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Dubai extends deadline to provide beneficial owner data

Dubai Economy on Tuesday extended the deadline for all registered businesses in emirate to add their Beneficial Owner data to the commercial registry has now been extended to the June 30, 2021.

It also urged businesses to provide the Beneficial Owner data as required by the UAE Cabinet Decision No. (58) of 2020 within the new deadline to avoid any legal consequences.

Registered businesses in Dubai can add the Beneficial Owner data by logging in to the eServices page of Dubai Economy.

‘Beneficial Owner’ refers to those individuals/entities that benefit from owning a registered business.

The Cabinet Decision No. (58) of 2020 requires all registered businesses in the UAE to reveal the identity and furnish details of their Beneficial Owner to be included in the commercial registry as part of enhancing corporate compliance in the country in line with international best practices.

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Abu Dhabi opens up free covid-19 vaccines to tourists

Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, is offering tourists free COVID-19 vaccinations that were previously restricted to UAE citizens and residency visa holders.

There is no indication that the change applies to Dubai, the most populous emirate, or the other five emirates that make up the UAE.

Visitors with visas issued by Abu Dhabi and passport holders eligible for tourist visas when they arrive in the UAE through Abu Dhabi can book free vaccines, according to information provided by the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA), which operates the emirate’s public health infrastructure.

Holders of expired residency or entry visas are also eligible for free vaccinations, Abu Dhabi Media Office said on June 11.

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SPC Free Zone, Saeed team up to boost Sharjah business ecosystem

Sharjah Publishing City Free Zone (SPC Free Zone), the first-of-its-kind hub for publishing, printing, and allied businesses, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to announce Sharjah Investors Services Centre (Saeed), operating under the Sharjah FDI Office (Invest in Sharjah), as its new strategic partner to drive the growth of the free zone, and strengthen the supportive ecosystem it offers for its investors, startups, and business owners.

Salem Omar Salem, Director of SPC Free Zone, and Mohammad Juma Al Musharrkh, CEO of (Invest in Sharjah) Member of Saeed’s Board of Directors signed the MoU, in the presence of Marwan Saleh Alichla, General Manager of Sharjah Investors Services centre (Saeed).

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Saudi Arabia to improve its legislative and business environment

In the latest series of Saudi Arabia’s bold economic and social reforms, HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has announced to develop the legislative environment to pave the way for an even more competitive economy aimed at modernizing the Kingdom.

These law reforms represent the Kingdom’s intention to entrench the principles of justice, transparency, protect human rights and achieve comprehensive and sustainable development in different sectors.

Ahmed Al-Muhaimid, lawyer and legal advisor, explained that the new specialized legislative reforms, such as, the Civil Transactions Law, Personal Status Law, Penal Code for Discretionary Sanctions, and the Law of Evidence, confirm that the country is a civil state that implements preventive justice and legal protection.

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Emir opens Qatar economic forum focusing on post-pandemic growth

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said in his opening remarks that the inaugural event “represents a springboard for a series of forums aimed at enriching the dialogue on the global economy and proceeding to the next post-COVID-19 phase”.

Al Thani said that while the role of the state in tackling the coronavirus pandemic is “indispensable”, efforts must also include civil society and the business sector and must be coordinated globally.

The Emir also called on world leaders for increased cooperation to achieve a “just and comprehensive distribution of the vaccine in a manner that would pave the way for establishing an integrated global social and economic system in line with the sustainable global development goals to achieve wellbeing and stability to our peoples”.

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Kuwait’s economy contracted by 9.9pc in 2020 – state news agency

Kuwait’s gross domestic product contracted 9.9 percent in 2020, compared with growth of 0.4 percent in 2019, mainly because of last year’s sharp drop in oil prices, state news agency KUNA reported on Sunday.

Kuwait, which makes half its revenues from oil, had its finances squeezed by an oil price crash and by the COVID-19 pandemic, while a draft law that would allow it to tap international debt has stalled amid disagreement between successive parliaments and cabinets.

The International Monetary Fund estimated in April that Kuwait’s GDP contracted 8 percent in 2020.

KUNA based its report on Central Bank of Kuwait’s governor, Mohammad al-Hashel, who cited preliminary estimates and statistics and said the institution used all the tools available to it to blunt the pandemic’s impact.

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Oman and the world’s largest green hydrogen plant

The Arabian Peninsula sultanate intends to start building the plant in the Al Wusta governorate on the Arabian Sea in 2028. The project will develop in stages and full capacity is expected to be reached by 2038.

At this point, 25 gigawatts of wind and solar energy will be used to produce more green hydrogen than any other facility in the world.

The plant is expected to cost €30 bn, and funding has come from Oman’s state energy company, QC, Chinese renewable hydrogen developer, InterContinental Energy, and a Kuwait-based energy investor, Enertech.

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Bahrain: FDI inflows up by $1 billion in 2020

Bahrain’s foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows increased by $1.007 billion in 2020, according to the latest World Investment Report (WIR 2021) from the UN Conference of Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

The report highlighted that global FDI contracted by 35 percent to $1 trillion in 2020, with an expectation for flows to bottom out and increase by 10-15 percent in 2021. Despite global trends, Bahrain experienced a 3.3 percent increase in inward FDI stocks, reaching $31.7 billion in 2020.

Also highlighted was Bahrain’s stock to GDP ratio, where Bahrain’s inward FDI stocks relative to GDP reached 92 percent, the highest ranking in the GCC and surpassing the global average of 49 percent.

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