Saturday, March 17, 2012

DM organizes lecture on Arabic language



Arabic Language Team with Dubai Municipality has recently organized a lecture on Arabic language
titled “Arabic language: beauty and richness” in connection with Arabic language day and it was
delivered by Dr. Aziz Bin Farhan Al Anzi, who serves as the Director of the Saudi Propagation and
Guidance Centre, Dubai.

In his lecture, he stressed the high standards of Arabic and the importance it posses in view of the
historical and traditional aspects as well as the present day to day life. He highlighted the role of
Islamic Shareea scholars, both old and contemporary, in making this language rich and taking it new
heights and breadth.

“We have to instil the love of language in the minds of youngsters at the stage of childhood itself.
We have to recapture the beauty and aesthetics our language in our daily life discourses” urged Dr.
Aziz Bin Farhan Al Anzi.

He also drew the attention of gathering to the religious aspects of language saying it is the
language of Holy Book Quran and the great Prophet of Islam used to engage with his audience
through this very language.

After the lecture, Abdulla Abdul Rahman, Director, Knowledge Department , presented him the
commemorative gifts from the Arabic language Team.S

Hussain Fardaan ,Head of the Studies and Knowledge Resourses Section and Huda Azeez, head of
the Knowledge exchange Section also attended the program.

IFC Concludes Fifth International Private Education Conference



Dubai-UAE: 15 March, 2012 – International Financial Corporation (IFC), a member of the World

Bank Group, concluded its fifth international private education conference titled “Making Global
Connections”.

The event which ran from 6-8 March brought together leading educators, policymakers, and service
providers to help private educational institutions in developing countries expand access to services,
improve standards of quality and efficiency, and facilitate the international exchange of best practices.

Dimitris Tsitsiragos, Vice-President, Eastern and Southern Europe, Central Asia, Middle East and
North Africa, IFC, said: “High quality and market relevant education is particularly important to the
MENA region. The Arab world is currently facing youth unemployment rates averaging around 25
per cent, the highest of all regions. A comprehensive approach between the governments, private
companies, providers of education, civil society, multilateral institutions, and young people is needed.
IFC stands ready to provide the necessary support to both the providers of education as well as
private firms in the region and elsewhere. ”

Attendees to the conference comprised of IFC clients who are leaders of private education institutions,
policymakers with local and national governments, and service providers. Key topics included the
global skills agenda, managing quality through growth, understanding markets, the need for standards,
the role of equity finance, and challenges to education in the 21st century.

On the third and concluding day of the event, a trip to Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) was
organized and ‘Global Higher Education Hubs for Tomorrow’ was the key topic discussed.

Ayoub Kazim, Managing Director of DIAC said: “Dubai International Academic City’s support to the
International Private Education Conference, hosted by International Finance Corporation for the first
time in the UAE, comes on the back of our commitment to invest in strengthening our human capital
through enriching the region’s higher education sector. The conference provided a perfect platform for
decision makers, service providers and academics to share best practices and exchange information.”

Investment in private education is a strategic priority for IFC. IFC’s education portfolio stands at more
than US$400 million, encompassing 69 projects in 33 countries—including several of the poorest
countries. The total value of these projects exceeds US$1.5 billion. IFC’s private education projects
have helped benefit 1.5 million students while providing employment for 16,000 people. Using its deep
experience in private education - unique among multilateral institutions - IFC has established itself as
a center for networking and information among investors worldwide.

Emirates to Launch New Service to Washington, DC


Non-stop daily flights starting September 12th DUBAI - March 15th, 2012 - America’s capital city will soon enjoy enhanced international connections through a non-stop link to Emirates’ global network, after the airline announced that it would start flights to Washington Dulles International Airport from September 12th, 2012.

Emirates will operate a Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft on its DC route, providing eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie-flat beds in Business Class and 304 seats in Economy Class.

“As Emirates’ seventh U.S. gateway and our third new American route to launch in 2012, Washington, DC is a significant next step as we continue to expand our services across the country,” said His Highness Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline & Group. “This new route will provide further impetus to the vibrant trade relationship between the United Arab Emirates and the United States, boosting exports and imports and increasing opportunities for business, industry and tourism.”

Trade between the United States and the United Arab Emirates reached a record-high of $18.34 billion in 2011 - an increase of over 40 per cent from 2010.  The U.A.E. was the 19th largest export destination for American goods in the world in 2011, with the total value of exports reaching a record high of almost $16 billion. The most exported items to the U.A.E. were transport equipment, computer and electronic products, non-electrical machinery, chemicals and fabricated metal products.  The greater Washington, DC area is highly diverse, with over 15 per cent of its population born outside the U.S. The region is home to more than 1,000 international institutions and over 1,000 foreign-owned companies from 50 countries.  Washington, DC is also a must-see destination for visitors to the United States. From learning about flight at the National Air and Space Museum to feeding tarantulas at the National History Museum’s Insect Zoo, America’s capital is packed with fascinating attractions, not to mention iconic landmarks such as The White House, The US Capitol and The Washington Monument.  Emirates’ network now encompasses 122 cities globally, with 22 destinations in Africa, 17 in the Middle East and 18 in the Far East and Australasia. The airline also operates over 200 flights each week to the Indian Subcontinent and Pakistan. Emirates' flights to Dubai provide conveniently timed connections to an extensive range of onward destinations,with Bangkok, Delhi, Manila, Johannesburg, Dar Es Salaam, Nairobi, Mumbai and Bangalore all connecting in under four hours.   Customers travelling to and from the United States can also benefit from Emirates’ partnerships with Jet Blue, American Airlines, Virgin America and Alaska Airlines. Passengers connecting on to Emirates’ services from these airlines enjoy a range of advantages, including one-stop check in and checked through baggage.  Winner of over 500 international awards, Emirates’ unique service offering includes complimentary chauffeur-driven airport transfers for premium customers, privacy suites in First Class, and an inflight entertainment system featuring over 1,200 channels of new release Hollywood movies, TV, music and games.   Starting September 12th, 2012, EK 231 will leave Dubai daily at 2:20 am and arrive at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) at 08:50am. EK 232 will depart Dulles at 10:55 am arriving in Dubai at 8:00 am the following day. With a fleet of 170 aircraft, Emirates now flies to 122 destinations, having recently launched services to Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Dublin, Seattle, Dallas/Fort Worth, Lusaka and Harare. Flights to Ho Chi Minh City start on June 4th and Barcelona and Lisbon will join the Emirates’ network on July 3rd and July 9th respectively.

UAE market for skincare products expected to be worth AED 540.3 million in 2015



International and regional players to showcase solutions at
Beautyworld Middle East

The market for skincare products in the United Arab Emirates will continue to post steady
growth according to research conducted by Euromonitor International, official Knowledge
Partner for Beautyworld Middle East. The findings indicate that the skincare market is expected
to grow at a CAGR or 5% to be worth AED 540.3 million in 2015.

This growth is thanks largely to sustained progress on the economic front, a growing population
and ever larger numbers of women paying more attention to taking care of themselves.

According to Euromonitor International, the UAE market for skincare is characterised by an
expanding retail landscape. Coupled with considerable product innovation in response to a
discerning customer base that is highly aware of, and in step with, the latest developments
internationally, the outlook for the near future continues to be positive.

Consequently, international beauty majors are increasingly targeting the growth markets in
the Middle East, Africa and Asia. This is expected to spur interest from across the world in
Beautyworld Middle East 2012, the Middle East’s foremost trade fair and conference for beauty
and wellbeing that will run from May 29th to 31st in Dubai.

“A lot of emphasis is put on taking care of the skin and so skincare has become an important
aspect of most people’s ongoing routines,” said Ahmed Pauwels, Chief Executive Officer of
organiser Epoc Messe Frankfurt. “We are seeing in this region that international manufacturers
are increasingly targeting customers with new product lines which serve the requirements of
this market. Many of these innovative new products will be present at Beautyworld Middle East
which will also showcase the increasing number of local and regional players operating in this
lucrative category,” he added.

Facial care products, especially anti-ageing and skin-whitening creams and lotions, are the
fastest growing categories in the UAE skin care segment. Facial care products are estimated
to move off the shelves at a slightly faster pace than the market growing at 6% CAGR over the
forecast period to reach an estimated AED 315 million by 2015.

Among those showcasing skincare products and solutions is Bioline from Italy, with their
signature line of face, body and sun care products. Mr. Tommaso Corradine from Bioline was
optimistic about market prospects. “The Middle East customer is appreciative of high quality

products and our line of products is ideal to fill this need.”

Medica provides the latest dermatological and aesthetic solutions through its state of the art
products and technologies. Medica services include A to Z concepts, slimming solutions,
trainings and seminars on products and equipment and is looking to expand its presence in the
GCC. “Beautyworld Middle East brings together just the right mix of visitors together and we
expect good results from our participation,” said Sophie-Courtin-Bernardo, Sales & Marketing
Manager, Medica.

Apart from a spectrum of skin care products, Beautyworld Middle East – the premier trade
fair for beauty products, hair, fragrances and wellbeing serving the Middle East, Central Asia
and North Africa – will feature a comprehensive line-up of international brands, innovations,
developments and trends in the industry. The showcase event for the regional beauty industry is
expected to attract buyers, retailers, distributors and beauty industry professionals from around
the wider region.

Huawei Prepares to Welcome Strategic Partners at Regional Summit Channel partner programme key to ICT

leader’s momentum in Middle East region inking deals with Value Added Partners and Distributors Dubai, March 17 2012 – Huawei Enterprise, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, is poised to host its first regional Partner Summit in Dubai on 19th March 2012, welcoming representatives from various partners from all over the region in the Middle East and Pakistan. The programme will provide partners with a wealth of information and education, giving them the tools to realise ICT’s full potential to transform their customers’ businesses.  Participants will be welcomed by Dong Wu, vice president, Huawei Enterprise, Middle East, and will attend presentations by senior Huawei management on a range of timely topics. They will gain insights into current ICT trends from a presentation by Hasan Sandila, ICT Analyst, IDC MEA. The attendees will have the opportunity to network more informally with their peers as well as receiving an overview of Huawei’s development of its new channel structure for the region.   Dong Wu, vice president, Huawei Enterprise, Middle East, commented: “We believe that if you have a strong relationship with your partners, they will be proactive in communicating on your behalf, differentiating you from the competition and helping end-users gain maximum value from your products. A strong partner has a better bigger picture understanding than you of the local market and what businesses need, and Huawei Enterprise’s partners play an increasingly important role in delivering sustainable market growth for the region.  Our channel strategy is to motivate, incentivize and reward partners.  We offer generous discounts to partners for attaining key milestones. I expect that we will have more to learn from the partners attending the summit than they will from us, and I look forward to learning about the latest enterprise trends they see emerging across the region.”  Huawei’s channel partners include distributors, Value Added Partners (VAP)  and tier-two resellers, with a growing community of  distributors and partners in seven countries across the Middle East region. Huawei Enterprise’s channel strategy in the region is to build strong relationships with a core community of trusted and valued partners, and the Huawei Partner Summit will play a key role in forging the relationships and connections necessary to build the channel programme and drive Huawei Enterprises Business’s regional growth this year.  As well as providing a forum for networking and education, the Partner Summit will see some serious business deals taking place, with Huawei Enterprise expecting to formalise several agreements with new partners and extend agreements with several existing ones. One such new partner is distributor Secureway, a UAE business with a distribution channel covering GCC and Pakistan.  The purpose of the Huawei Enterprise channel programme is to create the channel ecosystem and support the long-term development of Huawei Enterprise through collaboration with partners. Huawei expects participants at the Partner Summit to be representative of its global channel ecosystem, which consists of the following types of partner:l   Tier 1 resellers: include distributors and value-added partners (VAPs). These partners purchase products and solutions directly from Huawei and receive support directly.l   Tier 2 partners: lower level channel partners who directly purchase products and solutions from tier 1 resellers. Distributors are focused on offering the logistics, service, and channel partner management platforms and provide support to lower-level (tier 2) channel partners.l   VAPs are focused on selling integrated end-end solutions to specific regions or industries and work with Huawei to support industry and enterprise customers. In the enterprise market, Huawei has put in place a product and solution portfolio that spans enterprise network infrastructure, enterprise communications, data centres and industry applications. Additionally, Huawei provides cloud computing data centre solutions and enterprise applications based on cloud computing. It is seeing rapid regional growth in demand for ICT solutions that have the potential to transform businesses from top to bottom, such as cloud computing, and aims to grow its channel partner ecosystem to meet this regional demand. -End- Huawei Technologies Huawei is a leading ICT solutions provider. Through continuous customer-centric innovation, we have established end-to-end advantages in ICT network infrastructure, Application & Software, Professional Services and Devices. With comprehensive strengths in wireline, wireless and IP technologies, Huawei has gained a leading position in the all-IP convergence age. Our products and solutions have been deployed in over 140 countries and have served 45 of the world's top 50 telecom operators, as well as one third of the world's population.  The company is committed to providing innovative and customized products, services and solutions to create long-term value and growth potential for its customers. Huawei is privately held and is 100% owned by its employees. As a progressive organization, Huawei undertakes management transformation, benchmarked against industry best practices. Since 1997, IBM, Hay Group, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and Accenture have served as Huawei's consultants in such areas as corporate management, human resources management, employee shareholding plans, financial management and quality control. Huawei Enterprise Business GroupThe Enterprise Business Group service offerings focus on the enterprise infrastructure, enterprise communications, data centers, and industry applications. To support the cloud computing era and innovative new business models, the Enterprise Business Group also provides cloud computing-based data center and enterprise applications. The Enterprise Business Group has set up departmental organizations in over 100 countries and regions.                                                                  By leveraging its years of technical expertise and unmatched R&D capabilities, the Enterprise Business group is well-positioned to grow together with customers and partners for the future cloud computing and ICT convergence era. Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/huawei_EB_ME and for global news on www.twitter.com/huaweipress  YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/HuaweiPress  Website: Website: http://www.huawei.com/enterprise and www.huawei.com 

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Gulf Air’s 2011 People Development Report highlights focus on developing national workforce



National carrier actively promotes extensive learning and development opportunities for Bahraini staff

Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain, 07 March 2012: National carrier Gulf Air’s newly released People Development Report for 2011, details the extensive learning and development programs provided to its workforce across all departments, with an emphasis towards national employees.

In its continued efforts to equip its employees with necessary skills, the airline’s corporate development programs during 2011 included several workshops, seminars and training programmes; such as Customer Care Service Training (CCST), internal and external training programs, airline-related technical courses from Arab Air Carriers Organisation (AACO) and Postgraduate and Diploma programmes in aviation offered by the City University London.

In addition, Gulf Air launched the second phase of the Career Progression Programme (CPP2), in cooperation with Tamkeen, to provide Bahraini employees with extensive development programmes. This programme targets the development of 1,300 Bahraini employees to acquire professional qualifications in areas such as Human Resources, Marketing, Sales and Finance.

Gulf Air Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Samer Majali commented, “Positive business results are best achieved when internal growth, empowerment and success are taken care of. Our sustained focus has always been to continuously develop and upgrade the capabilities and skills of our employees in order to ensure their personal growth as well as Gulf Air’s.”

He continued, We are well aware that human capital is one of the airline’s greatest resources and as such, we strive to develop the entire Gulf Air team so that we excel in what we do. Of particular importance is the development of Bahraini colleagues, who are an integral part of the national carrier.

I am glad that the 2011 People Development Report reflects this goal and reiterates our on-going commitment towards strengthening the Gulf Air team. We will continue to invest in people development in 2012 and onwards, Mr. Majali concluded.

Under the CCST Programme, 1211 staff members, a majority of them Bahrainis were trained in 15 training sessions conducted through 2011, delivered by a team of 21 Gulf Air champions. Internal and external training programmes included airline-related courses and soft skills courses, in which a total of 279 employees were trained. Of this, 71 Bahraini employees attended courses conducted by AACO while 16 Bahrainis undertook external and overseas courses. Furthermore, the prestigious City University MSc programme saw 15 staff members graduating, of which nine were Bahrainis.

Year 2011 also saw numerous ongoing projects which include public address announcement improvement, airport manager and sous-chef training, internal soft skills training and the associate trainers program. In tandem, Gulf Air also recognised special events such as the Gulf Air Induction Programme and Customer Service Champions Training during the year.

IMA commemorates the International Women’s Day




IMA Middle East is proud to be a part of the celebration on the occasion of the International Women’s Day (8th March); a global day that celebrates women’s social, economic and political achievements of past, present and looks into the future with a general celebration of appreciation and compassion towards women.

In honor of International Women’s Day, IMA is participating as one of the main sponsors at the 15th Global Women Leaders Conference on March 7 - 8, 2012 in Dubai, UAE that witnesses the coming together of topnotch women leaders, professionals and women entrepreneurs regionally and globally. This event aims at inspiring, empowering, and connecting businesswomen, women leaders, executives, entrepreneurs, innovators, social entrepreneurs, managers, professionals, and government leaders.

The attendees will be women from Government Institutions, Business Sector, Financial Institutions, Women's Organizations, Regional and International Diplomatic Bodies, Universities, Colleges, Unions and Women's Associations, Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Centers of Business.

March 7th, day one of the two day Conference is being held at Burj Al Arab and the 2nd day at Armani Hotel. The Speakers will be Women leaders from both global and regional level.

NIKKI WALKER, Vice President, Global Association Management & Consulting MCI and Global Advisor for IMA will be a bringing together the synergies of powering your potential via CMA certification and bringing her thoughts to concepts such as Women Leaders Role in the 21st Century Knowledge Management, Education and Developing Tomorrow’s Leaders and Managing Change in the Changing World – Modern Management Approach.

Participants can also visit the IMA interactive booth that will provide information for financial professionals in business and management accounting professionals. Special giveaways will be given at the booth and an opportunity to win prizes for those who register for the raffle.

Women in the Middle East have made notable contributors to practically all areas of business and management.  IMA aims to focus on women as key players in the region’s economic growth; highlighting their contributions and bring out constructive recommendations to better their participation.  IMA wants to help direct them towards greater aspirations in their professional lives and to provide them with a new perspective on their roles as leaders.
 
IMA compliments and celebrate all professionals, women leaders and women entrepreneurs.

IMA commemorates the International Women’s Day




IMA Middle East is proud to be a part of the celebration on the occasion of the International Women’s Day (8th March); a global day that celebrates women’s social, economic and political achievements of past, present and looks into the future with a general celebration of appreciation and compassion towards women.

In honor of International Women’s Day, IMA is participating as one of the main sponsors at the 15th Global Women Leaders Conference on March 7 - 8, 2012 in Dubai, UAE that witnesses the coming together of topnotch women leaders, professionals and women entrepreneurs regionally and globally. This event aims at inspiring, empowering, and connecting businesswomen, women leaders, executives, entrepreneurs, innovators, social entrepreneurs, managers, professionals, and government leaders.

The attendees will be women from Government Institutions, Business Sector, Financial Institutions, Women's Organizations, Regional and International Diplomatic Bodies, Universities, Colleges, Unions and Women's Associations, Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Centers of Business.

March 7th, day one of the two day Conference is being held at Burj Al Arab and the 2nd day at Armani Hotel. The Speakers will be Women leaders from both global and regional level.

NIKKI WALKER, Vice President, Global Association Management & Consulting MCI and Global Advisor for IMA will be a bringing together the synergies of powering your potential via CMA certification and bringing her thoughts to concepts such as Women Leaders Role in the 21st Century Knowledge Management, Education and Developing Tomorrow’s Leaders and Managing Change in the Changing World – Modern Management Approach.

Participants can also visit the IMA interactive booth that will provide information for financial professionals in business and management accounting professionals. Special giveaways will be given at the booth and an opportunity to win prizes for those who register for the raffle.

Women in the Middle East have made notable contributors to practically all areas of business and management.  IMA aims to focus on women as key players in the region’s economic growth; highlighting their contributions and bring out constructive recommendations to better their participation.  IMA wants to help direct them towards greater aspirations in their professional lives and to provide them with a new perspective on their roles as leaders.
 
IMA compliments and celebrate all professionals, women leaders and women entrepreneurs.

No more infantile fishes in Dubai markets


Dubai Municipality, in collaboration with Ministry of Environment and Water, launched an intensive campaign to prevent the trade of minor fishes in fish markets aimed at protecting and developing the fish stock.
The campaign under the title “Development and Sustainability of Live Aquatic Wealth” targets fishermen, sellers, fish product companies, shopping malls and hotels.
Khalid Sharif, director of food control department said that the campaign came implementing the Ministerial Resolution No. 16 of 2010 concerning the prevention of fishing, selling and marketing of 14 types of minor fishes, in order to protect and develop the fisheries.
Saif Mohammed Al-Shara, assistant undersecretary of the water resources and nature conservation sector of Ministry of Environment and Water said that the fish stock is considered a renewed national treasure and important food resource as it has many nutritional and health benefits.  The survey to assess the fish stock shows huge decline in the stock as a result of malpractices in the fishing activities including overfishing. For this reason, the Ministry has put certain policies and rules to protect the fisheries such as the Federal Law No. 23 of 1999 concerning the exploitation, protection and development of living aquatic resources.
The officials found presence of several items of premature small fishes in the markets leading to decline of the fish stock due to wrong fishing practices catching it before reaching maturity and economic size. Hence, the civic body issued a decision preventing the trade of 14 items of minor fishes.
Sharif clarified that based on the results of campaign its final report will be issued and there will be strict actions against violators. The campaign will continue until the end of the year conducting morning and evening inspections in all markets of the emirate of Dubai. The civic body has notified all markets, fish shop owners and fishermen distributing booklets and establishing sign boards containing the terms and allowed sizes of fishes for sale in the market. 

DM opens public parks and yards during Afforestaion Week



Dubai municipality opened total three parks, three yards and several green areas in different parts of Dubai as part of the activities of 32nd Afforestaion Week observed during 4-8 March.
Port Saeed Park in Diera, Nad Al Hamr Park and Naif Park are the newly opened parks this week. In addition, three yards in Al Barsha, Um Suqaim and Um Al Shaif were opened in the presence of Eng. Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality, Assistant Director Generals, a number of organisations involved in the initiative and school students.
Lootah said that establishing parks has a big role in the social development due to its direct link with family entertainment and development of environment and communities. We considered the climate change and global environmental situations aiming the reduction of environmental pollution, gas emissions and savings in energy consumption.
“Municipality applied highest international standards for buildings and green cities, to preserve our natural resources and environment. The ​​green roofs save 25% of the power. Therefore, the idea of ​​green roofs and heat insulation plants has been implemented in most of our projects, residential parks, and squares,” he said.
People can enjoy open parks with its eco-friendly facilities. It is expected to be a place for social interaction, activities, comfort, relaxation and fun in the downtown,” he added. 
Ahmed Abdul Karim, Director of Public Parks and Horticulture said that most of the parks in Dubai are designed in accordance with the common system of landscaping combining the engineering and nature.
We can see radial symmetry through the homogeneity of the trees on roadsides and walking tracks in parks, while the non-symmetrical green hills and curved lines in some areas and flowers are the natural characteristics.
The department planted hundreds of trees to provide shade and different seasonal trees, which gives diversified flowers and aromas in addition to flowering bushes, green areas and walls.  

Symantec Declares Better Backup for All Sized Organizations



Recent study conducted by Symantec in the Middle East found that majority of SMB’s do not properly backup their data

DUBAI, UAEMarch 8, 2012– Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC) today announced it will deliver a new approach for modernizing backup and recovery for companies small and large in the Middle East, a process that has become unnecessarily complicated and expensive as organizations’ data stores grow exponentially. Compared to traditional backup, Symantec’s approach enables 100 times faster backup, eases management and simplifies recovery if a disaster occurs, helping customers realize significant cost savings while better protecting their business information.  Key components to Symantec’s unique approach to data protection are the new NetBackup 7.5 and Backup Exec 2012 software and cloud solutions are designed to help Symantec’s Middle Eastern customers address backup issues common to companies all over the world.
Over the last 20 years data has exploded, virtualization has become widely adopted and service level agreements (SLA’s) have become near impossible to meet,” said Johnny Karam, Regional Director, Middle East and North Africa, Symantec. These challenges also affect small businesses that struggle with implementing a proper approach to data protection.  The current approach to modernization introduces an ever-growing collection of point solutions resulting in added complexity, increased costs and headaches for backup administrators, network administrators and executives.

According to Symantec’s 2011 SMB’s study done in the Middle East, SMBs are not making disaster preparedness a priority until it is too late. Symantec found that only 34 percent of SMB’s in the Middle East are backing up their data on a daily basis, and out of those 34 percent, 74 percent are incorrectly backing up their data onto CD’s, DVD’s and external hard drives. The survey data reveals that the cost of not being prepared is high, putting a SMB at risk of going out of business.

Symantec urges enterprise and SMB’s alike in the Middle East to understand the importance of backing up their data correctly.  Symantec recently surveyed more than 1,400 IT professionals worldwide on their backup practices and their ability to recover information in the event of a disaster. The findings reveal that traditional approaches to backup are broken and a new approach is vitally needed:
       49 percent of respondents can’t meet service level agreements (SLA’s) due to too much data
       72 percent of respondents would switch backup product if speed doubled
       28 percent say they have too many backup tools
       Organizations average four backup solutions to protect physical systems, and three for virtual
       42 percent of respondents believe that their virtualization backup is not adequately or perfectly working
       More than a third (36 percent) of respondents would not bet their paychecks that 100 percent of backed-up data could be recovered

Companies in the Middle East need to see backup as a life jacket for all their vital information. They need to be prepared to put on their jacket if a disaster occurs, said Mr. Karam. The UAE government has taken the lead by making backup mandatory to all their government and financial entities, demonstrating that they understand the importance of managing the public’s information properly.

“Today, Symantec unveils a radical new plan to modernize data protection that will drive out 80 percent of the operating costs associated with backup over the next five years, said Mr. Karam. Symantec is announcing a new set of solutions that address the problems in backup from the most complex of enterprise data centers requiring a true tiered-recovery strategy to the smallest business that needs the confidence that they can easily recover their data.”
Click to Tweet: Symantec declares better backup for all sized organizations and calls for 80 percent reduction in operating costs: http://bit.ly/z8W7X6
“In the past several years we have seen an acceleration of information growth with our customers, resulting in new challenges in how they protect and recover business critical information.  The proliferation of virtual servers in our customer sites also adds to the data protection complexity,” said Andrew Calthorpe, CEO Condo Protego. “As a channel partner, we turn to Symantec for innovative solutions that allow us to adapt to the growing markets in the Middle East and to address these difficult challenges with our customers, ensuring their most vital asset, their data, is protected.”
Key components to Symantec’s unique approach to data protection are the NetBackup 7.5 and Backup Exec 2012 software and cloud solutions, designed to help Symantec’s more than two million backup customers address backup issues common to companies all over the world.  Symantec’s strategy focuses on the following areas:
        Change the Operating Model of Backup: Symantec’s strategy is to eliminate 80 percent of the operating cost of backup by delivering an integrated platform that replaces multiple solutions typically used in backup today. Symantec backup appliances can drive down costs even more than traditional appliances by combining backup software and deduplication into a single solution supported by a one vendor, that is fast to deploy and easy to manage.  The ability to combine software, appliance and cloud-based backup solutions provides customers greater choice and flexibility.
        Break the Backup Window: 100 times faster backup with NetBackup 7.5, compared to traditional approaches, means organizations can complete full backups at the speed of incremental backups without sacrificing recoverability to meet critical service levels.
        Fight Infinite Retention: Too many organizations keep backups for too long. Knowing when information can be deleted can significantly reduce costs and management burdens on IT.  New backup search capabilities in NetBackup give IT the ability to separate out what is relevant to legal or compliance investigations while keeping the rest of the backup infrastructure running on a more typical 30-60-90 day backup cycle. Infinite retention is infinite waste for IT and infinite risk for legal.
        Unify Snapshots and Backup: A snapshot without NetBackup is just a snapshot.  A snapshot with NetBackup is data protection, manageability and recoverability. Unifying snapshots and backup with NetBackup gives organizations the speed of snapshots with the recoverability of backup.
        Stop Putting Tapes on Trucks: With the help of Symantec NetBackup technology, organizations can modernize their disaster recovery strategies and stop the practice of shipping tapes by truck. Symantec NetBackup Auto Image Replication (AIR) allows customers to eliminate volumes of physical assets and prioritize files that can be sent over the network, while significantly reducing the chance for human error.
        Unite Virtual and Physical Backups: Reduce operating costs around virtualization with patent pending Symantec V-Ray technology that enables organizations to have deeper visibility into their VMware and Hyper-V machines for virtual backups with a single product. Integrated in NetBackup and Backup Exec, V-Ray delivers load balanced virtual machine backups to eliminate backup storms, improve virtual machine performance and reduce storage by deduplicating data everywhere, whether it is on VMware, Hyper-V or physical servers resulting in up to 90 percent storage reduction.
        One Product for Any Recovery:  Symantec provides one solution for all backups whether they are based on tape, disk, or in physical or virtual environments.  Customers can recover any application or system to a virtual machine whether they have the hardware or not. Physical to virtual recovery is now included for free in Backup Exec, simplifying disaster recovery by automatically creating a virtual machine when recovery is needed. New backup to virtual (B2V) technology is also available to accelerate the migration from physical to virtual servers as part of the backup process.
        Eliminate Complexity: Backup Exec has eliminated backup management complexity by simplifying the user interface, utilizing insights from millions of users, policies and licensing.  This allows IT administrators and SMB owners to have a professional data protection strategy without being backup professionals.
        Easy Backup: Symantec introduces Backup Exec Small Business Edition ensuring smaller companies can set-up proper data protection in less than 10 minutes and in three simple steps.  In addition Symantec expands Backup Exec.cloud into Europe providing those customers who prefer a simple, automated and hosted backup offering a reliable, secure solution.

Happenings at Shangri-La Hotel, Dubai April 2012



Easter
Treat your family to an Easter feast at Dunes Café.  Sample a wide variety of dishes including roast turkey with corn bread and chestnut stuffing, and maple glazed salmon fillet.
Children can have fun with egg and face painting before joining in the Easter egg hunt!  The Easter Bunny will also be making a special appearance, where he will be handing out treats and posing for photos.
6th April to 8th April from 11:30 to 16:00. Priced at Dhs 350 per person including selected beverages or Dhs 220 excluding beverages.
If you’re passing by, why not visit the Lobby Lounge where a wide selection of Easter gifts will be available to purchase.

Dunes Café
Brunchini
Enjoy a wide selection of cocktails and house beverages to complement the international dishes on the buffet.  Choose from classics or sample our own concoctions.  Select your steak and seafood and be entertained by our street style magician and resident DJ.
Priced at Dhs 330 per person including beverages. Available from 11:30 to 16:00 every Friday.
Amwaj
Seafood Sensation
For those who truly appreciate the ocean’s treasures, head to Amwaj to enjoy an extensive selection of fresh seafood prepared every way imaginable. Choose from oysters with red wine vinegar and shallots, crab and avocado, lobster thermidor and more.
Seafood Sensation platters are priced at Dhs 520 per couple including beverages or Dhs 385 per couple excluding beverages.

Shang Palace
Superior Soup
Drinking soup is an age old Asian tradition that continues in modern times.  Sample this tradition at Shang Palace during the month of April, with soup creations from Executive Chef Mok that are going to leave you wanting more. Priced from Dhs 58.
Yummy Yum Cha
Enjoy the popular all-you-can-eat extravaganza! Feast on twelve kinds of steamed dim sum, hand pulled noodles and rice with your choice of soup and dessert. Priced at Dhs 115 per person and available only on Fridays and Saturdays from 12:00 to 15:00.



Lobby Lounge
Afternoon Tea
Live the tradition of British afternoon tea including finger sandwiches, freshly baked scones with jam and clotted cream as well as a selection of individual cakes.  Sip a variety of teas from the extensive tea menu at only Dhs 95 per person.  A champagne tea is also available for Dhs 165 per person. Served from 15:00 to 19:00 daily except Friday.

ikandy ultralounge
Rhythms del Mundo
Wednesdays are now Latin!  Listen to the best Cuban beats from live DJs while the bar team demonstrate how to make an authentic Bacardi Mojito at the Bacardi Bar. Enjoy your cocktail with some Latin inspired bites al fresco. Take home the recipe card for a traditional mojito and continue the party at home!
Saturday BBQ at ikandy!
Get down to ikandy for the best BBQ in Dubai! With grilled meats, seafood and beverages, why not chill out by the pool every Saturday from 12:30 to 16:30.
Priced at Dhs 250 per person inclusive of selected beverages.
From Russia With Love
ikandy and Russian Standard invite you to From Russia With Love, the new weekly night at ikandy. A special music set and a Russian menu including herring and caviar is available. 
Table reservations are recommended. Every Sunday with special guests and entertainment each month.

Kandi Lady
Pink is in on Mondays! 
Ladies enjoy complimentary pink bubbles from 18:00 until 21:00, followed by our two for one offer from 21:00 until 02:00 on signature cocktails.  We have hunky male hosts, entertainers and DJ Marky B playing funky new sounds.

The Spa at Shangri-La
Get Your Body Beach Ready!
Get yourself ready for the weather to warm up at The Spa at Shangri-La. Book any massage in April and receive a complimentary full body exfoliation valued at Dhs 195.
The Health Club
Get Fit With A Friend!
Purchase a membership at The Health Club in April and receive a complimentary one week pass for your friend. Have fun and work out together, it’s the perfect way to kick start the new you!

Signature Events
There’s no better time to book your event at Shangri-La Hotel, Dubai. For event group bookings of 40 or more guest rooms, your group can select four benefits from the following list to enjoy throughout the event period:

- One complimentary guest room upgrade for the event organiser
- Two complimentary round-trip airport transfers
- Complimentary LCD projector with two wireless microphones
- Complimentary coffee, tea and soft drinks throughout the event for up to 40 delegates
- Complimentary welcome cocktail for each delegate with one hour standard open bar for up to 40 persons
- 15% discount on charges for use of hotel audio-visual equipment
- 25% discount on selected hotel Business Centre services

Dubai Municipality reviews ongoing projects in Hatta.


As a step to accelerate the pace of ongoing restoration projects, a team of DM high officials has recently visited the heritage area of Hatta.
The team, which was on a visit to closely examine the needs and aspirations of the citizens of Hatta was headed by Eng Abdullah Raffia, Assistant Director General in charge of  General Support Services .
Accompanied by  Khalil Ali Hussain, Director, Municipality Centres Department ,Khaleefa Hareb, Assets Management Department and Juma  Khalifa Al Fuqaee, Director, General Maintenance Department, he held a meeting with  Omer Saeed Al Matyuee  who heads the Municipality Centre at Hatta and other concerned officials, on the projects being on and on which have to be commissioned for future.
While talking about the visit, Eng Abdullah Raffia said “ Hatta has been always on Municipality’s preference list. As we are keen on preserving our heritage and tradition we are committed to support the area.
After the meeting the team toured the various sites there, such as  the fountain project at the entrance ,the expansion of  event hall annexed to the traditional Masjid, abattoir, and the Hatta market. They found time to visit the  Hatta city and watched the dilapidated old houses to be renovated and  the worksite at Shareea Area where the team directed the concerned groups with  necessary instructions.
“We have reviewed the style and pace of the projects being on here and have directed the concerned persons and teams on what is lacking. Analyzing the present situation with Municipality officials here and understanding the people’s needs we  are planning for other important steps in future said Eng. Abdulla after visiting the sites.
Previously Dubai Municipality has framed many projects related to  the preservation of the heritage sites and the Municipality services available in the Area. As Municipality is keen on the heritage Area it has become one of the prime tourist attraction of UAE .The book DM has recently  released on Hatta that includes a comprehensive picture of the area is said to be very useful for the visitors.