Newsletter May 2014
Dear Partners and Colleagues,
Global Relocation consultants team are proud to share with you that Mrs. Mona Radwan, the Company President, has been recognized a Relocation Personality of the Year by Re:Locata Magazine. The coveted Relocation Personality of the Year award honours an individual from any sector who has shown outstanding ability, provided excellent customer service, raised the profile of relocation, contributed to the industry or profession significantly over a period of time, or shown great ingenuity or creativity in delivering relocation support.
Comments of the judges about Mrs. Radwan stated: Described by her team as “a true inspiration who is always prepared to go the extra mile”, this year’s winner, Mona Radwan, founder and president of Cairo-based Global Relocation Consultants, is one of the relocation industry’s outstanding figures and a true trailblazer. Please read more: http://www.relocatemagazine.com/awards/Relocate-awards-Judges-Comments/
We sincerely congratulate Mrs. Radwan and thank everyone who supported our entry.
We also thank Re:Locate Magazine for this exceptional event and congratulate all winners in all categories, well done!!
Please read more: http://www.relocatemagazine.com/awards/Relocate-awards-Winners/
Global Relocation Consultants TEAM
The proposed Jeddah Metro project will soon materialize and the budget for the project will be approved, a senior official was quoted as saying by an Arab News report.
The project is expected to cost around 35 billion Riyals ($9.3 billion), it will involve 20 tracks that will span 615 km. Meanwhile, WasmiFarraj, director of the expansion projects at the Saudi Railway Organization, said the GCC railway project will begin operating by 2018.
Trains will start from Kuwait, travel through Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE and terminate in Oman. The track will span more than 2,000 km, he said.
United Arab Emirates:
New increase of housing market rates
Rents have increased again in the second quarter of 2014. Above an updated housing market rates for some communities in Dubai
Employment growth among expatiates went up by 5.1 per cent, according to latest figures.
It has risen from 488,979 in the fourth quarter of 2012 to 514,156 in the fourth quarter last year.
The number of Bahrainis in work also went up by 3.9pc, rising from 146,739 to 152,473, says the latest Labour Market Regulatory Authority’s (LMRA) labour market indicators report.
At the same time less work visas were issued and more were terminated. It has emerged that there was a 40.2 per cent increase in termination and 14.5 per cent decrease in the issuance of new work visas.
The number of new work visas issued by the LMRA for regular workers during the last quarter of 2013 decreased to 24,649, representing an annual growth rate of -14.5 per cent,” said the report.
The total number of visa terminations during the quarter was 28,012, of which 23,957 were for regular workers, 32 for investors, 444 for temporary workers and 3,579 for dependents.
The report revealed the LMRA issued 30,869 visas during the fourth quarter last year, of which 24,649 were for work visas, 253 for investors, 475 for temporary workers and 5,492 for dependents.
“The number of visa renewals during the quarter was 40,752 of which 31,480 were for regular workers, 269 for investors, 257 for temporary workers and 8,746 for dependents,” it said.
“The number of visa renewals increased from 36,028 in the fourth quarter of 2012 to 40,752.”
The number of expatriates who transferred from one employer to another was 7,450.
Most new work visas were in the construction sector (26pc), followed by the retail sector (25 per cent) and manufacturing (13 per cent).
“Hotels and restaurants sector was the economic sector with the highest number of transfers, followed by wholesale and retail trade sector and financial intermediation sector,” said the report.
“Nearly 58 per cent of transfer transactions in the fourth quarter last year were made by small economic units (less than 10 workers).”
The labour cost gap between Bahrainis and expatriates in the construction, trade, hotels and restaurants and small-scale manufacturing rose by BD21 to reach BD303 in the fourth quarter last year compared to the same period in 2012.
Qatar:
Work begins on new expressway linking south of Doha to new airport
Construction work has begun on a major new expressway in Qatar that will link Doha’s Industrial Area with the new Hamad International Airport and the forthcoming new Doha port, which is due to open in 2016, Ashghal has announced.
The East West Corridor will consist of 22km of new road that runs five lanes in each direction. It is slated to stretch from west of Barwa City to south of Air Force Roundabout on Al Matar Street (Airport Road.)
So far, contractors Joannou&Paraskevaides (Overseas) Limited and China Harbour Engineering Company have conducted some preliminary work, including putting up temporary fencing and clearing debris on project sites.
The new route’s completion date has yet to be announced. But when finished, the corridor will link up with Doha’s new Orbital Expressway, the first phase of which is due to be completed in the first quarter of 2017.
The corridor will include eight new interchanges that are expected to provide access to key roads and residential areas such as the Najma Street Extension, Barwa Access Road, and the new Al Wakrah Bypass.
The Public Works Authority has emphasized that contractors will also be required to “beautify†the route, planting over 3,000 trees, 128,000 shrubs and 140,000 square meters of grass. They will also move 600 trees currently growing in the construction area to other locations.
Plans also include specially constructed cycle paths and pedestrian walkways.
Ashghal also said that they plan to keep local residents updated on the progress of works in their area with the distribution of flyers, and with a dedicated 24-hour complaint and inquiries hotline, which is due to be set up shortly.