October 2, 2022

Mona Al Marri crowns winners of the Dubai Women’s Triathlon 2022

DUBAI, Under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council, Mona Al Marri, Chairperson of the Board of Dubai Women Establishment, today crowned the winners of the fifth Dubai Women’s Triathlon.

The 2022 Triathlon, which saw the participation of women of different nationalities and ages, was organised by the Dubai Sports Council in cooperation with the Dubai Ladies Club. The region’s first female-only competition of its kind, the Triathlon features a combination of three disciplines – swimming, running, and cycling – over 40 km. Shamsa Saleh, CEO of the Dubai Women Establishment, and Fawzia Faridoun, Head of the Women’s Sports Department at the Dubai Sports Council, also attended the award ceremony held today.

Commitment to women’s empowerment

Mona Al Marri said the event reflects the keenness of H.H. Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Women Establishment and President of the Dubai Ladies Club, and wife of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, to raise women’s participation and competitiveness in various sectors.

The UAE’s leadership places the highest priority on ensuring women are able to achieve their greatest potential in all spheres, including sports, she said. This commitment to empowering women is deeply ingrained in the country’s ethos and values. Under the leadership’s guidance, several initiatives have been launched to enhance their achievements in local, regional and international sporting competitions, she added. Al Marri urged all stakeholders to continue working to ensure the broadest participation of women in tournaments and competitions across sporting disciplines.

Saeed Hareb, Secretary-General of the Dubai Sports Council, stressed that the UAE leadership’s vision has transformed the nation into a model for women’s empowerment and gender balance. Since its inception, the leadership has ensured that women play a dynamic and meaningful role in every facet of social, economic and political life.

“The Dubai Sports Council continues to launch programmes and put in place mechanisms to ensure high women’s participation in sports. The Dubai Women’s Triathlon is one of the largest initiatives undertaken by the Council in cooperation with the Dubai Ladies Club, to inspire women of all nationalities, ages and physical levels to engage in sporting and fitness activities,” he added.

Super Sprint category

Asmaa Al-Hajj won first place in the Super Sprint category after finishing the race in a time of 59 minutes and 24 seconds, followed by Khawla Al-Muhairi with a time of 1 hour, 3 minutes and 51 seconds. Aysa Al-Shehhi came in third with a time of 1 hour 14 minutes and 56 seconds. In the Open category, Kaley Johnson won first place after finishing the race in a time of 44 minutes and 12 seconds, followed by Irish Hazel Mackie in second place with a time of 44 minutes and 31 seconds and Jade Kramer in third place with a time of 47 minutes. In the Team category, the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority Team 1 came first with a time of 42 minutes and 34 seconds, followed by the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority Team 2 with a time of 45 minutes and 22 seconds, while the Abu Dhabi Police Team came third with a time of 45 minutes and 24 seconds.

Sprint category

Fatima Al-Humairi won first place in the Sprint race, with a time of 1 hour 36 minutes and 14 seconds. In the Team category, the Abu Dhabi Police team won first place with a time of 1 hour 7 seconds and 26 seconds, followed by the Petra team in second place with a time of 1 hour 22 minutes 59 seconds. Team A&amp;M finished third with a time of 1 hour 28 minutes and 23 seconds.

In the Olympic distance race, the women’s category, Hana Al-Nabulsi won first place after finishing the race in a time of 2:46:24 hours. In the open category, Russian Maria Sochovich won first place after finishing the race in a time of 2:15:51, Zanduti came second with a time of 2:22:23 hours, and German Stephanie Trombetta came in third with a time of 2:24:40 hours.

Source: Emirates News Agency

October 2, 2022

US Gecko Robotics set to establish international HQ in UAE

Abu Dhabi, Gecko Robotics, a leading US robotics firm that has developed robots capable of inspecting oil and gas and power infrastructure, announced that it is setting up a new international headquarters in the UAE under the Ministry of Economy’s landmark NextGenFDI program.

Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, who oversees the NextGenFDI program, said Gecko’s investment supports the UAE’s mission to develop a world class, advanced technology ecosystem. “Once again, we are seeing world-leading technology make its home in the UAE. Our industrial base is seeking to integrate the tools of the Fourth Industrial revolution to improve efficiencies and boost productivity, and Gecko Robotics will be a key partner on that journey.

“The decision by the CEO of Gecko Robotics, Jake and the team, to build an international base in the UAE is testament to our business-friendly culture and the support on offer from our spectrum of stakeholders as part of the NextGenFDI initiative. We are making the UAE one of the easiest places on the planet to enter the market, find the right workforce and scale rapidly.”

Jake Loosararian, CEO and Co-Founder of Gecko Robotics, said: “We are big believers in the UAE and its transformation into a globally competitive economic and innovation hub. Here, we can take advantage of the UAE’s Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements to export to the rest of the world from here, and we can support energy businesses in the region to realize efficiencies that will help productivity and create the drive to realize Net Zero goals.

“As our business continues to expand across Europe and the Middle East, we see the UAE market as a critical hub to access both the manufacturing and engineering talent we need to continue to accelerate our growth. Our first employees are already settling in the UAE and we have ambitious plans to grow our footprint.”

As part of its investment in the country, the Pittsburgh-based company is looking to establish a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD) that will create around 300 jobs over the next few years.

Gecko’s wall-climbing robots use specially designed sensor payloads to detect otherwise invisible damage, allowing for precision repairs and predictive maintenance. A range of companies and government agencies use Gecko’s software to extend the lifespan and efficiency of critical infrastructure including power plants, oil refineries, manufacturing facilities, and other assets.

The NextGenFDI initiative was launched by the Ministry of Economy in July, 2022, to attract digitally enabled businesses from all over the world with a package of market entry fundamentals required to launch and scale from within the UAE. These include rapid and flexible incorporation processes, fast-track licensing, bulk visa issuances, banking facilitation and commercial and residential lease incentives. The program has been devised to accelerate the UAE’s economic diversification agenda and elevate its status as a knowledge- and innovation-based economy. Gecko Robotics is the latest to commit to the program, joining UK tech company Gödel and food app development company Krush – with more expected in the coming weeks.

Source: Emirates News Agency

October 2, 2022

UAE President condoles with Indonesian counterpart on stampede victims

ABU DHABI, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan sent a cable of condolences to President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, on the victims killed in a stampede at a football match in East Java province, today.

President Sheikh Mohamed wished a speedy recovery to those injured in the deplorable accident.

Source: Emirates News Agency

October 2, 2022

9th Abu Dhabi Annual International Conference on Vitamin D Deficiency and Human Health to discuss latest advances in research and clinical practice of vitamin D

ABU DHABI, The ‘’9th Abu Dhabi Annual International Conference on vitamin D Deficiency and Human Health” will be held on 7-8 October, 2022, under the theme “From Bones to Immunity and Beyond”.

Organisers say the virtual scientific gathering will allow participant to learn about the latest advances in research and clinical practice of vitamin D and its impact on human health throughout the life cycle.

The forum will bring experts from all over the world thus allowing the healthy exchanging of academic knowledge and expertise and experiences during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The program will include state-of-the-art lectures on recent updates in the early detection, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of vitamin D deficiency and its role to human health. Prominent national and international speakers and leading experts from various specialties will provide comprehensive, up-to-date, research-based answers to the most frequent questions that arise at patient’s bedside in everyday practice.

The conference will be an important meeting point to inspire and connect leaders, decision makers, doctors, scientists, technologists, public servants and academics to enhance the awareness, quality and safety practices to understand and prevent vitamin D deficiency.

The event will be an excellent opportunity to exchange of knowledge, experience and best practices, foster clinical collaborations and discuss current issues with many professionals in the field from all over world.

Source: Emirates News Agency

October 2, 2022

Noura Al Kaabi reiterates importance of cultural policy in growth of creative economy at UNESCO conference

ABU DHABI, The Ministry of Culture and Youth participated in the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development – MONDIACULT 2022, which took place from 28th-30th September 2022 in Mexico.

A delegation headed by Salem Al Qasimi, Permanent Delegate of the UAE to UNESCO, represented the UAE at the conference, while Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth, participated via video conference.

Al Kaabi delivered a Thematic Session Statement at a session on the Future of the Creative Economy on 29th September and spoke extensively about the growing importance of the creative economy in a post-pandemic world shedding light on how the UAE was leveraging the cultural and creative industries to diversify its economy.

“The UAE has recognised the growing power of the cultural and creative industries within the wider economy, as well as its vulnerability to unpredictable events,” she said.

“The CCI contribute to 3.5 percent of the UAE’s GDP and are projected to grow to 5 percent by 2031. Within this context, we moved quickly to adapt our strategy and policy work in this area accordingly, both on a federal and local level. The UAE Culture Agenda 2031 was launched in 2018, as the first nationwide strategy unifying the efforts of the national culture sector,” Al Kaabi added.

Speaking about the impact of the pandemic and how the CCI would realign to the transformations, she said that although the COVID-19 pandemic was detrimental to the CCI sector, the UAE was quick to adapt to the situation by appropriate policy intervention.

“We launched the National Creative Relief Fund to mitigate the pandemic’s financial impact by offering relief packages to creative practitioners and SMEs. Our cultural operators stepped in to provide economic catalysts, digital activations, and free access to knowledge and content to sustain the creative spirit. We also boosted the Golden Visa Scheme to sustain the livelihoods of creative practitioners in the UAE.”

Speaking about strengthening and streamlining the creative economy, Al Kaabi touched upon the Creative UAE strategy and the Framework for Culture and Arts Education presented by the UAE at the 211th session of the Executive Board of UNESCO.

“In 2021, the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development, we launched a 10-year National Strategy for the Cultural and Creative Industries, which aims to foster a robust creative ecosystem within the national economy. Globally, we were driven to present two resolutions to UNESCO’s Executive Board, one focusing on Culture and Arts Education, and the other on Consolidating Action for the Creative Economy.”

Stressing the UAE’s future-focused approach, she added, “The UAE will continue to develop future-forward policy support, and appropriate funding mechanisms to sustain the CCI sector through institutional collaboration and interdisciplinary knowledge.”

Al Kaabi wrapped up the session by saying that stakeholders should jointly resolve to design policy and partnerships based on a spirit of collaboration and openness, one that can lift the communities in the present and the future.

The three-day international conference hosted a number of side events on mobilising cultural policies to tackle global challenges for a more robust and resilient cultural sector.

Ebtesam Saif Al Zaabi, International Organisations Expert, United Arab Emirates National Commission for Education, Culture and Science (UAE NATCOM), represented the UAE in a panel discussion entitled ‘Libraries Accelerating Education-Culture Linkages: Partnering to Empower the Cultural Sector’.

She spoke in detail about the UAE’s inimitable network of libraries and how it was a key contributor in the nation’s drive towards a knowledge-based economy. She also referred to the UAE-led Framework for Culture and Arts Education and how libraries were intrinsic to it for their role in fostering life-long education.

Source: Emirates News Agency