Tag: MIDDLE EAST

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Winners of the Voices of Future Generations awarded in Dubai

Voices of Future Generations_Winners_ENG

The best entries are published in a book in Arabic and English and shared internationally…reports Asian Lite News

The 2021 winners of the Middle East edition of the Voices of Future Generations, the inspiring global writing competition for children, were announced at an award ceremony at the Zabeel Ladies Club, Dubai.

The unique writing initiative, launched under the patronage of UNESCO in 2015 and brought to the Middle East in 2019, was created to promote sustainability awareness and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Voices of Future Generations_Winners_ENG

The regional competition is organised by the Emirates Literature Foundation on behalf of HH Sheikha Hissa bint Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Goodwill Ambassador for the initiative for the Middle East Region, who commented: “I am so glad to see how this competition has helped so many children understand the impact we have on our planet and how it has inspired them to creatively find solutions for our environment through sustainable development goals.”

The initiative’s sister organisation Roots & Shoots UAE congratulated the children, with its Goodwill Ambassador for the region, HH Sheikha Maytha bint Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum saying: “Caring for our planet is the most important task for future generations. Initiatives like ours are designed to help them begin that process and instil in the children the knowledge that they can make a difference.”  

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Children and their parents and teachers were delighted with a surprise greeting from the world’s leading primatologist, Dr Jane Goodall, the founder of Roots & Shoots, as well as World Slam Poetry Champion Harry Baker, who performed a new poem about the Sustainable Development Goals together with Emirati slam poetry favourite, Dr Afra Atiq.

The competition, for children aged 8 to 12, encourages children to write adventure stories about characters overcoming challenges and creating a more tolerant, sustainable world. The best entries are published in a book in Arabic and English and shared internationally. More than 900 entries were received in the 2021 round of the competition, a year-on-year increase of 50 per cent.

New for this year is The Gifted Writers’ Programme, a talent development programme in which the judges identify up to 50 strong writers from the submissions, who will be offered extra coaching from professional editors and the option to resubmit their stories in the coming cycle. 

Voices of Future Generations_Winners_ENG

The winners are:

Winners in the Arabic category:

1. Moza and The Ghaf Tree, Abdulla Ismail Abushabab, Crescent International School Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi

2. Safa and the Angry Sea, Seba Awadh Mohammed Almusad, Buthaina bint Noman Riyadh City, Saudi Arabia

3. What’s Behind the Village Mystery, Mezna Najeeb, Al Alfia Primary School for Girls, Dubai

Winners in the English category:

  1. The Beacon, Abrar Sirohey, DUNEHA Group (Dubai & Northern Emirates Homeschool Association), Dubai

2. Sahana and Food Sustainability, Kripa Dixit, Uptown International School, Dubai

3. Inspiration to Desperation, Inayah Fathima Faeez, Gems United Indian School, Abu Dhabi

ISOBEL ABULHOUL, CEO, AND TRUSTEE OF THE EMIRATES LITERATURE FOUNDATION: “We are so proud to be part of this initiative. Children are the future, and the planet is theirs to inherit. Stories can, and frequently do, change the world, so this is the perfect way for so many children to channel all their passion and talent into building a better tomorrow.”

The competition is open to children aged 8-12, writing for children aged 6 and above. All entries must be between 600-1,500 words long, in Arabic or English. The stories should feature one or more of the Sustainable Development Goals, and the writer’s hopes, dreams or aspirations for a sustainable future. Entries are open to all children resident in the Gulf region and in full-time education, including those home schooling. Registrations for the third year are now open and the competition will close in the first half of 2022.

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Arab News Business UAE News

Carrefour Rolls Out Multiple Circular Economy Initiatives

Carrefour Rolls Out Multiple Circular Economy Initiatives

Carrefour deploys CHEP’s pallet pooling system across all of its warehouses in the UAE..reports Asian Lite News

Carrefour – owned and operated by Majid Al Futtaim in the UAE – has rolled out several sustainable initiatives through partnerships with CHEP, the Middle East’s market benchmark in supply chain solutions, and GLS International, an expert in returnable packaging solutions. This will help reinforce Carrefour’s circular economy approach, which will drastically reduce waste and increase efficiency across Carrefour’s logistics and supply chain operations.

Carrefour Rolls Out Multiple Circular Economy Initiatives

Carrefour has deployed CHEP’s pooling system in all of its warehouses, which replaces single-use pallets with reusable blue wooden ones to make it easier and more sustainable to move items between its suppliers and stores. CHEP’s innovative solution ensures that supply chain packaging can be shared and reused whilst distributing Carrefour’s large range of products to more than 107 Stores across the UAE, including four DC warehouses. By replacing single-use pallets with wooden ones, CHEP will help Carrefour to eliminate 62 tonnes of carbon emissions and 4.4 tonnes of waste. CHEP is consistently rated as one of the most environmentally friendly businesses in the world.

Carrefour has also partnered with GLS to replace its current one-way cardboard packaging delivery with returnable plastic crates across its entire supply chain, reducing waste en route between Carrefour warehouses and stores. Carrefour advanced tracking systems have been designed for returnable packaging management. Not only will this allow for more sustainable connections with local suppliers, but it will keep items from being damaged during transit, therefore also reducing food waste.

“Our circular economy model represents the future of our operations. Collaborating with leading solution companies such as CHEP and GLS is only a starting point in our sustainability journey. We are committed to contributing to Majid Al Futtaim’s goal of becoming Net Positive by 2040, and together, with our customers, we will save the planet,” said Bernardo Perloiro, Chief Operations Officer of Carrefour UAE at Majid Al Futtaim Retail. “Carrefour encourages all of its partners to use circular economy solutions and work towards eliminating needless waste by sharing and reusing resources.”

ALSO READ: UK, UAE Launch ‘Partnership for the Future’

To offer significant supply chain benefits and enhance the flow of items from beginning to end, suppliers to consumers, Carrefour’s delivery vehicles are going green too. Its older, heavier trucks have been replaced with a modern fleet that can meet higher emission standards. The upgrade will ensure that the new trucks comply by the Euro Norms 4 & 5 standards to reduce CO by twenty-five per cent and particles by fifty per cent.

These will operate with a custom-made, extended body chassis that ensure as many items as possible can fit inside and reach their destinations as efficiently as possible. Carrefour has made nearly sixty-six per cent of its existing fleet sustainable with plans to replace the remaining vehicles as well by the end of the year. With this move, Carrefour has increased its efficiency in transporting more pallets per day and is reducing the number of trucks on the road by 20 per cent.

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Business FEATURE UAE News

Tips for successful marketing campaigns

Karam Malhotra- Partner & Global VP, SHAREit Group

Connecting with offline consumers: The trends and tactics Middle Eastern businesses should consider for successful marketing campaigns…writes Karam Malhotra

In today’s evolving technology-first world, the connected consumer effectively lives on digital platforms, surrounded by connectivity devices and active on real-time communication tools. While connected consumers may range from young digital natives to full-time working professionals and their interests and demands vary – commonalities in their behaviors are also apparent. Mobile devices have propelled them into a new dimension, one where they could be reading on their phones during transit or checking product reviews when face-to-face with store sales representatives. Without question, connectivity is a constant state of being, applicable to many millions of people. However, what’s equally true is that another segment has, to date, remained traditional: the offline consumer.

Karam Malhotra- Partner & Global VP, SHAREit Group

Regional offline consumer outlook

This applies to the Middle East, where there remain markets where connectivity is not seamlessly acquirable. Although approximately 280 million people across the region were connected to mobile internet by the end of 2020 , a further 350 million were still without mobile internet connections – emphasizing the scale of offline consumers even today, as well as the varying level of digital maturity across the region.

With these scenarios in mind, two questions have arisen from a brand standpoint: Firstly, are they looking beyond connected consumers? Secondly, how can they connect with potential offline consumers? While 70 percent of Middle Eastern organizations will have accelerated digital technologies adoption to transform their business processes and outreach capabilities by 2022 , many will still be challenged to successfully reach those who do not fall into the connected consumer category. Although surprising to some, certain communities will continue residing in areas where reliable and uninterrupted connectivity issues persist, with content consumed in native languages.

Fortunately, mobile represents an opportunistic gateway for brands to engage with this target audience, especially considering the challenges COVID-19 has posed. As of January 2021, the Middle East had witnessed a sizeable increase in mobile device activations with 23 percent year-over-year growth  and e-commerce sales are expected to reach USD 48.6 billion by 2022 – a USD 21.7 billion increase from 2018 . The mobile phone is a constant companion for the Middle Eastern consumer wherever they are – at home, work, or social gatherings – and many brand marketers are proactively considering new ways to circulate mobile content in communities that lack internet access via offline marketing.

In simple terms, offline marketing is reaching out to audiences without connectivity access by leveraging the power of mobile. Various content sharing and discovery platforms enable users to share files and content even when offline, while in-app advertising can also drive huge volumes of downloads – yielding successful offline marketing results.

Key marketing considerations for businesses

As businesses look ahead and chart a course for interacting with offline audiences, they should be aware of the latest trends and consider the marketing technologies that will be most beneficial to them. Firstly, it is apparent that the pandemic has changed the content consumption playbook for brands. Traditional cable or satellite service cancellations have led to a decrease in TV viewership, with consumers no longer watching TV ads or visiting stores to purchase products. Instead, an omnichannel mobile-oriented shopping experience has taken effect. The Middle East has witnessed exponential growth in over-the-top (OTT) videos and related services in recent times, and this momentum will continue through 2024  as OTT platform subscriptions continue rising.

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Consumers, although advertently, also have declining attention spans, which businesses should view as an opportunity rather than a challenge. Short format videos lead to better engagement with consumers, and these should be pursued as a form of engagement with the offline consumer. Furthermore, while there are popular marketing technology tools that businesses use to efficiently drive campaigns, such as Google Analytics and Salesforce, it is worth highlighting a different approach for increasing user numbers from an application standpoint. Partnering with peer-to-peer (P2P) apps that target offline audiences, have an established user base, and boast notable expertise in app marketing can help drive quality downloads for one’s business and solidify successful engagement with offline audiences.

For Middle Eastern businesses, the coming period represents an opportunity to reach out to offline consumers and acquire new customers through the power of mobile. Irrespective of limited internet access, mobile activation, payment, and subscription rates will continue increasing in the years ahead, broadening potential and possibilities. By pursuing OTT services, marketing technologies, and platform partnerships, businesses can interact with offline consumers like never before and build mutually beneficial relationships for the long term.

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-Top News Arab News India News

‘Nearly half of Middle East returnees bear brunt of job losses’

45.5 per cent lost their jobs while 28.4 per cent of the returnees came back to India fearing the lethal virus, revealed the survey conducted by IIMD …reports Asian Lite News

 A survey conducted among those from Kerala and Tamil Nadu, who were working in the Middle East, and returned to the country through the repatriation mission when Covid-19 pandemic stuck the world last year, mainly faced job losses while some of them opted to come back to India due to the fear of the virus.

According to the survey, conducted by Thiruvananthapuram-based International Institute of Migration and Development (IIMD), 45.5 per cent lost their jobs while 28.4 per cent of the returnees came back to India fearing the lethal virus.

The survey was headed by leading migration expert S. Irudayarajan who titled his report as ‘Empty handed and Demoralized: New evidences of Wage Theft among Indian migrants during Covid-19’.

Irudayarajan told IANS that the lack of availability of reliable data prevented a full-fledged sample survey across Indian states.

“The study relied on the personal details of the returnees provided by both the Kerala and Tamil Nadu governments, and stratified random sampling was conducted on this dataset. The survey was conducted among 2,252 migrant workers who had returned during May 2020 and December 2020.

“Among the respondents, 49.1 per cent had returned from UAE and Saudi Arabia, 32.2 per cent were those employed in the industrial sector, while workers from the construction and hospitality sectors constitute 15.1 per cent and 12.3 per cent. While those from the government sector accounted for a mere 0.79 per cent,” said Irudayarajan.

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The study found out that among the workers who had lost their jobs, some were terminated and repatriated forcefully, some were given false promises about the payment of wages and dues, and only a handful of the workers received all benefits and dues before repatriation.

“The issue of ‘wage theft’ became a widespread issue across all major migration corridors. Wage theft was poorly addressed across various migration corridors due to the lack of access to justice mechanisms and labour protection systems at the country of origin and destination. In the India-Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) migration corridor, neither India nor the GCC countries are signatories to the ILO Minimum Wage Fixing Convention 1970,” added Irudayarajan.

Wage theft consists of the total or partial non-payment of a worker’s remuneration, earned through the provision of labour services, as stipulated in a written or non-written employment contract. It also includes the payment of salaries below the minimum wage, non-payment of overtime, on-payment of contractually owed benefits, the non-negotiated reduction of salaries as well as the retention of dues upon one’s contract termination.

The data indicates that 60 per cent of the repatriated workers to Kerala had lost their jobs. Among the 44.5 per cent of the people who lost the job and returned to India since May 2020, 30.7 per cent of the workers returned from Saudi Arabia.

Even though the UAE has the most prominent Indian diaspora population, more workers from Saudi Arabia lost their jobs compared to UAE — 22.3 per cent, Qatar contributes 7.1 per cent of the total workers who lost job.

Among the workers, 15 per cent of the domestic sector, including drivers, faced job loss.

He also pointed out that as the predictions indicate service sector is responsible for around 60 per cent of the job loss during the pandemic, followed by the industrial sector.

Among the people who lost jobs, most of the workers 30.18 per cent were asked to resign. Notably, 18.7 per cent of the workers were advised to travel back home without paying their salaries, and a few workers — 2.6 per cent were threatened with termination.

During the survey, most respondents were reluctant to criticize the employers and supported them by citing the financial crisis.

His study also found out that a there is a general feeling among the public and policymakers that the freshers struggled to keep their jobs at the destination country.

ALSO READ: Indian migrant workers seek justice over wage theft

ALSO READ: WAGE THEFT IN THE GULF: Kerala Expats Lost Rs 1,180 Crores

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-Top News Arab News USA

Blinken off to Middle East for peace talks

Starting from Monday to Thursday, Blinken will travel to Jerusalem, Ramallah, Cairo and Amman to meet leaders of Israel, Palestine, Egypt, and Jordan…reports Asian Lite News

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has embarked on a trip to the Middle East to consolidate the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas which was reached after an 11-day bloodshed in an around the Gaza Strip, the State Department said.

Starting from Monday to Thursday, Blinken will travel to Jerusalem, Ramallah, Cairo and Amman to meet leaders of Israel, Palestine, Egypt, and Jordan, Xinhua news agency quoted the Department as saying.

Blinken and regional leaders will discuss essential follow-up efforts to consolidate the ceasefire and reduce risks of further conflict over the coming months, it added.


“Following up on our quiet, intensive diplomacy to bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, I have asked my Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, to travel to the Middle East this week,” President Joe Biden was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the White House on Monday.

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“During his trip, Secretary Blinken will meet with Israeli leaders about our ironclad commitment to Israel’s security. He will continue our administration’s efforts to rebuild ties to, and support for, the Palestinian people and leaders, after years of neglect.

Israeli soldiers operate an artillery battery from a position at the Israeli-Gaza border near Sderot, amid the escalating flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence. (Photo Ilia Yefi

“And he will engage other key partners in the region, including on the coordinated international effort to ensure immediate assistance reaches Gaza in a way that benefits the people there and not Hamas, and on reducing the risk of further conflict in the coming months,” the President added.

An Egyptian-brokered ceasefire agreement came into effect on May 21 at 2 a.m. between Israel and Hamas.

The 11-day clashes, the worst since 2014, have left at least 240 Palestinians dead and 1,910 others wounded.

On the Israeli side, there were 12 fatalities and 300 injuries.

ALSO READ: Talks with Blinken very frank: Lavrov