CONTACT Any questions or suggestions? Feel free to email me at: Sonjapearl@royaltyinthenews.com - and my real name is Megan :)
|
Since Sunday, Luxembourg’s Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume has been on an official tour of the United Arab Emirates. He is there for both an economic mission and to open his country’s 35th embassy in Abu Dhabi.
 Click here for more photos The embassy is the first one in any Arab country. Usually in nations that do not have a Luxembourg embassy have to rely either on a Dutch or Belgian one to deal with the tiny Grand Duchy. Guillaume opened that embassy on Sunday with Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
“The well-maintained bilateral relations between both countries for over 40 years now, will be strengthened further through business and trade activities,” said Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, who added that the establishment of the embassy is “long overdue”.
Also attending the inauguration was Sheikha Lubna Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, the Minister of Foreign Trade of the UAE. She and Guillaume met to discuss bilateral economic and trade issues.
Next stop was Dubai. There, His Royal Highness met with Sheikh Maktoum Bin Juma Al Maktoum, a member of the emirate’s ruling family. Again, there were talks over bilateral ties.
Also in Dubai, the Luxembourg delegation went to the Big 5 Show, International Fair of Construction and Building. Ten Luxembourg business representatives met with hundreds of visitors.
Next stop was Ras Al-Khaimah where the Hereditary Grand Duke was welcomed by Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, who rules the emirate. The two discussed ways for Luxembourg to broaden its ties with Ras Al-Khaimah. Speaking to reporters, the Sheikh said, “The economic diversification program implemented by the government has created a fairly diversified economy in the emirate which has strived to espouse an economic vision of openness to become relevant in a rapidly evolving and interconnected global economy.”
After touring the United Arab Emirates, Guillaume will stop by Qatar once again for his economic mission there.
Sources: Wort, Le Ministere de l’Economique et du Commerce exterieur, Khaleej Times
Princess Haya, the wife of the Sheikh of Dubai, inaugurated the TongRenTang Clinic, the first such clinic in the Persian Gulf. It was opened at the Dubai Healthcare City, or DHCC.
 Click here for original press release and photo TongRenTang Clinic is known for its traditional Chinese medicine and procedures, such as natural herbs and acupuncture.
Dr Ayesha Abdullah, the Managing Director of Dubai Healthcare City said: “We are delighted that TongRenTang, the world-renowned Chinese brand, chose Dubai Healthcare City as its location of choice in the Gulf. As a pioneer in Traditional Chinese Medicine, which has been serving patients around the world for hundreds of years, the presence of TongRenTang will further support our vision to be a leading centre for high quality healthcare. We extend our heartiest congratulations to TongRenTang and a warm welcome to the DHCC community.”
Deyuan Wei, who helped with TongRenTang opening in the Gulf, said this about the business’ inauguraion: “It is such an honour for us to have HRH Princess Haya’s support for the opening of our first clinic in the Gulf. We are very excited to be in Dubai Healthcare City; the various teams at DHCC have been instrumental in making our dream a reality. They have guided us through the formalities and enabled everything to come together smoothly, allowing us to achieve what we have.”
TongRenTang began in 1699 and served even the Chinese imperial dynasties, such as the Qing.
If you happen to be looking closely at the above photo of Princess Haya, please note that your eyes are not fooling you. She does appear to be quite pregnant, and many royal watchers have noticed Haya is expecting her second child. It is not known how far along she is or when she is due.
The Princess already has a 3 year old daughter, Sheikha Al Jalila.
Source: AMEInfo
Monday saw the wife of the ruler of Dubai, Princess Haya, inaugurate the 8th edition of DIHAD – the Dubai International Humanitarian Aid and Development conference and exhibition. This year’s theme is called “New Technologies: How they Impact Humanitarian and Development Operations”.
 WAM After the ribbon cutting ceremony, Princess Haya spoke about how the latest technologies are affecting and changing the way humanitarian and development organizations collectively operate.
“There are exciting developments that now allow aid agencies to communicate and deliver services far more effectively than in the past both in humanitarian crises and development,” she said.
“Technological advances in areas like health and agriculture have had a dramatically positive impact on the lives of the poor and hungry. Technology also presents new ways to transfer cash or food rations to beneficiaries through the use of coupons or vouchers, bank cards and even cell phones.”
“However, not all technology is appropriate and even the technology itself can sometimes be seen as a cultural intrusion,” the Princess went on to say.
“Further complicating the picture is who has access to technology. If you had to assign a gender to technology it would most certainly be male and in the developing world men have far greater access to it, whether you are talking about something as simple as a cell phone or a complex mainframe computer. But our targets in humanitarian aid are far more likely directed at women and children who remain outside the circles of technology and market capitalism. This presents another significant challenge.”
After the opening ceremony, Princess Haya then toured DIHAD’s exhibitions. The programs involved included the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Humanitarian and Charity Establishment, the UAE Red Crescent Society, the Tkiyet Umm Ali, the International Humanitarian City (IHC) and World Food Programme (WFP).
DIHAD is one of the largest humanitarian conferences in the world. It attracts local and international figures in the humanitarian efforts field.
Source: Zawya
 Click here to see more Princess Haya pics For the 16th Dubai World Cup horse racing competition, the wife of the Sheikh of Dubai, Princess Haya, brought along her 3 year old daughter, Sheikha Al Jalila bint Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum.
Haya was every bit the doting mother as she carried Al Jalila to the Maydan Race Course. She hugged her daughter often and also played with her hair.
Even Al Jalila’s father, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, who is also Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, held his little girl during the horse races.
The Meydan racecourse holds about 60,000 spectators in a one-mile long grandstand, hosted the second World Cup on Saturday with total prize money of $26 million.
This year’s winner was Victoire Pisa.
Princess Haya, who is half-sister of Jordan’s King Abdullah II, is president of the FEI – International Equestrian Federation. Both she and Sheikh Mohammed have a passion for horses.
Source: Gulf News
Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria began her four day visit to the United Arab Emirates Monday. Her official visit consists of going to four of the seven emirates, meeting with sheikhs, touring medical facilities and promoting Swedish products.
 KARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty Images She started her trip by attending the opening day of the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi, where she was its keynote speaker.
“I am delighted to once again visit the United Arab Emirates,” Victoria began her speech. “Additionally, to be given the opportunity to take part in the World Future Energy Summit is a great honor for me. I would like to thank His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, for hosting this important Summit.”
The Crown Princess went on to discuss renewable energy and eco-friendly technology in Sweden.
“My country, Sweden has the highest share of renewable energy within the European Union. Both Sweden and Europe have high ambitions to further increase our share of renewable energy by 2020. In the area of green technology and sustainable cities, Sweden has well developed and extensive district heating networks, which can use the local available energy sources such as waste heat and other renewables. Heating may not be the most dire need here in the United Arab Emirates but the same principle may be used in the district cooling networks, which I know are more useful in this region. So one could say, that cooling is a hot issue.
“Furthermore, over the past decades the economy in Sweden has continued to grow. This growth has occurred at the same time as our energy efficiency and share of renewable energy have increased significantly. But nothing happens in isolation — we need to work across national borders. We have many things in common and important lessons to learn from each other. Both success stories and mistakes are of value in this process.”
Victoria then talked about how all members of society need to play a role in creating an environmentally aware community. She even pointed out that such action takes individual responsibility in order to make it happen.
“To be able to meet the long term challenges of climate change and also to address global and regional energy challenges, we need to work closely together,” Victoria said as she closed her speech.
Following her opening of the summit, the Crown Princess then officially opened the Swedish pavilion at the location, and attended a panel with young future energy leaders.
Later on, she visited the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the Masdar Institute and inaugurated the Swedish SymbioCity Office at Masdar City. Crown Princess Victoria also opened the new IKEA store on Yas Island.
Tuesday saw her go to Dubai, where she went to the Swedish LEED Platinum certified ESAB facilities in Jebel Ali Free Zone and stopped by the Scandinavian Seaman’s Center.
On Wednesday, Victoria will go to Ajman and visit the Rashid Centre for Diabetes and Research which is working in cooperation with Swedish Global Health Partners.
As for Thursday, Victoria will end her visit by going to the Fujairah emirate and see the EWW-WWF Wadi Wurayah Mountain Protected Area.
It is not known why her husband, Prince Daniel, did not accompany her on this trip.
Sources: Kungehuset.se, Embassy of Sweden Abu Dhabi
Princess Haya, the wife of the Sheikh of Dubai, was re-elected as president of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) on Friday during a voting session in Taiwan. The Jordanian-born Haya won 90 of 124 votes cast to win the required two-thirds majority. She will serve a second four year term.
 REUTERS/Caren Firouz/FILE “Thank you so much for your confidence and trust. I promise that I won’t let you down,” 36 year-old Princess Haya told delegates. “I am truly humbled by what you have done for me.”
She beat opponents Sven Holmberg of Sweden, who was the FEI vice president and got 23 votes, and Dutchman Henk Rottinghuis who got only 11 votes.
Haya won despite the controversy surrounding her first term. There were some saying she created a undemocratic atmosphere as she served as president.
“I took criticism seriously, and I have learned a lot, ” she said, adding that the greatest lesson she has learned was that it is important to cope with diverse cultures and deal with people in an international organization.
The Princess, who is the half-sister of Jordan’s King Abdullah II, competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics in the equestrian event.
She has made it her mission to avoid any doping of the horses in the sport.
This will be Princess Haya’s last time as FEI President. One of the rules she changed in her first term was to have a two-term, four year presidency. Her tenure will end in 2014.
Sources: AP, Focus Taiwan News Channel
The wife of the Sheikh of Dubai, Princess Haya, is to run again as president of International Equestrian Federation (FEI). She announced this on Saturday, when the Princess published her program for re-election.
 STR/AFP/Getty Images “It has been a great privilege to serve as President of the FEI for the past four years, and I would be honored to have the opportunity to consolidate the gains and the progress we have made in a second and final term,” Haya said in a statement.
In Princess Haya’s outline, she pledges to develop an FEI Solidarity Program, based on the Olympic Solidarity model with athlete representation and full voting rights at FEI executive board level. She also plans to make formal connections between the FEI, racing, polo and other equine sport organizations.
Princess Haya even pledged that transportation and quarantine challenges will be addressed through compulsory microchipping of equestrian sport horses.
Additionally, there are plans for the FEI’s Veterinary Department to organize a full-fledged transport and quarantine section so eventually the FEI can ultimately ship the horses of the National Equestrian Federations to FEI championships.
“This is a wonderful time for our sport, which is growing around the world and attracting ever-increasing audiences,” Haya said in her statement.
“This has been a time to reflect on learnings and accomplishments, while also exploring ways that the FEI can better support National Federations and athletes; I’m very excited to share my program ideas, which have been born of my conversations with National Federations and members of our sporting family around the world. Any election is about the future; it’s a time to re-clarify our long-term goals and the steps we can take to strengthen our Federation and our sport. While I’m delighted with how far we’ve come, there is so much more we can do together, and I’m eager to have the opportunity to continue to lead our Federation’s transformation.”
The Princess, who is half-sister to Jordan’s King Abdullah II, was elected to the FEI in 2006 with the intention of modernizing the organization. She was the first to win an contested election for the FEI.
Among her achievements during her first term, Haya improved the FEI’s communications, marketing, animal welfare, finances, grass roots development and liaison with national federations. She also limited the presidency term to two four year terms.
The Princess began competing in equestrian sports when she was 13, and even represented Jordan in the 2000 Summer Olympic Games.
The election of the new FEI president will take place on November 5th in Taipei, Taiwan.
Sources: Gulf News, WAM
As president of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI), it is Princess Haya of Dubai’s position to oversee the development of equestrianism throughout the world. In Moscow Thursday, she was at the ceremonial signing of a memorandum on the development of equestrian sports, and on holding international competitions and establishment of a federal training center in Russia.
 profimedia.cz, Topfoto/RIA News, Ilya Pitalev With the Princess was Russia’s Minister of Sport, Tourism and Youth Policy, Vitaly Mutko, and the Equestrian Federation of Russia (COFEPRIS), Dmitry Titov.
Haya stressed the importance of signing the memorandum, noting that “Russia has made a significant contribution to the development of equestrian sport.”
“I am very pleased that we have reached full understanding with the Equestrian Federation of Russia and the Ministry on all matters relating to the future of equestrian sports. This is truly a happy day for our federation and, in general, our sport.”
According to Titov, the Federal Center for Development of equestrian sport will produce not only Russian athletes but also to help representatives of the Baltic States and other former Soviet countries. He stressed Russia’s past victories in equestrian.
“We have had successes up to the 1980s. In dressage, a very subjective discipline, we were on a 2-3-4 head and shoulders above the other contenders,” Titov said.
Source: RIA News
The investment company controlled by the ruler of Dubai wants to extend its debt payback by three months. This had raised questions on just how far deep are Dubai’s credit problems.
 Chris Jackson/Getty Images/FILE Dubai International Capital, owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, said in a short statement Thursday that it has asked lenders for an extension “of certain maturities” until September 30.
“The extension period would allow the implementation of a consensual longer term plan that would enable DIC to maximize the value of its business for the benefit of all its stakeholders,” the company said.
DIC did not give more details of its debt involved. The company has a $1.25 billion loan coming in June.
“The extension period would allow the implementation of a consensual longer-term plan that would enable DIC to maximise the value of its business for the benefit of all its stakeholders,” said the DIC.
DIC will “continue to pay interest” during the extension period, its spokeswoman said.
The parent firm of DIC – Dubai Holding, which is also run by the Sheikh – is believed to have debts mounting to a total of $15 billion. The International Monetary Firm believes the entire Sheikhdom is about $109 billion in debt.
Sources: AP, Big Pond News
Princess Haya inaugurated the seventh annual Dubai International Humanitarian Aid and Development conference (DIHAD) on Sunday, which had this year’s theme as “Global Health Challenges of Tomorrow: Impact & Response.” Several international organizations gathered to discussed the recent humanitarian crisis in Haiti, food shortage and climate change.
 Petra News Agency During DIHAD’s opening ceremony, Haya spoke of the need to bring changes to humanitarianism as its demand grows.
“The traditional solution to hunger is simply to produce more food – more wheat, maize or rice. It is not that simple. We need the right foods for the right people at the right times in their lives. To deal with hunger effectively, we need to target our interventions better,” she said. “Ultimately, we need to modify behaviors and encourage healthy lifestyles in order to reduce the soaring burden.”
The Princess also voiced her concern about the way aid money is raised and spent.
“Too often there is a humanitarian industry or a humanitarian bureaucracy that consumes too much of what is donated,” she said. “If we are to make progress on issues like hunger or the epidemic of obesity and cope with the massive humanitarian emergencies, the culture of aid must change.”
“The biggest global health challenges that we will face tomorrow are the ones we are creating today,” she continued. “Globalization, population growth, and climate change, all man-made, will have significant impacts on health.”
Haya also mentioned two major food problems: hunger and obesity, both of which are and will cause more health issues in the future.
“Despite a sharp rise in obesity rates, under-nutrition is still probably the greatest immediate threat to global health because it plays such a large role in deaths among young children,” she said. “But, the tsunami-like surge of overeating occurring worldwide is now creating a massive public health challenge in the form of non-communicable diseases like diabetes, stroke and heart disease.”
After DIHAD’s opening ceremony, Princess Haya was given a tour of the exhibits and stands set up for the conference. In this way, she met over 275 humanitarian and charity associations, relief agencies, NGOs, donors and procurers. Some of them included UNICEF, the World Food Program and the UAE Red Crescent Society.
Sources: Zawya, The National
|
|
Recent Comments