained steady. Experts said the scores indicated a need for more radical changes in the country’s secondary schools. The vast majority of students have to enrol on a foundation course before starting their degree. Last year, 83 per cent of Zayed University students went through their bridge programme, which lasts up to 18 months. Requirements vary between universities. The Common Educational Proficiency Assessment (Cepa), is taken by all students applying to federal universities. It measures basic maths and literacy skills. “We’ve seen improvements over the years, but it seems to me that in the last couple of years there really hasn’t been much increase, if any, in proficiency across the board,” said Dr Annie Brown, the associate director for assessment and professional development at the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. Dr Brown called for major public school reforms. “What we need now is a radical change to curriculum and to teaching methodology. If something like that doesn’t happen then the universities are going to have this continuing problem of students not being ready to start their academic programmes.” Dr Bryan Gilroy, the assistant provost of enrolment management at Zayed University, said the poor performance across the board on the Cepa exam reflected badly on the primary and secondary school systems. “Basically, what it’s saying is that even after 12 years of English the standard is not that high,” Dr Gilroy said. Only 6.5 per cent (or 977 students out of nearly 15,000) scored 185 or above on Cepa English this year. Dr Gilroy said a score of 185 would roughly be the proficiency required to attend some American universities. “It does say something about the curriculum, the teaching. It also says something about the students and the way they approach things like maths. If they are encouraged to do rote learning, then they are not understanding the mathematics at all; what they’re understanding is what is the answer. If you change the question they don’t know the answer.” “There is quite a low level of numeracy among school leavers, as well,” Dr Brown said, describing the Cepa maths exam as a “basic numeracy test”. And yet, she said, “the average student is getting only 50 per cent correct. Just like literacy students need basic numeracy … It’s the basic mathematical skills that everyone needs in their normal lives.” She added: “I would say it’s probably the sort of skills that students in lower secondary would be expected to have in England. That’s why I think there needs to be some radical overhaul of the curriculum in the schools, and I say this because I know it applies to both maths and English, and so I assume it also applies to all subjects. Students seem to be being pushed through even though they’re failing. She noted “a disparity” between what students should have learned by a certain grade level and “what they can actually do”. “If you look at the curriculum in Grade 12 and what students can actually do you wonder how students have got through that far and are failing that badly. How can students come out after 12 years of English and they can’t write a sentence? Similarly, how can they come out after 12 years of maths and they can’t add two basic fractions?” The poor English and maths skills of graduates place a heavy burden on the university system. “A lot of time and resources [at universities] are put into preparing students for their core programmes rather than putting those resources into their core programmes,” Dr Brown said. During the 2008-2009 academic year Zayed University spent about Dh40 million (US$11m) on its so-called bridge programme, comprised of remedial classes, about 20 per cent of its academic instructional budget. Administrators say the money could be put to better use. “It is a significant problem for higher-education institutions,” Dr Gilroy said, noting that the financial burden is significant. He said the situation is not ideal for students, either. “It does convert their higher-education experience from a four-year degree programme into a five- to five-and-a-half-year programme,” he said. Nearly 15,000 students sat the Cepa examination this year, which is used for admission to the three federal universities – UAE University, Zayed University and the Higher Colleges of Technology. Just over 76 per cent of students, or 11,480 of them, passed the Cepa English examination with a score of 150 or above, qualifying for a foundation course in preparation for a degree or diploma programme. “If you get in with 150 it means that you could spend up to 18 months in a language programme,” Dr Gilroy said. The average score on Cepa English was 160 – the same as last year – but the average maths score dropped by 10 points to 147. Students can still be admitted to university if they fail Cepa maths, but passing English is obligatory. Dr Mark Drummond, the provost and chief academic officer at the Higher Colleges of Technology, said foundation courses were less of an issue at his institution, since it is not a research university. “We’re fine with it. I do think if we had our choice we would say let’s get all that education done in secondary school,” he said, adding that he believes the Abu Dhabi government has the problem under control with its reform plan. “My bet would be in five to seven years if that plan keeps moving ahead in Abu Dhabi emirate the need for foundations will be much less or completely go away. But you need that kind of plan and that kind of time and money.” Click here to view this video release... 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