Sophia

Sophia, the first intelligent humanoid robot, to debut in Dubai

Saudi Arabia granted her citizenship in October 2017

Careem Bike

RTA and Careem launch Phase II of bike rental service in Dubai

There have been 950 pedal-assisted e-bikes added to the pool, taking the total number of these bikes available in the emirate up to 1,750

Saudi Arabia

Saudi lifts Covid-19 restrictions, scraps PCR testing requirement for incoming travellers

Social distancing measures in all open and closed places, activities, and events have also been suspended

Boardroom

The potential consequences of encouraging diversity in boardrooms

A diverse board has some major benefits including better decision-making capability, more effective utilisation of talent, increased corporate reputation and improved investor relations

Tunisia awards UAE’s AMEA Power $100m agreement to build solar power plant

Construction of the solar power plant is expected to begin by the end of this year

Saudi Arabia to get its first Spinneys store

The first store is expected to launch in Riyadh in the first quarter of 2023

UAE’s Aster and Siemens Healthineers to boost healthcare innovation

The seven-year technology and strategic partnership aims to enhance the care delivery model for patients of Aster DM Healthcare

Saudi tech firm Master Works clinches $40m investment deal

The company, which has its headquarters in Riyadh and a presence in Egypt, UAE, Jordan and India, has served more than 140 clients in Saudi Arabia

UAE reports 447 Covid-19 cases, 1,436 recoveries

The nationwide case count has risen to 881,919

gold

UAE’s DGCX trades total value of $13.68bn contracts in February 2022

Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange’s Gold Futures Contract recorded a year-on-year average daily volume growth of 734 per cent

Dubai Municipality awards major service contract to Imdaad

Imdaad will provide waste management, recycling and infrastructure cleaning services across Dubai, as part of the three-year contract

Nasdaq Dubai

Jordan’s Capital Bank lists $100m bond on Nasdaq Dubai

The bond is the first issuance of its kind for a Jordanian bank on the exchange

UAE reinstates visa-free entry for Ukrainian citizens

Ukrainians who arrived prior to March 3 can continue to remain in the UAE for a period of up to one year

Proman Adnoc

UAE to build its first methanol production facility in Abu Dhabi

ADNOC has signed an agreement with Proman to construct a natural gas to methanol facility with an annual capacity of up to 1.8 million tons per annum

Ramadan 2022

Ramadan 2022: Working hours for federal government employees in UAE announced

Apart from reduced hours, they can also opt to work remotely on Fridays

Abu Dhabi’s Tadweer to develop a new engineered landfill for hazardous waste

The landfill will employ new technologies to treat the waste generated from the project for cleaning and disinfecting the Mussafah Channel

AIX Investment Group strengthens its footprint across the region

The investment company will be present at Dubai International Boat Show 2022, to showcase their products and services to potential investors

Abu Dhabi University

Abu Dhabi University launches new e-learning centre to upskill faculty, design courses

ADU aims to offer over 20 programmes and 50 online courses for students by the 2025-2026 academic year

The growth of the fintech sector in the Middle East

Moving towards more homogenised regional frameworks can catalyse a wave of new fintechs to scale globally, opines Oliver Obitayo, CEO of IDnow Middle East 

UAE reports 502 Covid-19 cases, 1,508 recoveries

The nationwide case count has risen to 881,472

Getty Images

Abu Dhabi golden visa holders to receive range of exclusive benefits

It includes special offers across several sectors including automotive, insurance, banking and real estate

UAE’s Gulf Capital accelerates investment pace in Egypt and Africa

Gulf Capital has already invested over $300m in Egypt in sectors such as technology, infrastructure, manufacturing, petrochemicals and healthcare

Alef Group hayyan

Alef Group launches Dhs3.5bn Hayyan villa project in Sharjah

Hayyan extends over an area of 8.7 million sq ft and includes a total of 1,836 villas, spread across three different zones

No masks required outdoors at schools, universities in Dubai – KHDA

Protocols such as physical distancing as well as wearing masks indoors are still in place

Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs

UAE Central Bank approves creation of 5,000 jobs for Emiratis by 2026

The Emiratisation plan will apply to managerial positions across the country’s banking and insurance sectors

UAE announces $5m humanitarian aid for Ukraine

The contribution will be made to the United Nations’ Humanitarian Flash Appeal and the Regional Refugee Response Plan for Ukraine

NAsdaq New York

Dubai’s Shuaa Capital lists $100m SPAC on Nasdaq New York

It has priced its initial public offering of 10,000,000 units of Shuaa Partners Acquisition Corp I at $10 per unit

Here’s how UAE banks can protect real-time payments from fraud

Jeremy Wilmot, chief product officer at ACI Worldwide tells Gulf Business how the company is preparing to help UAE banks connect to the nation’s central real-time payments infrastructure

Private schools in Dubai will not increase tuition fee for 2022-23 academic year

The Education Cost Index for this year stands at -1.01 per cent

Emirates fujairah

Emirates opens booking office in Fujairah

It is the airline’s first retail sales office in the emirate