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Middle East Edition
28th September 2021
 
THE HOT STORY
Bahrain’s oil ministry to take over NOGA functions
Bahrain's National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA) is being abolished and all its functions are to be handed over to the country’s oil ministry, according to the state-run Bahrain News Agency (BNA). "All the financial appropriations allocated for NOGA in the state budget and all its rights and obligations shall be transferred to the Ministry of Oil," BNA reported, adding that all NOGA employees will also be transferred to the ministry and retain their rights and benefits.
TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
Government target of jobs for 80% of Saudis within a year of graduation
Saudi Gazette reports that Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Ahmed Al-Rajhi has underscored how the Human Capability Development Program (HCDP) is fundamental to the success of Saudi Arabia’s employment market. “The program aims to find placement for 80 percent of Saudi graduates in jobs that fit their qualifications within 12 months of their graduation. [It] seeks to change the citizen’s thinking pattern from looking for a job to thinking about entrepreneurship,” he said, adding “The program also focuses on rehabilitating young Saudis at the school level itself and that prepares them to enter the labour market better than those who did not receive such a rehabilitation.”
Talent foundation awards 3,000 scholarships to Saudi youth
A total of 3,000 educational and training scholarships were granted to students by King Abdulaziz and his Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) during the foundation's three-day Saudi National Day celebrations. Arab News notes that Mawhiba students in Saudi Arabia who have participated in training programs have achieved significant international achievements: 453 international awards in scientific competitions and 83 awards at the International Science and Engineering Fair, the most important scientific competition in the world.
WORKFORCE
Dubai government staff to get six-day paid leave to visit Expo 2020
Dubai Government employees are to get six days of special paid leave to enable them to visit Expo 2020 Dubai. Expo 2020 runs from October 1st, 2021 to March 31st, 2022, and has the theme "Connecting Minds, Creating the Future." Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, said: "Expo 2020 will be a landmark event that unites the world and brings together diverse cultures, streams of knowledge, creative perspectives and innovations from across the world, all under one roof. Our goal is to connect minds and create a bright new future, while also generating positive outcomes that will benefit the world . . . It is crucial that employees get to learn from the successful experiences and ideas being showcased at the event, which will contribute to inspiring new approaches that can help realise the ambitious goals of the UAE in the next 50 years.”
TECHNOLOGY
Pandemic was proof of concept for automation of routine office jobs
The pandemic has acted as proof of concept for the adoption of software robots designed to ease routine office work and paved the way for corporate technology leaders to make the case for expanding their robotic process automation efforts, reports the Wall Street Journal. Daniel Dines, UiPath’s co-founder and chief executive, says: “Widespread adoption requires cooperation between CIOs and line-of-business leaders . . . And this technology has been proven in the past two years.” Up to 40% of organisations world-wide increased their use of robotic process automation in response to the pandemic, according to estimates from technology research firm International Data Corp.
RISK
The race to fight off multiple ‘Black Swan’ events
Britain's fuel and food shortage crises, alongside flooding in Germany and wildfires in places such as the US, have compelled officials to reassess risk preparation strategies, reports the Telegraph. These Black Swan events, or what disaster planners call “long-tail” risks, are not supposed to come all at once, and Professor Bent Flyvbjerg, a fellow of St Anne’s College, Oxford says we are all prone to “Black Swan blindness . . . Our brains are not well suited for detecting extreme risks.” Prof Flyvbjerg and other experts say Black Swans are becoming more frequent as the world becomes more complex: “the walls are coming down between natural and human systems, with humans impacting nature at a global scale for the first time in history.” Planners are fooling themselves that they have everything covered in their risk registers, and also commonly make the mistake of “letting down one’s guard because a risk has not materialised for a while,” observes Prof Flyvbjerg.
INTERNATIONAL
Ex-Warburg senior manager is next to face cum-ex trial in Germany
Detlef M., a former managing director of Warburg Invest, the investment arm of M.M. Warburg & Co., has appeared in a court in Germany accused of participating in a so-called cum-ex scheme that lost the country €157m ($184m). Investors in cum-ex deals use short sales to earn duplicate tax refunds on dividend payments on German shares. Germany's top criminal court in a landmark case earlier this year said that such deals were illegal and criminal, and called them a “ blatant money grab.” The practice ended in Germany in 2012 when rules were overhauled, but it is estimated that the schemes have cost German taxpayers more than €10bn. The Washington Post answers some FAQs about cum-ex trades, noting that the practice was named after the Latin terms cum/ex, meaning with/without, because the stock was sold with, but delivered without, a dividend payment.
British Airways abandons new short-haul plan after pilot pushback
British Airways has scrapped a plan to create a new short-haul unit after the venture failed to win support from pilots. The airline wanted to create a new, cash-generative operation at London Gatwick Airport in time for next summer. British Airways has for years been seeking to make its operations at the airport profitable, and the new subsidiary would have allowed the company to renegotiate pilot and operating costs. The airline’s union said it was unable to reach an agreement on revised terms of conditions that were acceptable to members. “After many years of losing money on European flights from the airport, we were clear that coming out of the pandemic, we needed a plan to make Gatwick profitable and competitive,” the airline had said in a statement, adding that short-haul operations at the airport would now be suspended, with the exception of a small number of domestic services.
LVMH targets workers under the age of 30
LVMH has outlined plans to recruit 25,000 people under the age of 30 by the end of 2022, including 5,000 people through internships or apprenticeships, as well as 2,500 through permanent employment contracts in France. The company is also opening up access to its educational platform, insidelvmh.com. Users can complete modules to learn how the company works and boost their CV. Chantal Gaemperle, the group's director of HR and synergies, said: "At a time when the COVID-19 crisis has particularly affected the younger generations and impacted their employability, LVMH intends to accompany and support them in a concrete way to build their careers."
Chinese liquor giant jailed for life in latest warning to tycoons
The former chairman of China's top liquor maker, Kweichow Moutai, has been sentenced to life in prison for taking bribes, China's official Xinhua news agency has reported. Yuan Renguo was sentenced by the Intermediate People's Court in Guiyang for accepting cash and properties worth more than 112.9 million yuan ($17.48m) between 1994 and 2018, the report said.  Margaret Lewis, a China expert and law professor at Seton Hall University, said the case highlighted the “power of ruling by fear” under president Xi Jinping.  “There is this ongoing sense that no one is safe . . . and a sense that your personal fortunes may change at any moment,” she said. 

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