Day: March 26, 2024

ABU DHABI: The Abu Dhabi School of Management (ADSM), a higher education institution affiliated with the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ADCCI), announced the launch of its Bachelor of Science in Management (BScM) programme.

The new programme, which will begin in September, is in line with the school’s vision to become a leading centre of entrepreneurship, management, and innovation in the region.

It aims to provide an exceptional and rich academic experience that will teach the knowledge and skills necessary to make decisions in accordance with emerging regulatory trends in the markets and the requirements of Industry 4.0 through methodologies that jointly focus on advanced technology and emerging digital technologies.

Furthermore, it also aims to contribute to Abu Dhabi’s Economic Vision 2030 by enabling the private sector to help create a sustainable knowledge economy for future generations.

Dr. Tayeb Kamali, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the School, said, ‘We are proud to launch the
new bachelor’s programme, which is the first of its kind in management sciences and focuses on the attributes and challenges of artificial intelligence (AI).

The programme is the culmination of our efforts to foster an academic environment that encourages innovation and entrepreneurship, amid dynamic economic transformations around the world. It also highlights our commitment to advancing the UAE’s leading international position as a business destination and a hub for cutting-edge technological advancements.’

The new programme is also in line with the modern trends of organisational management and the requirements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, through its focus on the management of sciences and digital technologies, presenting a remarkable opportunity for students to enhance their competitiveness in the job market through acquiring the essential knowledge and skills required to make effective administrative decisions in the business world, he added.

The programme, which is currently open for enrolme
nt, focusses on three key educational tracks, which are the general education programme; the management sciences programme, which analyses management theories and their applications; and the digital technologies management programme, which focusses on big data, analytics, and AI technology as strategic responses to rapid developments in the business sector.

The programme aligns with the seventh level of the National Qualifications Framework for higher education and the best international standards, and its participants will have the opportunity to develop their skills, gain a deeper understanding of relevant challenges and hone their decision-making abilities, enabling them to transform challenges into opportunities and foster long-term growth and success.

The Abu Dhabi School of Management and its academic programmes are accredited by the Commission for Academic Accreditation of the Ministry of Education and the Department of Education and Knowledge in Abu Dhabi. It has also received many international acc
reditations, classifications, and memberships, including from the UK’s Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA Global) and the US Data Science Council (DASCA), and is listed in the QS World University Rankings.

Source: Emirates News Agency

SHARJAH: Air Arabia, the Middle East and North Africa’s first and largest low-cost carrier (LCC) operator, has announced the resumption of its flights from Sharjah to Gizan in Saudi Arabia.

The direct flights will connect Sharjah International Airport with King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Airport with a frequency of three weekly flights.

Adel Al Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer, Air Arabia, said: ‘As we continue to grow, we remain committed to serving our key markets, particularly between the UAE and Saudi Arabia. With non-stop connectivity linking Sharjah and Gizan, we are underlining our promise to continuously offer our customers access to key destinations, all while ensuring exceptional value.’

Source: Emirates News Agency

DUBAI: More than 100 of the world’s leading travel technology companies will be exhibiting at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2024, which will take place at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) in the UAE from Monday 6 to Thursday 9 May.

ATM 2024’s sold-out Travel Tech space will be 56% bigger than last year with 33% more exhibitors participating this year, thanks to unprecedented demand from companies looking to showcase their innovations in front of a global audience.

Sponsored by Sabre, the ATM Future Stage – formerly known as the Travel Tech Stage – will host over a hundred expert speakers from across the global travel and tourism industry, plus a diverse selection of cutting-edge innovations designed to improve efficiency and profitability within the sector. Delegates will explore how advanced tech can be leveraged to drive improvements across a range of segments, including payment, professional development, accessibility, sustainability and more.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market,
said: ‘My colleagues and I are delighted to introduce the ATM Future Stage, which will harness the ever-increasing levels of innovation our industry is witnessing while building on the long-standing success of our Travel Tech offering.’

The global travel technology market was valued at $9.4 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach $21 billion by 2032, according to Allied Market Research. The ATM Future Stage will host a selection of presentations and sessions designed to highlight opportunities within this space.

These include; Navigating the Future: A Futurist’s Prediction, Strategic Capabilities and Implications of AI within Business, Putting the Traveller First with AI and Unlocking the Value of Travel: Harnessing Technology for Enhanced Traveler Journeys, which will be held in association with Amadeus.

This year’s show will see the return of the ATM Start-up Pitch Battle, which will be held in association with Intelak. The third edition of the competition will see a number of the region’s most promisi
ng startups take to the Future Stage to showcase a range of innovative and potentially industry-changing solutions in front of expert judges.

Several Travel Tech exhibitors also plan to get involved in other areas of ATM 2024. Tech giant Huawei, for instance, will sponsor this year’s Capitalising on China’s Predicted Tourism Surge summit on the ATM Global Stage.

‘With an exciting combination of ambitious startups and well-established brands, this year’s Travel Tech space is perfectly aligned with ATM 2024’s theme, ‘Empowering Innovation: Transforming Travel Through Entrepreneurship’,’ added Curtis.

ATM 2024 will also feature a ‘Best Use of Technology’ award at its annual exhibitor awards for the first time. Exhibitors will be evaluated on how and to what extent they have embraced and deployed technology on their stands.

In line with its theme, ‘Empowering Innovation: Transforming Travel Through Entrepreneurship’, the 31st edition of ATM will once again host policymakers, industry leaders and travel profes
sionals from across the Middle East and beyond, encouraging them to forge new relationships, exchange knowledge and identify innovations that can reshape the future of global travel and tourism. From startups to established brands, the upcoming show will highlight how innovators enhance customer experiences, drive efficiencies, and accelerate progress towards a net-zero future for the industry.

More than 40,000 travel trade professionals, including 30,000 visitors, attended the 30th edition of ATM in May 2023, setting a new show record. The exhibition attracted more than 2,100 exhibitors and representatives from over 155 countries, providing a global platform for the unveiling of ATM’s net-zero pledge.

Held in conjunction with Dubai World Trade Centre, ATM 2024’s strategic partners include the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) as Destination Partner, Emirates as Official Airline Partner, IHG Hotels and Resorts as Official Hotel Partner, and Al Rais Travel as Official DMC Partner.

Source: Emi
rates News Agency

DUBAI: Dubai International Chamber, one of the three chambers operating under the umbrella of Dubai Chambers, has revealed that 32 percent of the total number of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) attracted to Dubai during 2023 were from the Middle East and Eurasia, with Asia and Australia following close behind at 29 percent.

The growing number of SMEs setting up in Dubai from countries around the world underlines the emirate’s importance as a key global hub for trade and investments.

The figures highlight the diverse range of SMEs from various nationalities and markets that the chamber has attracted to Dubai through its network of international representative offices around the world. Latin America and Europe accounted for 26 percent of the total number of SMEs attracted during 2023, while African markets represented 13 percent of the total.

The chamber also revealed that 17 percent of these SMEs operate within the trade and logistics sector. Additionally, 13 percent operate in the IT sector, spec
ialising in areas such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, robotics, and software.

The food and agricultural sector ranked third, accounting for 10 percent of the total number of SMEs attracted. Healthcare and pharmaceuticals followed with nine percent of the total, while the public services sector came fifth, representing seven percent of the SMEs attracted. The financial services sector, which includes banking, asset and wealth management, fintech, insurance, and consulting firms, ranked sixth at six percent.

Real estate companies ranked seventh in terms of SMEs attracted, representing four percent of the total. The retail, fashion, travel, hospitality, and tourism sectors also accounted for four percent of the SMEs attracted.

Commenting on the figures, Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of Dubai Chambers, emphasised Dubai’s reputation on the global stage as a destination for high-value investments. He stated that Dubai’s competitiveness stems from the wise and forward-thinking vision of i
ts leadership, the emirate’s business-friendly environment, the ongoing development of services, favorable legislation, and the diverse range of investment opportunities available.

Lootah added, ‘Our network of international representative offices in key global markets has effectively promoted Dubai’s business community and highlighted the emirate’s value for companies seeking global expansion. We remain dedicated to contributing to the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), with a primary focus on attracting foreign direct investments in both traditional and emerging sectors.’

Dubai International Chamber successfully attracted 104 SMEs to the emirate during 2023, achieving a remarkable year-over-year (Y-o-Y) growth rate of 550 percent. This impressive increase reflects the chamber’s ongoing contribution to achieving the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), which aims to double the size of the emirate’s economy over the coming decade and consolidate Dubai’s position among the top three global c
ities.

The Dubai International Chamber operates 31 international representative offices, with 16 new offices launched in 2023. This growing network is part of the Dubai Global initiative, which seeks to establish 50 representative offices worldwide by 2030 to support efforts to attract international investments and companies to Dubai.

Source: Emirates News Agency

ABU DHABI: The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has launched the Cargo Data Reporting System (CARDS), which provides a range of technical services to government entities, national airlines, ground handling agents and express service providers.

CARDS is the first platform of its kind to provide an analytical view of air cargo movements to, from and through the UAE by analysing the performance of national airlines, ground handling agents and express service providers, and sharing results and market share with each entity. This helps stakeholders identify strengths and weaknesses and enhances their competitiveness.

Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the GCAA, said that the UAE enjoys globally competitive status as one of the most advanced countries in terms of air cargo efficiency, with a strong infrastructure of airports, cargo companies and world-class logistics services. “In addition to the UAE’s continuous investment in developing its capabiliti
es and potential in this key and important sector, the CARDS platform represents a new step towards the UAE’s global leadership in this vital sector. It provides a data repository to monitor challenges and identify obstacles that may face air cargo movements to, from and through the country, which supports the UAE’s development and economic plans, in line with the objectives of the ‘We the UAE 2031’ vision to make the UAE a global centre for the new economy and the transition to future sectors such as aviation and logistics.”

He added, “The new platform will contribute to strengthening the existing partnership between the Authority and representatives of the air cargo sector, by providing them with periodic and updated data on a monthly basis, which helps in decision-making, planning for the future and enhancing the competitive environment for the civil aviation sector in the country.”

For his part, Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, Director-General of the General Civil Aviation Authority, said, “We are proud today
to launch CARDS, which is characterised by accuracy, privacy and ease of use, and which will allow relevant government agencies to view the cargo movement in the country, which enhances the capabilities of the stakeholders to identify the areas of development for air cargo movement.”

Al Suwaidi stressed that the platform will be subject to continuous development and updating to ensure the expansion of the scope of the information included in it to include the major cities from which and to which goods are exported and imported, and the most prominent categories of goods that are shipped by air to provide a complete picture of air cargo movement and trade exchange in the country.

Source: Emirates News Agency

ABU DHABI: The United Arab Emirates, represented by the Ministry of Finance (MoF) as the issuer, in collaboration with the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) as the issuing and paying agent, has announced the results of the Islamic Treasury Sukuk (T-Sukuk) auction, which is part of the Islamic T-Sukuk issuance programme for Q1 2024 as published on the ministry’s website.

The auction witnessed a strong demand through the eight primary dealers for the 3-year and 5-year tranches of the Islamic T-Sukuk, with bids received worth AED7.83 billion and an oversubscription by 7.1 times. The success is reflected in the attractive market-driven prices, which was achieved by a spread of 4 bps over the US Treasuries with similar maturities.

The Islamic T-Sukuk issuance programme will contribute to building the UAE dirham-denominated yield curve, providing safe investment alternatives for investors, strengthening the local debt capital market, developing the investment environment, as well as supporting sustainable economic
growth.

Source: Emirates News Agency

DUBAI: Saumitra Sehgal, Head of Financial Services in the Middle East at Roland Berger, a global strategy consultancy, said that the revenue of the UAE bank branches is the highest in the region at US$18.6 million per branch for retail services.

Sehgal added, in statements to Emirates News Agency (WAM), that digital transformation has enabled Gulf banks to reduce the number of their bank branches by 328 branches over three years, as the number of bank branches in the Gulf countries decreased from 4,067 branches at the end of 2019 to 3,739 branches at the end of 2022.

He pointed out that the banks operating in the UAE were able to achieve the highest number of branches that were merged and reduced with the support of digital transformation from 2019 to the end of 2022, as the number of branches decreased by 157 branches, Saudi Arabia 82 branches, Bahrain 57 branches, Qatar 20 branches, and Kuwait 20 branches, while Omani banks increased their network by 8 branches.

Sehgal continued, “The UAE has been one of
the leading countries in reducing the number of bank branches by relying on technology and digital transformation over the past three or four years, and there is still a possibility of reducing branches by 10 to 15 percent within two years.”

He said that banks in the Gulf countries have been reducing their branches by up to 10 percent on average over the past few years due to the rising trend of digital customer interaction. The purpose of bank branches has shifted towards more complex matters like obtaining mortgages, as simple transactions have become easier to complete digitally.

He said that digital transformation in the banking sector of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is essential for both banks and customers. Customers favour digital banking, while banks view it as a way to enhance customer service and profitability by reducing operational costs.

Sehgal then looks at the number of bank branches per 100,000 people in the GCC countries. This number ranges from 7 to 12 branches. He predicted t
hat the number of branches will continue to decrease and that this decrease will vary from country to country depending on what has been achieved in previous years. For example, the United Arab Emirates has already reduced the number of bank branches by more than 23 percent.

He also pointed out that the cost of bank branches in the GCC is high, with annual costs reaching around $14.8 billion. He argued that by merging branches, reducing their number, and accelerating the adoption of digitization, GCC banks can save more than $3 billion per year in branch costs.

Sehgal discussed the possibility of further consolidating branches in the Gulf region, reducing the total number by 623 branches in the coming years. This includes an additional 80 branches in the UAE, which is one of the leading countries in digital and technological transformation in the banking sector. The UAE has already made significant progress in this area in recent years.

He talked about the size of the branch network in the Gulf Cooperation
Council countries, measured by the number of branches per 100,000 people. In this context, the share of every 100,000 people in the UAE was about 7.2 bank branches, while it was, for example, 12.8 branches in Kuwait.

The Emirati bank branch network topped the productivity or revenue in the retail sector, as the revenue per retail branch reached around $18.6 million after a 27 percent increase compared to its levels at the end of 2019.

Regarding fully digital banks that do not have physical branches, he indicated that their role is expanding with younger age groups, and thus their role may increase in the future. However, they will not be the only form of banks as traditional banks that own branches will continue to exist and grow.

Source: Emirates News Agency

ABU DHABI: Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala) announced today that it is investing in Avanse Financial Services Ltd. (Avanse), India’s new age, technologically advanced, education-focused non-banking financial company (NBFC). Mubadala led this round of funding through its affiliate Alpha Investment Company LLC with participation from Avendus PE Investment Advisors Private Limited via its fund Avendus Future Leaders Fund II. The funds will enable Avanse to strengthen its position in the rapidly evolving education financing segment, focusing on creating unique customer experiences and achieving sustained profitable growth.

This investment marks Mubadala’s first in the financial services sector in India and is part of a plan to double the company’s exposure in Asia by 2030.

Avanse is the second largest NBFC in the education finance space in India and has been on a strong growth trajectory as it plays a transformational role in the education financing sector and has fulfilled the educational dreams of India
n academic aspirants across various countries. The company has also provided growth and working capital to Indian educational institutions As of December 2023, the company’s AUM stands at around AED5.5 billion.

‘Avanse will continue to enable young generations of Indian students to fulfil their aspirations. We are thrilled to partner with Amit and the management team of Avanse alongside institutions of the calibre of Warburg Pincus, Kedaara Capital and the IFC. We look forward to further enabling the growth of the business,’ said Luca Molinari, Head of Asia and Financial Services at Mubadala.

Narendra Ostawal, Managing Director and Head of India, Warburg Pincus, said, ‘Avanse, driven by its vision to democratise education in India, has transformed into one of India’s premier education finance companies. As patient growth investors, we remain committed to supporting Amit and his team in continuing to scale Avanse – a commitment that has been central to our partnership. We are thrilled to collaborate with Mub
adala Investment Company as Avanse continues to advance its long-term objectives.’

Commenting on this development, Amit Gainda, Managing Director and CEO, Avanse Financial Services, said, ‘We are delighted to welcome our new strategic investors, who share a common vision of strengthening the education financing segment in India. Along with them, we also appreciate the constant support of our existing shareholders, Warburg Pincus, Kedaara Capital, and International Finance Corporation. They not only have recognised the profound impact of making education financing accessible and affordable but also believe in our brand ethos and our core belief that no deserving student should miss an opportunity to access quality education due to the lack of financing, irrespective of their social strata or co-borrower’s financial background. The growth capital will enable us to strengthen our brand proposition, integrate digital solutions and innovate to build more depth into our product range as we work towards delivering
greater stakeholder value.’

Source: Emirates News Agency