Dubai Municipality fees and tourism fees charged on hotel stays are being halved until the end of 2020. Reem Mohammed / The National
Dubai Municipality fees and tourism fees charged on hotel stays are being halved until the end of 2020. Reem Mohammed / The National
Dubai Municipality fees and tourism fees charged on hotel stays are being halved until the end of 2020. Reem Mohammed / The National
Dubai Municipality fees and tourism fees charged on hotel stays are being halved until the end of 2020. Reem Mohammed / The National

Dubai government boosts economic stimulus to Dh6.3bn


Michael Fahy
  • English
  • Arabic

The Dubai government announced a further Dh1.5 billion worth of economic stimulus measures on Saturday, bringing the total support given to businesses during the pandemic to Dh6.3bn.

The government will extend the reduction of municipality fees paid by hoteliers and restaurants on sales to 3.5 per cent, from 7 per cent, for the remainder of 2020. It will also continue to halve the 'Tourism Dirham Fee' charged on hotel stays. Both measures were originally announced for a three-month period in March and have now been extended.

“We aim to enhance the liquidity of companies … support the continuity of their business and reduce the cost of doing business,” Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, said on Twitter.

Dubai Municipality is also expediting payments to contractors and is returning performance bonds usually set aside until work is completed. These will be replaced "by another system that guarantees all the rights of the contracting parties", Sheikh Hamdan said.

Fees charged to private schools for licence renewals are also being waived until the end of the year, customs clearance deposits are being reimbursed and some fines imposed by customs authorities are being cut by 80 per cent.

"We trust in the flexibility and durability of our economy," Sheikh Hamdan added. "We are keen to return business to normal as soon as possible and we confirm our commitment to support all economic sectors."

Dubai's economy has faced headwinds as a number of industries including tourism, trade and real estate slowed after restrictions on movements were put in place to stop the spread of Covid-19.

However, economic activity is now picking up as Dubai welcomed tourists back into the emirate last week. Dubai's purchasing managers' index rose to the 50-point-threshold last month, up from 46 in May, according to the PMI data released on Thursday.  A reading above the 50-mark is an indicator that the emirate's non-oil private sector economy is expanding, while anything below 50 indicates a contraction.

The headline PMI marked "a notable improvement from the severe downturn seen during the coronavirus pandemic", according to David Owen, an economist at IHS Markit, which compiles the index.

Sub-indexes showed recovery within individual sectors. For instance, the wholesale and retail index moved to 53 from 47.4 in May as selling prices for goods increased. Construction activity also rebounded as movement restrictions were relaxed, although employment in the sector continued to fall, Khatija Haque, an economist at Emirates NBD said at the time.

Activity in the tourism sector also continued to decline, albeit at a slower pace than in the previous two months. Optimism in the sector about the 12-month business outlook also lifted ahead of last week's reopening of Dubai to international tourists.

Dubai rolled out its first wave of economic stimulus measures aimed at supporting companies affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in March with a package of nine incentives for an initial three-month period. These included a freeze on the 2.5 per cent market fees for all facilities operating in Dubai, a refund of 20 per cent on customs fees imposed on imported products sold locally and a 10 per cent cut to water and electricity bills.

A second package worth Dh3.3bn was later unveiled, with the latest announcements representing the third wave of economic measures.

In a statement, Sheikh Hamdan also highlighted the "great strategic value" of Dubai's small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for more than 99 per cent of businesses in Dubai, providing 51 per cent of the emirate's jobs and 46 per cent of its gross domestic product, according to a 2019 study by Dubai SME, part of the Dubai government's Department of Economic Development.

Government-related entities have also extended support to businesses, with Dubai Developments Group stating last week it will extend a rent-free period to about 1,500 commercial tenants to six months, from three months initially.

The Dubai Free Zones Council on Saturday said that it is also considering plans to extend its stimulus package to support companies operating within the city's free zones.

Its stimulus measures have allowed companies to pay fees in instalments, while free zones have also refunded security deposits and guarantees and cancelled fines with a view to improving companies' liquidity.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Hales' batting career

Tests 11; Runs 573; 100s 0; 50s 5; Avg 27.38; Best 94

ODIs 58; Runs 1,957; 100s 5; 50s 11; Avg 36.24; Best 171

T20s 52; Runs 1,456; 100s 1; 50s 7; Avg 31.65; Best 116 not out

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Russia's Muslim Heartlands

Dominic Rubin, Oxford

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

While you're here
SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201.5-litre%204-cylinder%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20101hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20135Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20Six-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh79%2C900%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Schedule:

Friday, January 12: Six fourball matches
Saturday, January 13: Six foursome (alternate shot) matches
Sunday, January 14: 12 singles

Test

Director: S Sashikanth

Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan

Star rating: 2/5

Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20myZoi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Syed%20Ali%2C%20Christian%20Buchholz%2C%20Shanawaz%20Rouf%2C%20Arsalan%20Siddiqui%2C%20Nabid%20Hassan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2037%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Initial%20undisclosed%20funding%20from%20SC%20Ventures%3B%20second%20round%20of%20funding%20totalling%20%2414%20million%20from%20a%20consortium%20of%20SBI%2C%20a%20Japanese%20VC%20firm%2C%20and%20SC%20Venture%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
RESULTS

Men
1 Marius Kipserem (KEN) 2:04:04
2 Abraham Kiptum (KEN) 2:04:16
3 Dejene Debela Gonfra (ETH) 2:07:06
4 Thomas Rono (KEN) 2:07:12
5 Stanley Biwott (KEN) 2:09:18

Women
1 Ababel Yeshaneh (ETH) 2:20:16
2 Eunice Chumba (BRN) 2:20:54
3 Gelete Burka (ETH) 2:24:07
4 Chaltu Tafa (ETH) 2:25:09
5 Caroline Kilel (KEN) 2:29:14

COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Haltia.ai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Arto%20Bendiken%20and%20Talal%20Thabet%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20AI%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2041%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20About%20%241.7%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self%2C%20family%20and%20friends%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
'Young girls thinking of big ideas'

Words come easy for aspiring writer Afra Al Muhairb. The business side of books, on the other hand, is entirely foreign to the 16-year-old Emirati. So, she followed her father’s advice and enroled in the Abu Dhabi Education Council’s summer entrepreneurship course at Abu Dhabi University hoping to pick up a few new skills.

“Most of us have this dream of opening a business,” said Afra, referring to her peers are “young girls thinking of big ideas.”

In the three-week class, pupils are challenged to come up with a business and develop an operational and marketing plan to support their idea. But, the learning goes far beyond sales and branding, said teacher Sonia Elhaj.

“It’s not only about starting up a business, it’s all the meta skills that goes with it -- building self confidence, communication,” said Ms Elhaj. “It’s a way to coach them and to harness ideas and to allow them to be creative. They are really hungry to do this and be heard. They are so happy to be actually doing something, to be engaged in creating something new, not only sitting and listening and getting new information and new knowledge. Now they are applying that knowledge.”

Afra’s team decided to focus their business idea on a restaurant modelled after the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Each level would have a different international cuisine and all the meat would be halal. The pupils thought of this after discussing a common problem they face when travelling abroad.

“Sometimes we find the struggle of finding halal food, so we just eat fish and cheese, so it’s hard for us to spend 20 days with fish and cheese,” said Afra. “So we made this tower so every person who comes – from Africa, from America – they will find the right food to eat.”

rpennington@thenational.ae

How Beautiful this world is!
MATCH INFO

Manchester United 2
(Martial 30', McTominay 90 6')

Manchester City 0

Ultra processed foods

- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns 

- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;

- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces

- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,

- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
FIXTURES

Saturday
5.30pm: Shabab Al Ahli v Al Wahda
5.30pm: Khorfakkan v Baniyas
8.15pm: Hatta v Ajman
8.15pm: Sharjah v Al Ain
Sunday
5.30pm: Kalba v Al Jazira
5.30pm: Fujairah v Al Dhafra
8.15pm: Al Nasr v Al Wasl