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The entrance of Al Khor park
Doha: From this week onwards Al Khor Park has reserved one more day for women and children. Previously only Tuesdays were reserved for women and children. Now they will have exclusive access of the park on Thursdays also.
The Ministry of Municipality and Environment decided to increase the number of days for women and children after witnessing huge rush on Tuesdays.
The park, which opened after renovation in February, receives hundreds of visitors every day and on weekends it goes up to thousands.
It has turned into the most sought after picnic spot for families on weekend.
The park has a mini zoo, with animals and birds shifted from the Doha Zoo which is undergoing renovation.
The Public Park Department of the ministry said 172 animals and birds of 22 species will be available to entertain visitors to the park.
The zoo will be open from 8am to 10pm on all days and on Tuesday and Thursday entry is restricted to women and children and other days for families.
An added attraction is a train operating with battery and can accommodate 36 people to take a tour at the park.
More than 40,000 people visited the Park during a recent weekend, the ministry said. Entry fee is QR5 per adult. The Peninsula
The CEO of Dar Al Sharq, Mr Abdullatif Al Mahmoud, has issued a decision confirming Dr. Khalid Mubarak Al-Shafi as Editor-in-Chief of The Peninsula newspaper.
The decision follows Dr. Al-Shafi’s outstanding performance in the past six months and the unique contributions he made to the newspaper organisationally and his efforts in the relaunch of the newspaper in a new format, with more content.
Soon after he took over as Acting Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Al-Shafi’s priorities were to give a remarkable, unique new look to the daily, making it further easier for our patrons to follow up with us on latest and relevant news and views. As a result, the daily today is attracting prominent local and international columnists and more readership.
He also brought about changes in terms of a wider coverage of news and views from various continents and regions of the world under different sections.
Under Dr. Al-Shafi, The Peninsula has further expanded, incorporating separate signatures for Business and Sport to meet the growing demand of the business and sport communities.
Dr. Al-Shafi holds a PhD with First Honours in media. He is one of the competent media personalities in Qatar.
He joined Qatar News Agency (QNA) in 1991 as a reporter and, through his sheer competence, dedication and hard work, took the helm of the news agency as Managing Editor.
In 2009, Dr. Al-Shafi moved to the Ministry of Economy and Commerce as Director of Public Relations and Communication. Later, he was delegated to the Foreign Ministry as media expert at the Office of the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, a post he served until the date of a new assignment as the Deputy to the Head of Qatari mission in Bangkok as consultant.
Dr. Al-Shafi continued working as media expert and consultant in Qatar Media Corporation until he was nominated Acting Editor-in-Chief of The Peninsula in September 2015.
In addition to his duties and responsibilities as the Editor-in-Chief of The Peninsula, Dr. Al-Shafi has been working as Assistant Professor at the Department of Mass Communication at Qatar University since 2015.
He has taken part in several local and international conferences and written articles on politics and Qatar’s domestic affairs for local newspapers.
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string(56) "More expats going for Umrah during school spring break"
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By Sanaullah Ataullah
DOHA: The number of expatriate families booking for Umrah trips by road has surged ahead of the spring school holidays. Tour operators have come out with attractive offers to cash in on the huge demand.
Bookings from individuals have also gone up significantly, say tour operators. Most expatriates prefer to travel by bus due to the low charges. A week-long holiday for independent schools and many international schools will start next week, after the end of their mid-term examinations this week. Most tour operators have reduced the charges for Umrah trips (by bus) by more than 10 percent to win more customers, enquiries in the market have revealed.
Umrah can be performed any time of the year in keeping with the rules set by Saudi authorities, in contrast to Haj, which is the main pilgrimage performed during a specific period every year.
A tour operator said that the charges per person have been reduced from QR1,200 to QR1,050. Children below 10 years have been charged QR800 per head.
Charges include the cost of transportation from Doha to Makkah and Makkah to Madinah and back to Doha and hotel fares during the trip which normally takes 10 days. Some operators arrange guided tour to historic and holy sites in Makkah and Madinah as part of the package. Fares could vary depending on the trip.
“Bookings have gone up remarkably. We sent two buses a month since the beginning of the Umrah season last December. But due to high demand, we have arranged big buses this month and all will leave on Thursday,” said a tour operator based in Doha Jadeed.
Pilgrims include Egyptians, Indians and Pakistanis, among other nationalities, and families, including women and children, form about half of the total passengers. “Our trips end on the second Saturday. A trip from Doha to Makkah takes about 22 hours through Abu Samra border post, Riyadh and Taif, with stops for prayers and food,” he said.
Accommodation for four nights in Makkah and three nights in Madinah and transportation to holy places in Makkah and Madinah are included in the package. However, food is not included, which pilgrims have to arrange. Pilgrims can have their trip arranged through any Umrah tour operator. A pilgrimage visa is required to enter Saudi Arabia. Visa is stamped by the Saudi embassy in Qatar as per the request of the tour operator. The pilgrims are required to submit their passports having minimum six-month validity and a copy of the Qatari residency permit (RP) valid at least for three months. Many people in Qatar, mostly citizens, extend a helping hand to expatriates wishing to perform Umrah but cannot afford the cost. They visit the operators and pay the charges on behalf the beneficiaries. “We received such donations from time to time. Free offers are being arranged in collaboration with local religious organisations,” said the operator.
By Mobin Pandit DOHA: The Ministry of Economy and Commerce has issued a decision regulating car parking and valet service charges levied by malls and shopping centres from customers.
The fee slabs fixed by the Ministry also cover VIP valet parking services.
The Ministry said in a statement yesterday that a ceiling has been put on all kinds of car parking charges and valet services at malls and shopping complexes.
It has warned managements of shopping complexes and malls against imposing parking charges or amending the existing ones without seeking its permission.
Approvals to impose parking charges or amend the existing fee slabs are to be granted by a committee at the Ministry which is responsible for fixing pricing of different commodities and services in the local market and profit margins businesses could earmark.
Malls and shopping centres have been asked to comply with the Ministerial decision within 60 days or face the consequences.
Legal action can be initiated and fines can be imposed for violations, cautioned the Ministry in its statement.
The Ministry said several cases have come to its notice involving community members who are being forced to pay up parking charges.
“This has prompted the Committee (at the Ministry) to set a ceiling on the parking fees and conduct an extensive study and also consult other authorities concerned,” according to the Ministry. And no charges are to be levied from customers who leave the parking area of a shopping centre or mall within 30 minutes after waiting and failing to find a parking space. The shopping outlets shall be responsible for the safety of the vehicles parked in their care, and for any damage caused to a vehicle, relevant laws would be invoked.
All malls and commercial centres shall prominently display a list of parking and valet service fees approved by the Ministry.
The list is to be displayed at the main entrance of a shopping outlet and no parking slot on the premises rented out to a third party/parties without the ministry’s approval.
The ministry said the new rules are part of its effort to protect consumers and improve the quality of services.
It urged all members of the community to report any violations or irregularities on its hotline (16001); email info@mec.gov.qa; Twitter account @MEC_QATAR; Instagram MEC_QATAR; in addition to the ministry’s app on smartphones available on iPhone and Android devices at MEC_QATAR.
By Mohammad Shoeb DOHA: Ooredoo Qatar, the main television service provider in the country, expects some 80,000 subscribers of its newly-launched ‘Ooredoo tv’ by the end of 2016, which is expected to further enhance its customer base and revenues in the country, said a top official of the telecom giant.
The total number of Ooredoo Qatar customers in 2015 crossed over 3.5 million, up by more than 11 percent compared to 3.15 million in 2014. The Qatari market is important to the Ooredoo Group as with only 3 percent customer base Ooredoo Qatar contributed about 25 percent, or QR7.89bn, to the Group’s total revenue of QR32.2bn in 2015. The company launched ‘Ooredoo tv’ in mid-February, aiming to replace its existing Mozaic TV. The Android powered Ooredoo tv offers over 400 live channels, 4K picture quality and advance control through smartphone or tablet computers.
“About 15,000 customers have already subscribed to the service since its launch, and we are expecting over 80,000 subscribers by the end of this year,” Waleed Al Sayed, CEO of Ooredoo Qatar told The Peninsula recently.
Al Sayed added that the launch of Ooredoo tv was a yet another milestone for the company, as the new product takes home entertainment to the next level in Qatar.
Ooredoo has become the first operator in the region to offer a commercial 4K service.
The 4K picture quality allows viewers to enjoy a HD experience even on the largest screens.
The new service has been designed as an evolution in home entertainment services, combining apps, on-demand and live TV in one easy-to-use box.
Given the wide range of the company’s products and services in Qatar, it has become one of the most important markets for the Group and Qatar has been given a focus for further enhancing the quality of its services and customer base.
Ooredoo Qatar’s revenue growth is consistent in line with the growth of its customer base. Revenue in Qatar witnessed nearly 10.5 percent growth in 2015 compared to QR7.15bn in 2014.
The Group’s global customer base reached 117 million in 2015 through its presence in nearly a dozen countries, including Indonesia, Algeria, Kuwait, Oman and Iraq, among others, representing a year-on-year growth of 9 percent, according to the Group’s Annual Report 2015. “Qatar is an engine of prosperity and a driver of innovation for Ooredoo. The strength of Ooredoo Supernet, positive response from our customers and new opportunities for growth within the Qatari market make us confident that we will continue to see success in the coming year,” said Al Sayed.
In 2015, the company launched ‘Ooredoo Supernet’, the umbrella name for all Ooredoo networks and a promise of superior experience for customers. It encompasses all mobile, fixed, Wi-Fi, TETRA and digital entertainment services.
The company also extended its nationwide fibre roll-out, positioning Qatar among the top five in terms of fibre penetration worldwide. Over 260,000 homes are now connected to Ooredoo Fibre, along with commercial buildings and developments.
After Qatar, Ooredoo has its second largest operations in Indonesia, in terms of revenue, accounting for 23 percent of the total and 60 percent of the global customer base.
The Peninsula
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string(40) "Three health centres to open this year"
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DOHA: The Primary Healthcare Corporation (PHCC) said yesterday that it will open three new health centres this year, in Rawdath Al Khail, Al Thumama and Umm Salal.
The new centres occupy a large space and are equipped with advanced facilities and modern equipment meeting international standards. The Umm Salal centre is expected to open in July and will replace the existing health centre in that locality, said a statement yesterday.
Rawdath Al Khail centre is scheduled to open in June and will provide wellness services, along with healthcare like the recently opened Labaib health centre and Umm Salal health centre. Al Thumama centre is also expected to open in June and will contribute to reducing the crowding at the neighbouring Umm Ghuwailina and Airport health centres. The new centres will provide health and preventive services and will have clinics for family medicine, ENT, dental, ophthalmology, non-communicable and skin diseases and a women and children clinic. Vaccination will also be available.
Other services include laboratory and pharmacy, medical commission unit, pre-marital tests, X-ray, home care, physiotherapy, among others. Al Thumama centre will have a physiotherapy unit, stop smoking clinic, diet and nutrition and early detection services, along with other health services.
Al Sailiya’s Abdulkareem Salem Al Ali (left) and team-mate Abdulrahman Mohammed Al Harazi battle for the ball with Al Sadd’s Hassan Al Haydos during their Qatar Stars League (QSL) match at Al Ahli Stadium yesterday. Al Sadd won 3-2.
DOHA: Doha giants Al Sadd yesterday rallied for an impressive 3-2 victory against Al Sailiya in their round 24 clash in the Qatar Stars League (QSL).
Trailing by two goals in the first 44 minutes, Al Sadd probably played their best football yesterday when they fired three goals in the space of 25 minutes at Al Ahli Stadium.
Faouzi Aaish (28 and 44) scored two goals for Al Sailiyah but Al Sadd hit back through Hassan Al Haydos (46), Baghdad Bounedjah (49) and Morteza Mohammadjan (70) for their 13th win of the season.
Al Sadd are now in second spot with 45 points. Al Rayyan, the QSl champions, have 61 points from 24 matches. Third-placed El Jaish have 44 points from 24 matches.
Lekhwiya, placed fourth, have 41 points from 24 games.
Following a cagey start in the first 11 minutes of the match. Al Sailiya’s Abdulkareem Al Ali brought down Ali Asad in the 12th minute. Referee Saoud Ali Athba quickly punished Ali with a yellow card.
Moments later, the game picked up with both teams battling for ball possession.
After a few fruitless exchanges, Al Sailiya stunned Al Sadd by taking the lead through a penalty that left Al Sadd coach Jesualdo Ferreira red-faced.
Al Sadd’s Pedro Miguel brought down Al Sailiya’s Carlos Alberto close to the goalpost, an infringement that was enough for referee Athba to point to the penalty spot.
Al Sailiya striker Aaish calmly put the ball into the Al Sadd net as goalkeeper Muhannad Naim Hussein dived the wrong way to his right.
In the 35th minute, Aaish unleashed a ferocious shot from the edge of the box following a goalmouth melee, but Al Sadd goalkeeper Hussein this time punched the ball up in the air before pouching it safely.
Five minutes from the first-half whistle, Al Sailiya’s Omer Ibrahim Hamad wasted an easy opportunity to convert into a goal when goalkeeper Hussein produced a well-timed body save.
A minute later, the scoreboard read 2-0 after Aaish found the back of the net for the second time off a penalty kick.
Seconds earlier Aaish clipped a pass to his player inside the box but Al Sadd defender Pedro seemingly ‘deliberately’ poked his elbow out to stop the ball.
Referee Al Athba, positioned a few feet away, pointed to the penalty which was easily converted into a goal by Aaish.
In injury time, Al Sadd reduced the deficit after striker Al Haydos chipped the ball above the Al Sailiyah goalkeeper Diranth following a neat through pass from the center.
Soon after the resumption, Al Sadd drew level with Al Sailiyah after Baghdad fired one home in the 49th minute after being assisted by Xavi.
Al Sadd took the lead for the first time in the 70th minute. Captain Xavi curled in a beautifully-taken corner kick which was headed home by Mohammadjan by jumping high in the air.
In another match, Umm Salal edged Al Arabi 1-0. The Peninsula
Captains of Qatar and Singapore teams during the toss of the ODI match in Singapore.
Doha: Qatar defeated Singapore by four wickets to register their second successive win in the One-day International in Singapore on Friday.
Batting first, the hosts made 232 all out in 50 overs while the visitors romped to victory with 11 balls to spare.
Navin top scored for the hosts with 67 runs, while Brigu (37), Vidyut (26), Chetan (38), Selladore (25) made significant contributions to the total.
For Qatar, Awais captured three wickets while Nadeem accounted for two scalps. Inam, Iqbal, and Taimoor claimed one wicket each.
Chasing the total, Qatar lost wickets at regular intervals but romped home in the 49th over.
Khurram top scored for Qatar with 44 runs while Faisal, Taimoor with 34 runs each provided good support. Kamran (29), Rizlan (25) and Inam (27) excelled with the bat for Qatar. For Singapore, Abhinav and Rohan bagged two wickets each.
Abhiraj and Selladore accounted for one wicket. Qatar Khurram Shehzad won the man-of-the-match award for scoring 44 runs.Qatar had earlier won the first ODI match against Singapore last week by six wickets.
Qatar had also emerged on top in the two Twenty20 matches played against Singapore.
Prince Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Eastern Region, Saudi Arabia, honouring Qatar Chamber Vice-Chairman Muhammed bin Ahmed bin Towar Al Kuwari and members of the Qatari delegation at a meeting held yesterday in Saudi Arabia.
DOHA: The joint Qatari -Saudi Business Council has recommended encouraging business people from the two countries to establish real partnerships. The council held a meeting in Saudi Arabia yesterday.
The Qatari side gave a presentation on the investment opportunities in the industrial sector that are currently available in Qatar. Afterwards, the two side discussed cooperation to make those investments.
The two sides also agreed on setting up a meeting between Qatari business people and the Saudi Industrial Property Authority (MODON), to get an idea of the investment opportunities available and their financing. The two sides then reviewed preparations for the fifth Made in Qatar exhibition, which will take place in Saudi Arabia at year-end.
Qatar Chamber Vice-Chairman Muhammed bin Ahmed bin Towar Al Kuwari called on business people from both sides to seize on the investment opportunities and the trust in private sector offered by the leadership in Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
He added that the strategic ties between both countries was the foundation for strong economic and investment ties. He highlighted that economic cooperation between both sides has seen a significant leap since 2008, the date of establishing the joint business council.
DOHA: “Startup Weekend Doha”, a programme organised by Qatar Development Bank (QDB) and Qatar University’s (QU) Centre for Entrepreneurship at the College of Business and Economics, has concluded its successful activities.
The programme promotes Qatar’s economic diversification by supporting and strengthening the role of SMEs in line with Qatar’s National Vision 2030 and achieving the goals set out in the Qatar National Development Strategy 2011–2016.
The four-day programme in March attracted many participants interested in learning and gaining experiences designed to motivate young Qatari’s to start up their own projects. The programme offered students access to governmental and private sector speakers, mentors and coaches that hosted vital workshops and lectures on creating business plans, assessing viability for potential ideas and pitching to prospective investors and clients.
Ibrahim Al Mannai, Capability Development Manager at QDB, and George Salem, Manager of Advisory Services at QDB, were part of a panel assessing the final projects presented by students, who were all in the running to win QR25,000. At the end of the programme, ”Joud“ team won first place, beside “Tech Aid” and “Better Kids” who were awarded second and third respectively.
Hamad Al Kubaisi, Executive Director of Advisory of Qatar Development Bank, said: “The big number of students who participated in “Startup Weekend Doha” is testament to the success of QDB’s work with partners to educate and excite Qatari’s on the opportunities in entrepreneurship. We provide local entrepreneurs with the tools and learning opportunities to help grow the SME sector in Qatar, in line with Qatar National Vision 2030’s aspirations.”
Al Kubaisi added: “Our strategic partnership with Qatar University shows our belief in the importance of nurturing young expertise to support Qatar’s blossoming knowledge economy and to provide new opportunities for students to turn entrepreneurial ideas into a reality.”The Peninsula
DOHA: With Qatar announcing to plug its deficit gap through the issuance of debt, the country’s debt market is expected to deepen through to 2019. Qatar is comfortable in managing debt, as it has the experience of borrowing heavily to build up the LNG industry, Samba’s latest ‘Economic Monitor’ said.
Recalling the Ministry of Finance’s announcement that the budget deficit would be funded by debt issuance, Samba noted that “any deficits would be funded entirely through debt issuance rather than the drawing down of reserves. It is the authorities’ view that the QIA (Qatar Investment Authority) reserves are to ensure future generations’ economic well-being and aren’t intended to be used as a stabilisation tool.
“Although of course the reserves are there if needs be, the Government seem fairly staunch in their view that QIA should be left to do its own thing”. Though the Ministry announced that the projected deficits would be funded entirely through debt issuance, the change in Qatar’s debt to GDP ratio should be relatively small compared to others in the GCC.
The Samba report noted that liquidity in Qatar’s banking sector has tightened further on the back of a fall in hydrocarbon-related public sector deposits (9 percent year on year in January). The loan to deposit ratio stood at 122 percent in January, the highest it has been since December 2012. In part, the recent tightening reflects the October and November auction of government bonds and Sukuks of varying maturities.
Qatar remains rated AA, AA2, AA by S&P, Moody’s and Fitch respectively. In fact, S&P has recently reaffirmed Qatar’s rating whilst downgrading other notable hydrocarbon exporters including Saudi, Bahrain, Oman and Kazakhstan whilst Russia was placed on negative watch.
S&P’s reasons for exempting Qatar from a downgrade included the relative political stability of the country, the fact that growth should be maintained thanks to high capital spending; its sizable financial assets and, perhaps most importantly, the predictability of its income stream after Qatar signed new long-term LNG export contracts with India and Pakistan.
The report said non-hydrocarbon sector continues to drive Qatar’s growth. Growth should come in at around 4 percent for 2015, a rate Samba expects will be maintained through to 2017 as the non-oil economy continues to drive overall growth with a robust level of government capital spending and still significant pipeline of project activity.
Samba’s 2016 global growth forecast was already relatively bearish at 2.9 percent, but it has nudged this down to 2.8 percent on new projections for the US (2 percent), the Eurozone (1.4 percent) and Japan (0.5 percent). EM growth will continue to be weak, and recessions are likely to linger in Brazil and Russia.
Worries over weakening growth in advanced economies and continuing strains in Emerging Markets, (EMs) especially China, have raised recession fears and prompted turmoil in financial and commodity markets in the first quarter. These concerns have been heightened by the impression that policy makers have run out of options to revive economic activity. However, while growth is clearly still fragile and policy options increasingly unconventional, available data continue to point to muted global growth.The Peninsula
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