Bloomberg Saudi Arabia plans to pour 86 billion riyals ($23 billion) into beautifying its capital, Riyadh, with projects expected to create tens of thousands of jobs and provide new leisure opportunities in the city. In addition to the kingdom’s investment, the projects will create opportunities for $15 billion in private sector financing, the government said. Preliminary design work is under ...

Dubai / Emirates Business The Middle East and North Africa’s (Mena) data centre spend will reach a record-high of nearly $5 billion in 2019, industry experts said, as organisations drive data centre modernisation as the foundation of their digital transformation. Organisations are modernising data centre infrastructure to optimise costs, increase agility, foster innovation, and operate more efficiently, argues the UAE-based ...

ABU DHABI / WAM The Ministry of Economy discussed the means of developing the economic relations between the UAE and the United States (US), as well as their overall cooperation, especially in the area of standards and metrology and their commercial application. Juma Mohammed Al Kait, Assistant Under-Secretary for the Foreign Trade Sector of the Ministry of Economy, explained that ...

Bloomberg A former premier and vocal proponent of independence for Taiwan will challenge his former boss, President Tsai Ing-wen, for the ruling party’s nomination, ensuring the island’s tense relationship with China will be a central focus of the presidential campaign. Former Premier Lai Ching-te said in a text message that he would vie for the Democratic Progressive Party’s backing in ...

Bloomberg Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi blocked senators from taking their seats after an election at the weekend marred by allegations of corruption. The decision further delays Tshisekedi’s formation of a new government, almost three months after he won a disputed election to lead the world’s biggest cobalt producer. It comes less than two weeks after he and ex-President Joseph Kabila, ...

Bloomberg As Emmanuel Macron grapples with renewed violence in Yellow Vest protests in France, a president on the other side of Europe is throwing down the gauntlet against demonstrators in a show of force that may boost his popularity. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic deployed police to break up a protest at state broadcaster RTS in Belgrade on Saturday, continuing his ...

Bloomberg Kazakhstan’s leader-for-life Nursultan Nazarbayev announced his resignation as president, signalling the start of a long-forecast transfer of power after nearly three decades as ruler of central Asia’s largest energy producer. “I’ve taken the difficult decision to terminate my powers as president” as of March 20, Nazarbayev said in a televised address on Tuesday. He announced that Senate Chairman Kassym-Jomart ...

Ajman / Emirates Business Saudi German Hospitals (SGH) Group – one of the largest private hospital groups in Mena region –announced their world class, state-of-the-art, AED300 million healthcare facility in Ajman. The tertiary-care speciality and sub-speciality facility will be the biggest hospital in Ajman, designed to cater to the growing population across all northern emirates, while offering a wide range of ...

Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business Safeen, the leading provider of integrated marine services in the Middle East and subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Ports, collected over 120 tons of floating sea debris in Abu Dhabi waters last year, recycling more than ten tons of the collected material. Capt. Adil Banihammad, Acting CEO of Safeen, said: “The establishment of the Environment and ...

Dubai / WAM The UAE was ranked among the top 10 countries worldwide in wellbeing indicators of the 2018 World Poll, which tracks the opinions of people in more than 160 countries on what matters most to them. Ohoud bint Khalfan Al Roumi, Minister of State for Happiness and Wellbeing and Director-General of the Prime Minister’s Office, affirmed that the ...