RIYADH, 1 March 2006 — Saudi Arabia will join other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states today to mark the “First GCC Consumer Protection Day”, as the Kingdom intensifies its efforts to protect the interests of consumers and educate them about their rights as buyers. The theme of the day is: “Consumer protection is the responsibility of all.”
RIYADH, 26 February 2006 — In a pioneering move, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA), Siraj Capital Ltd. and DTZ of the United Kingdom announced the launch of “Siraj Hospitality Investment Company” (SHIC) with a paid up capital of $500 million. A memorandum of understanding (MOU) to form the SHIC, was signed here at the SAGIA headquarters following the announcement.
RIYADH, 20 January 2006 — Saudi Arabia is planning to recruit about 50,000 Vietnamese workers this year, a source at the Saudi Arabian National Recruitment Committee (SANARCOM) said here on Wednesday. The plan to recruit skilled and non-skilled workers including housemaids from that Asian country will help diversify the Kingdom’s labor imports, while cutting reliance on the traditional labor-exporting countries.
RIYADH, 5 January 2006 — Though water pipes, or shishas, are widely viewed as a safer way to smoke, they may be as damaging as cigarettes to the veins, hearts, teeth and gums, as well as many other vital organs, according to a new study published in the International Journal of Periodontology. The study, whose findings have been supported by local doctors, said that the carbon monoxide, nicotine, tar and heavy metals in the smoke pose often-ignored health threats, including cancer and cardiac problems.
RIYADH, 24 November 2005 — The industrial landscape of Saudi Arabia will undergo a massive change with the execution of some multibillion riyal projects by the National Industrialization Company (NIC) in partnership with some local and regional business houses within the next two to three years. NIC has already embarked on the ambitious plan to execute these industrial and petrochemical projects including an ethylene & polyethylene project and a methanol/acetic acid complex.
RIYADH, 20 November 2005 — Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah yesterday called upon oil consuming nations to cut energy taxes to bring down soaring prices. He said Saudi Arabia would continue its efforts to stabilize world oil market by ensuring adequate supplies.
RIYADH, 19 November 2005 — Saudi Arabia is planning to institute helicopter mounted border controls along the country’s frontier with Iraq. They will help check infiltration by illegal immigrants and the smuggling of arms and narcotics along the 830-kilometer border. More than 50,000 illegal immigrants including criminals are arrested every month while they try to cross into Saudi Arabia from Iraq, Yemen and other countries bordering the Kingdom.
RIYADH, 11 November 2005 — Fears of bird flu outbreak have hit chicken sales in Riyadh. All poultry retail shops, mainly manned by Bangladeshi, Asian or Arab expatriates, are experiencing a sharp decline in sales. “Our sales have dropped by 15 percent and as a result we have cut down orders for live poultry and poultry products,” said Mobin Chowdhury, who runs a poultry shop in the city center, here. Chowdhury said that “the avian flu fears or a possible outbreak would hit the local poultry sector very badly and the losses would be in the vicinity of millions of riyals.”
RIYADH, 10 October 2005 — A Saudi scientist said yesterday that the Gulf region would not experience any tremors but warned of possible aftershocks in South Asia, which may cause further destruction. Dr. Khaled S. Al-Damegh of King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), said: “Aftershocks generally follow earthquakes and sometimes they are more devastating and can continue for several weeks.”
MANAMA, 8 October 2005 — Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Pakistan will participate in a meeting to be held in Bahrain on Nov. 11 within the framework of the Group of Eight (G-8) Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA) initiative. The BMENA plan, launched by the G-8 member states including the United States, seeks to promote reform and peace initiatives in individual BMENA countries as well as in the Middle East region as a whole.