Author: OBG Admin

David Gledhill-CEO-Port of Salalah

Ecotourism potential: Natural assets provide a wealth of new opportunities

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

  Environmentally protected areas – including sandy deserts, oases, mountains, beaches and salt plains – make up 5000 sq km of the UAE’s territory, and as the largest emirate, Abu Dhabi benefits greatly from its share of these, as does its growing ecotourism segment. Indeed, most of the emirate’s protected areas are open to visitors, with ecotours operated by groups such as Emirates Environmental Group, the Emirates Bird Records Committee and the Emirates Natural History Group, as well as by private tour operators and hotels. This serves as a solid foundation for the national plan to establish the UAE as an ecotourism centre. The project,

Daouda Coulibaly-Managing Director-Société Ivoirienne de Banque

Industry mainstay: New hotels are being developed to meet demand

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  While Abu Dhabi has long been a destination for business and government travellers, recent expansion of the emirate’s culture and entertainment portfolio has meant the emirate’s hotel owners and developers have also had to widen their offering. This has dovetailed with the expansion of Abu Dhabi as an international transport hub, along with promotional campaigns aimed at giving the emirate a distinct profile within the UAE. The result has been a surge in demand – and accompanying supply – in terms of new hotels. New leisure establishments, from the economical to high end, have opened for business in recent years, allowing Abu Dhabi to

Pham Hong Hai-CEO-HSBC Vietnam

State of the art: Abu Dhabi is leveraging its wide portfolio of arts and culture to attract visitors year-round

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  With a range of museums and heritage sites at its disposal, Abu Dhabi has a tourism offering with a strong cultural element. This underpins the emirate’s appeal as a destination and provides cultural attractions for the UAE’s domestic population. The sector is set for continued growth, as the emirate launched a fiveyear Culture Sector Strategy in November 2019, put together by a variety of stakeholders and the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi). The strategy – which views tourism

Sheikh Ahmad Duaij Jaber Al Sabah-Chairman-Commercial Bank of Kuwait

Spring of life: Innovative water sources reduce the strain on supply

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  Abu Dhabi is redoubling efforts to conserve dwindling groundwater reserves and boost water conservation. It is especially important as the emirate is mostly hot and arid, and natural freshwater is limited. Around 65% of the emirate’s water supply comes from groundwater, according to the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD). Conserving this resource is a major challenge, with the UAE ranking 63rd out of 67 countries – ahead of Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia – in terms of sustainable water withdrawal in the 2018 Food Sustainability Index published by the Economist Intelligence Unit and the Barilla Centre for Food and Nutrition. Agriculture is

George Richani-CEO-Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait

Intelligence by design: A new university consolidates the emirate’s position at the forefront of artificial intelligence innovation

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

  With the world’s first graduate-level, research-based artificial intelligence (AI) university slated to open in the emirate in 2020, Abu Dhabi is setting the standard in global AI research. The Mohamed bin Zayed University of AI (MBZUAI) aims to be a centre of excellence for collaborative research, bringing academics, businesses and policymakers together to develop practical and innovative AI solutions for sustainable development across all sectors. MBZUAI forms part of broader efforts to establish the UAE as a world leader in AI applications. Strategic Direction

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

Game-changer: A new trade deal lays the groundwork for acceleration of integration and intra-continental trade in Africa

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  Although trade flows among African states remain below their potential, an ambitious project is under way to accelerate economic integration and significantly expand intra-continental trade. Spearheaded by the African Union (AU), the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement was signed in March 2018 and aims to reduce both tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade. As of December 2019 the AfCFTA had the backing of 54 out of the 55 member states of the AU. With the legal framework now signed and ratified, trading

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

Confidence building: A new investment law and efforts to streamline decision-making supports rising foreign investment

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Egypt is working to establish itself as a leading destination for foreign direct investment (FDI). These efforts were spearheaded by the promulgation of a new investment law in 2017, which sought to significantly improve the legal framework for investors. While the impact of the legislation appeared to be muted, FDI inflows rebounded in both 2018 and 2019. While the government is currently focused on measures to offset the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, efforts are also under way to streamline decision-making processes and provide greater

Pham Hong Hai-CEO-HSBC Vietnam

Counting costs: The Covid-19 pandemic is set to reduce remittance flows, but new technologies and increased competition could ease the impact

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

The onset of a Covid-19-induced global recession has affected both labour markets and financial flows around the world. At the confluence of these two are remittances, which have increasingly been among the top contributors to GDP in many emerging markets over recent decades. In April 2020 the World Bank predicted that remittances to low- and middle-income countries would see the sharpest decline in recent history in 2020, falling by 19.7% to around $445bn, compared to $554bn in 2019. This is expected to disproportionately affect emerging

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

Long-term vision: The country’s development strategy provides a guide to its post- Covid-19 economic recovery

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

The Egypt Vision 2030 strategy is more of a statement of broad economic intent than a precise roadmap. However, against the backdrop of the global Covid-19 pandemic and with government policy focused on short-term mitigation efforts, the document provides as a useful reminder of the nation’s long-term economic ambitions. Launched in 2016, the strategy aims to create a “competitive, balanced and diversified economy”, that supports “innovation and knowledge, social justice, economic development, and the environment”. A number of concrete macroeconomic goals are outlined in the

Éric N’guessan-Managing Partner-EY Côte d’Ivoire

Modern outlook: Reforms look to update traditional teaching methods to better prepare students for future jobs

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Human capital development is at the forefront of the second-term agenda of President Joko Widodo, better known as President Jokowi, as he attempts to build a future-ready workforce prepared to adapt to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), which is characterised by the application of new digital and automated technologies in production processes and service delivery. In 2018 the government unveiled its Making Indonesia 4.0 strategy to harness new 4IR technologies to improve manufacturing productivity and spur high-value job creation. Headline targets of the strategy include