UAE can be India's valuable partner to achieve USD 5 trillion economy: Modi

Agencies
August 24, 2019

Abu Dhabi, Aug 24: India finds a partner in the UAE to achieve its ambitious dream of achieving a USD five trillion economy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the Emirates News Agency, WAM, in an exclusive interview.

"We consider the UAE as a valuable partner in realising the objective to reach USD 5 trillion economy through mutually beneficial partnership," said Modi, who is currently on a two-day state visit to the UAE.

"India has embarked on the ambitious, yet achievable, path to be a USD five trillion economy by 2024-25. We are targeting about USD 1.7 trillion dollar worth of investment in the coming five years. To achieve this vision, the government is working to promote inflows from domestic as well as foreign sources," the Prime Minister explained.

He said that the UAE-India relations are "at their best ever", adding that the UAE investments in key sectors in India are growing.

"There has been an increasing interest in investments in India in sectors ranging from renewable energy, food, ports, airports, defence manufacturing and other sectors," Modi said.

"UAE investments in [sectors such as] infrastructure and housing are being enhanced. The UAE is our third-largest trading partner with about US$60 billion bilateral trade in 2018-19. Many of our companies are investing here in the UAE. Both countries are working closely and vigorously to implement the commitment of USD 75 billion investment by the UAE in India," Prime Minister Modi said.

"I feel immensely proud in conveying that India-UAE relations are at their best ever," added the Prime Minister.

He highlighted the importance of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement signed during the visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to India in January 2017 as the Chief Guest of Indian Republic Day.

"Since then we have made enormous progress in implementing agreements signed in key areas including defence, security, investment in infrastructure, energy and more. In other words, our relations are truly multi-dimensional," Modi pointed out.

"I sincerely compliment the leadership and direction that His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed has personally provided in taking this relationship to new heights," he said.

The Prime Minister believes that his third visit to the UAE, in the last four years, reflects the desire and will of the two countries to sustain the momentum achieved in the bilateral relationship.

"In this visit, I look forward to further strengthening our all-round cooperation. I also look forward to holding discussions with my brother His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed. I greatly admire his vision. I always find the exchange of views with him stimulating and energising," he explained.

"We have a number of important matters to discuss regarding bilateral relations as well as the regional and global situation. I am confident that my visit will serve to further strengthen our robust and vibrant relations," Modi said.

"I am very upbeat about the trajectory of our relations and for opening up new areas of cooperation. I think there exists huge potential to make this cooperation a win-win for both countries," he added.

About The Order of Zayed, the highest civilian award of the UAE, which he is receiving on Saturday morning, the Prime Minister said, "It is an honour of special significance for me and my fellow 1.3 billion Indians. It commemorates the memory of a great and visionary world leader, the Father of this beautiful nation, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan."

"It is an even greater honour to be conferred this Order in the birth centenary year of Sheikh Zayed. His ideas, vision and wisdom are very much relevant in contemporary times. This award for me also symbolises the brotherly ties between our two countries and their peoples," Modi stressed.

About Indian community in the UAE, he said, "We are immensely proud that the rich contribution of our community in building a modern, diverse and vibrant UAE are acknowledged and appreciated by the leadership of the UAE.

"Apart from the Indians whose remittances sustain their families back home in India, we are also witnessing a steady increase in investments into India by some of the top Indian business leaders in the UAE.

"I extend my deepest appreciation to the leadership of the UAE for looking after the well-being of the Indian diaspora here like a true guardian. I would also like to thank the leadership of the UAE on the steps taken recently to provide long-term visas and other benefits to expatriates."

Talking about the global economic situation, the Prime Minister said, "Global economy is facing some headwinds. Experiences of the last five years, however, give me the confidence that the Indian economy and people of India have everything in them to not only face but also counter any headwinds."

India's fundamentals are very strong, driven by "numerous" strengths, he said.

The last five years have seen the highest average growth and lowest average inflation in the last three decades, Modi went on to say, adding that India has been improving its performance in "almost all global rankings," such as ease of doing business or innovation.

He said India had significantly increased its contribution to global growth in the last five years, making India an important engine of the global economy.

"I am confident that the collective endeavour of 1.3 billion Indians comprising millions of farmers, hundreds of thousands of industrialists and young entrepreneurs and start-ups and women, will ensure this." He said.

"India's skilled human resources, rapid infrastructure growth and the world's biggest market are reasons for our optimism. At the same time, we are focused on further improving our competitiveness through long-term reforms."

These encompass steps to move even higher in ease of doing business, tax reforms with lowering of tax rates and simplifying procedures, labour sector reforms and Foreign Direct Investment-related reforms to make an investment in India more lucrative, he explained.

During the past few years, he said, India has become "the fastest-growing major economy in the world," adding that all the macro-economic parameters such as current account deficit, fiscal deficit and inflation were brought down to acceptable levels.

The vision for the next five years is to have an investment-led growth, Modi concluded.

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coastaldigest.com news network
June 16,2020

Dubai, Jun 16: In a humanitarian gesture, a UAE-based Pakistani businessman has come forward to offer free interim accommodation options to covid lockdown hit expatriates. 

The men benefitted from Ali Rao's housing initiative include Indians, Pakistanis and Africans. 

Inspired by the ongoing efforts taken by the UAE leadership to take care of all UAE residents, Ali Rao, CEO of Rao Holdings LLC in Dubai is offering free shared accommodation to unemployed male bachelors and workers, especially expatriates who do not have a place to stay.

Ali Rao currently has a capacity of 100 accommodation options that he wishes to offer to those who cannot afford house rent. 

"We have already placed 25 such men in these housing options spread across Al Quoz, Jebel Ali and Muhaisnah areas of Dubai," Ali Rao told local media. He works in collaboration with major charities in Dubai, who refer the cases to Rao.

"One of our companies - the property management division - deals with industrial housing accommodation. We decided to put this space to good use when I came across media articles that highlighted the plight of these homeless men," he said. 

Rao has already sheltered 25 homeless workers in the Al Quoz area. "We have received applications for 35 more, however, many of these men are due to return to their home countries, so we are awaiting confirmation from the charities," he explained. He has provided them with free Wi-Fi, bedding, blankets, bedsheets, and pillows.

"In one unit, we provide them with food and the other unit, social workers and the associated charities deliver food," he added. The housing is exclusively for men and not for women and families. "Many are seeking jobs, so they needed Wi-Fi. I went to the camps today and set up a Wi-Fi connection. Someone wanted to eat eggs, so we got him some eggs and rice. These are simple things most of us take for granted, but to many people this is vital," he added.

Since most of the residents are looking to return to their home countries, Rao is also in the process of providing them with air tickets.

"If the need arises, we will add more units," he explained. Rao said, "The ongoing pandemic has hit everyone hard, especially those with no security to fall back on. The economic and income disparities have only increased in this time, with those dependent on daily wages being rendered homeless in massive numbers across the globe."

He added, "I felt heartbroken and if I would stand by and watch, I would feel very small as a human being, I won't be able to stand in front of the creator I thought to myself. These are some very difficult times for all of us."

A beneficiary of the programme said, "I am very happy with this initiative as living outside in the summer is very difficult. It's very hot. I want to thank God and this company for providing me with a roof over my head."

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Agencies
January 4,2020

Dubai, Jan 4: Three UAE airlines have made it to lists of the safest carriers in 2020, reinforcing the value these companies provide passengers in the increasingly competitive aviation scene.

Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways and Dubai's Emirates are in the list of the top 20 safest airlines, while Sharjah-based Air Arabia is in the list of the top 10 low-cost carriers, safety and product rating website AirlineRatings.com reported on Thursday.

It named Qantas as the safest airline for 2020 out of the 405 carriers it monitors.

The top 20, in order, are Qantas, Air New Zealand, EVA Air, Etihad Airways, Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Alaska Airlines, Qatar Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Virgin Australia, Hawaiian Airlines, Virgin Atlantic Airlines, TAP Portugal, SAS, Royal Jordanian, Swiss, Finnair, Lufthansa, Aer Lingus and KLM.

"These airlines are clear standouts in the airline industry and are at the forefront of safety," said AirlineRatings.com editor-in-chief Geoffrey Thomas.

"For instance, Australia's Qantas has been recognised by the British Advertising Standards Association in a test case in 2008 as the world's most experienced airline."

"Qantas has been the lead airline in virtually every major operational safety advancement over the past 60 years and has not had a fatality in the pure-jet era," said Thomas.

AirlineRatings.com editors also identified their top 10 safest low-cost airlines; they are, in alphabetical order, Air Arabia, Flybe, Frontier, HK Express, IndiGo, Jetblue, Volaris, Vueling, Westjet and Wizz.

Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at StrategicAero Research in London, says that it isn't a surprise that UAE carriers are on those lists.

"UAE airlines almost always feature in the top rankings for safety because they value the equipment that they fly their passengers on each and every day," he told Khaleej Times on Thursday.

"All airlines do; but for the UAE, where airlines have expanded rapidly in the last couple of decades, it's an amazing feat that they rank so highly while inducting so many new aeroplanes."

There's little benefit to adding luxurious cabins if maintenance, security and safety protocols as well as routine engineering schedules are not adhered to, he stressed.

"And with the UAE itself sporting MRO activities as well as through companies like Strata, which supply components to Airbus and Boeing directly, airlines here have harnessed that tech-change to ensure that their fleets have the highest redundancy and safety checks at every possible chance," Ahmad added. "That translates into passenger confidence - and we can see the brand and loyalty strength across Emirates, flydubai, Air Arabia and Etihad; it's no surprise that each year, they all fly more and more passengers across their network."

In making its selections, AirlineRatings.com editors and its industry advisors take into account numerous critical factors that include: Audits from aviation's governing bodies and lead associations, government audits, airline's crash and serious incident record, fleet age, financial position and pilot training and culture.

"All airlines have incidents every day and many are aircraft or engine manufacture issues instead of airline operational problems. And it is the way the flight crew handles incidents that determines a good airline from an unsafe one. So just lumping all incidents together is very misleading," said Thomas.

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coastaldigest.com news network
May 12,2020

Riyadh, May 12: Saudi Arabia will impose a full-day lockdown and curfew across the Kingdom during the upcoming Eid holidays from May 23 until May 27, according to the Kingdom’s Interior Ministry.

Details are awaited

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