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Saudi Arabia launches national defense company

May 18, 2017

Riyadh, May 18: The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) announced Wednesday the creation of a new national military industries company.

SaudiSaudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) will manufacture products and provide services across four business units: Air Systems, which includes maintenance and repair of fixed-wing aircraft as well as manufacturing and repair of unmanned air vehicles; Land Systems, which includes manufacturing and repair of military vehicles; Weapons and Missiles, including ammunition; and Defense Electronics, which includes radars and sensors as well as communication systems and electronic warfare.

Wholly government-owned, SAMI aims to become one of the world’s top 25 defense companies by 2030. It will directly contribute around SR14 billion to the Kingdom’s GDP in 2030, invest over SR6 billion in research and development by 2030, and create over 40,000 jobs, many of which will be in the engineering and technical fields.

By partnering with universities, SAMI will provide students with apprenticeships and careers in cutting edge technologies, which were previously unavailable in the Kingdom.

In line with Vision 2030, SAMI will contribute to diversifying the Saudi economy for the 21st century by reducing dependence on oil, while protecting and strengthening national security.

“While the Kingdom is one of the world’s top five spenders on security and defense overall, only around 2 percent of our military procurement is domestic,” said Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who also serves as minister of defense.

The deputy crown prince emphasized that SAMI will be a major contributor in achieving the goals set out in Vision 2030, which states that 50 percent of Saudi Arabia’s military procurement spending will be localized.

SAMI’s four business units complement the Kingdom’s future military requirements and build on existing local capabilities. SAMI will establish companies through joint ventures with global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), as well as cooperating with local military companies. It will consider creating new business units, to ensure the company is aligned with the latest developments in the military industries sector.

The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund has a diverse portfolio made up of approximately 200 investments, of which around 20 are listed on the Tadawul, the Saudi Stock Exchange. As well as its listed holdings, PIF also has unlisted equity investments, international investments, real estate holdings, and loans, bonds and sukuks.

Since oversight of the PIF was transferred from the Ministry of Finance to the Council of Economic and Development Affairs (CEDA), the Fund has been undertaking a phased transformation program to implement a redefined strategy and mandate.

This includes expanding the management, investment and middle and back office teams, enhancing the governance structures, engaging with the diverse portfolio and implementing the investment strategy, which is closely aligned with Vision 2030. A new board has been appointed, chaired by Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

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News Network
March 18,2020

Dubai, Mar 18: Emirates, one of the world's biggest international airlines, has asked pilots to take unpaid leave to help it mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic that has shattered demand for global travel.

"To this end you are strongly encouraged to make use of this opportunity to volunteer for additional paid and unpaid leave," the airline said in an internal email to pilots, seen by Reuters.

Emirates earlier this month asked some staff to take unpaid leave, although at that time it was not available to pilots.

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Agencies
July 28,2020

Dubai, Jul 28: Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) (ADCB.AD) is letting go hundreds of employees, sources said, the latest in a round of lay-offs by regional banks as pressure mounts to cut costs amid lower oil prices and the coronavirus crisis.

The UAE’s third-biggest lender is laying off 400 employees, two sources familiar with the matter said, after it had committed to not cutting staff because of the crisis.

In a statement, a spokesman said ADCB had pursued efficiency over the last decade by managing out its lowest underachievers after regular reviews, while ensuring talent was deployed in high-growth areas, such as digital banking.

“A certain number of redundancies are therefore expected every year in the normal course of business,” the bank spokesman added.

The sources said the cuts would involve ADCB’s consumer business and several in top management were among those being let go. One source said the bank was looking to close 20 branches.

In March, ADCB had declared, “No employee will be made redundant during 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

UAE banks have been hit by government measures to rein in the spread of the virus, forcing many businesses to shut temporarily.

Last week, Dubai’s largest bank, Emirates NBD, reported a slump of 58% in profits. In June, sources told Reuters the bank started a new round of hundreds of lay-offs.

In May, ADCB reported a fall of 84% in first-quarter net profit as it took impairments of $292 million on debt exposure to troubled hospital operator NMC Health and payments group Finablr.

It was a major lender, with an exposure of about $981 million, to NMC Health, which went into administration this year after months of turmoil following questions over financial reporting.

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News Network
March 31,2020

Mar 30: the UAE Cabinet approved a series of new initiatives, foremost among which was the automatic extension of residence permits expiring from March 1.

The residence visas would be extended for a renewable period of three months without any fees to ease the economic impact of the Covid-19 crisis on residents, official news agency WAM reported.

The Cabinet has also waived the administrative fines associated with infractions on the services provided by the Federal Authority of Identity and Citizenship, starting April 1 and lasting for a renewable period of three months.

The initiatives also entail granting a temporary license to use digital solutions for remotely notarising and completing judicial transactions.

Government services expiring from March 1 will also be extended from April 1 for a renewable period of three months. The decision applies to all federal government services, including documents, permits, licenses and commercial registers.

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A national sterilisation programme is underway that will continue until Saturday April 4, concluding on the morning of Sunday, April 5.

Carried out daily from 8pm until 6am the following morning, the programme will include the disinfection of private and public facilities.

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