Azizi presses ahead with thousands of apartments in Dubai


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The Afghan developer Azizi Developments said it was pressing ahead with plans to build thousands of flats in Nakheel’s Al Furjan project and Palm Jumeirah as part of a Dh4.5 billion development plan.

The company, which is owned by the chairman Mirwais Azizi, owner of the second-largest commercial bank in Afghanistan, said that it plans to develop a total of 15 blocks of flats in Al Furjan on the outskirts of Dubai.

Azizi, which was hit hard by the global financial crisis, prompting Rera to cancel four of its original Al Furjan schemes, started construction work on the first five buildings in Al Furjan eight months ago.

The blocks Azizi Iris, Azizi Liatris, Azizi Orchid, Azizi Yasmine and Azizi Feirouz, each comprise around 100 apartments and are set to be completed by the contractors SS Lootah and Modern Construction Company by the end of 2015.

The company said that it had pre-sold all 99 apartments in Azizi Iris and had sold 70 per cent of the apartments in the other four blocks at an average price of Dh925 per square foot.

Speaking at the International Property Show exhibition in Dubai yesterday, Azizi said that it expects to start marketing a second batch of a further five 12-storey towers over the next three months, which it plans to build next to the first five in Al Furjan as well as a block of 90 luxury apartments on the Crescent of Palm Jumeirah.

“For us the market is not slowing down,” said Mohsen Kamel, the chairman’s senior adviser.

Azizi acquired 12 plots of land in Al Furjan in 2007, but was forced to abandon its original plans as the global financial crisis hit.

Azizi returned to the Dubai property market in 2013, redesigning its original towers to make them taller and bought 12 more plots at Al Furjan from Nakheel as well as three plots on Palm Jumeirah and a hotel plot in Dubai Healthcare City.

The company said that eventually it plans to develop another five bigger apartment buildings, comprising about 150 apartments each at its Al Furjan development as well as a 700,000 sq ft hotel with a revolving restaurant.

lbarnard@thenational.ae

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 325bhp

Torque: 450Nm

Price: Dh359,000

On sale: now 

Company profile

Name: Tharb

Started: December 2016

Founder: Eisa Alsubousi

Based: Abu Dhabi

Sector: Luxury leather goods

Initial investment: Dh150,000 from personal savings

 

New process leads to panic among jobseekers

As a UAE-based travel agent who processes tourist visas from the Philippines, Jennifer Pacia Gado is fielding a lot of calls from concerned travellers just now. And they are all asking the same question.  

“My clients are mostly Filipinos, and they [all want to know] about good conduct certificates,” says the 34-year-old Filipina, who has lived in the UAE for five years.

Ms Gado contacted the Philippines Embassy to get more information on the certificate so she can share it with her clients. She says many are worried about the process and associated costs – which could be as high as Dh500 to obtain and attest a good conduct certificate from the Philippines for jobseekers already living in the UAE. 

“They are worried about this because when they arrive here without the NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] clearance, it is a hassle because it takes time,” she says.

“They need to go first to the embassy to apply for the application of the NBI clearance. After that they have go to the police station [in the UAE] for the fingerprints. And then they will apply for the special power of attorney so that someone can finish the process in the Philippines. So it is a long process and more expensive if you are doing it from here.”

The biog

Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists. 

Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.

Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic 

SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProcessor%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Apple%20M3%2C%208-core%20CPU%2C%20up%20to%2010-core%20CPU%2C%2016-core%20Neural%20Engine%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDisplay%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2013.6-inch%20Liquid%20Retina%2C%202560%20x%201664%2C%20224ppi%2C%20500%20nits%2C%20True%20Tone%2C%20wide%20colour%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMemory%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%2F16%2F24GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStorage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20256%2F512GB%20%2F%201%2F2TB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EI%2FO%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Thunderbolt%203%2FUSB-4%20(2)%2C%203.5mm%20audio%2C%20Touch%20ID%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EConnectivity%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Wi-Fi%206E%2C%20Bluetooth%205.3%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2052.6Wh%20lithium-polymer%2C%20up%20to%2018%20hours%2C%20MagSafe%20charging%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECamera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201080p%20FaceTime%20HD%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EVideo%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Support%20for%20Apple%20ProRes%2C%20HDR%20with%20Dolby%20Vision%2C%20HDR10%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAudio%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204-speaker%20system%2C%20wide%20stereo%2C%20support%20for%20Dolby%20Atmos%2C%20Spatial%20Audio%20and%20dynamic%20head%20tracking%20(with%20AirPods)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EColours%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Midnight%2C%20silver%2C%20space%20grey%2C%20starlight%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIn%20the%20box%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20MacBook%20Air%2C%2030W%2F35W%20dual-port%2F70w%20power%20adapter%2C%20USB-C-to-MagSafe%20cable%2C%202%20Apple%20stickers%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh4%2C599%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Desert Warrior

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley

Director: Rupert Wyatt

Rating: 3/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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

Trump v Khan

2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US

2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks

2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit

2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”

2022:  Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency

July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”

Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.

Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”

SNAPSHOT

While Huawei did launch the first smartphone with a 50MP image sensor in its P40 series in 2020, Oppo in 2014 introduced the Find 7, which was capable of taking 50MP images: this was done using a combination of a 13MP sensor and software that resulted in shots seemingly taken from a 50MP camera.

Joker: Folie a Deux

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

THE SPECS

Engine: 4.4-litre V8

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 523hp

Torque: 750Nm

Price: Dh469,000

ENGLAND%20SQUAD
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EGoalkeepers%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pickford%20(Everton)%2C%20Pope%20(Newcastle)%2C%20Ramsdale%20(Arsenal)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDefenders%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Chilwell%20(Chelsea)%2C%20Dier%20(Tottenham)%2C%20Guehi%20(Crystal%20Palace)%2C%20James%20(Chelsea)%2C%20Maguire%20(Man%20United)%2C%20Shaw%20(Man%20United)%2C%20Stones%20(Man%20City)%2C%20Trippier%20(Newcastle)%2C%20Walker%20(Man%20City)%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMidfielders%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBellingham%20(Dortmund)%2C%20Gallagher%20(Chelsea)%2C%20Henderson%20(Liverpool)%2C%20Maddison%20(Leicester)%2C%20Mount%20(Chelsea)%2C%20Phillips%20(Man%20City)%2C%20Declan%20Rice%20(West%20Ham)%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EForwards%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFoden%20(Man%20City)%2C%20Grealish%20(Man%20City)%2C%20Kane%20(Tottenham)%2C%20Rashford%20(Man%20United)%2C%20Saka%20(Arsenal)%2C%20Toney%20(Brentford)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile

Name: Dukkantek 

Started: January 2021 

Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani 

Based: UAE 

Number of employees: 140 

Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service) 

Investment: $5.2 million 

Funding stage: Seed round 

Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office  

WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?

1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull

2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight

3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge

4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own

5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed

Classification of skills

A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation. 

A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.

The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.