BEIRUT: Lebanon’s finance minister said on Tuesday there was no need for more talks over the 2019 draft budget, seen as a vital test of the government’s will to reform, although the foreign minister signalled the debate may go on.
The cabinet says the budget will reduce the deficit to 7.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) from last year’s 11.2%. Lebanon has one of the world’s heaviest public debt burdens at 150% of GDP.
“There is no longer need for too much talking or anything that calls for delay. I have presented all the numbers in their final form,” Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil said.
But Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil suggested the debate may go on, telling reporters: “The budget is done when it’s done.”
While Lebanon has dragged its feet on reforms for years, its sectarian leaders appear more serious this time, warning of a catastrophe if there is no serious action. Their plans have triggered protests and strikes by state workers and army retirees worried about their pensions.
President Michel Aoun on Tuesday repeated his call for Lebanese to sacrifice “a little“: “(If) we want to hold onto all privileges without sacrifice, we will lose them all.”
“We import from abroad, we don’t produce anything ... So what we did was necessary and the citizens won’t realize its importance until after they feel its positive results soon,” Aoun said, noting Lebanon’s $80 billion debt mountain.
A draft of the budget seen by Reuters included a three-year freeze on all forms of hiring and a cap on bonus and overtime benefits.
It also includes a 2% levy on imports including refined oil products and excluding medicine and primary inputs for agriculture and industry, said Youssef Finianos, minister of public works and transport.
“DEVIL IN THE DETAIL“
Marwan Mikhael, head of research at Blominvest Bank, said investors would welcome the additional efforts in the latest draft to cut the deficit.
“There will be some who claim it is not good because they were hit by the decline in spending or increased taxes, but it should be well viewed by the international community,” he said.
Jason Tuvey, senior emerging markets economist at Capital Economics, said: “The numbers will be of some comfort to investors, but the devil will be in the detail.”
“Even if the authorities do manage to rein in the deficit, it probably won’t be enough to stabilize the debt ratio and some form of restructuring looks increasingly likely over the next couple of years,” Tuvey said.
The government said in January it was committed to paying all maturing debt and interest payments on the predetermined dates.
Lebanon’s main expenses are a bloated public sector, interest payments on public debt and transfers to the loss-making power generator, for which a reform plan was approved in April. The state is riddled with corruption and waste.
Serious reforms should help Lebanon tap into some $11 billion of project financing pledged at a Paris donors’ conference last year.
Once approved by cabinet, the draft budget must be debated and passed by parliament. While no specific timetable is in place for those steps, Aoun has previously said he wants the budget approved by parliament by the end of May.
On Monday, veterans fearing cuts to their pensions and benefits burned tires outside the parliament building where the cabinet met. Police used water cannon to drive them back.
No need for more talks over draft budget: Lebanon finance minister
No need for more talks over draft budget: Lebanon finance minister
- Lebanon’s proposed austerity budget may please international lenders but it could enrage sectors of society
- Lebanon has one of the world’s heaviest public debt burdens at 150 percent of GDP
Saudi chemicals giant SABIC targeting net zero by 2050, CEO says
- SABIC aims to convert 1 million tons of waste into feedstock for the petrochemical industry by 2030, Al-Fageeh said
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s top chemicals company is turning to circular economy solutions to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and advance the Kingdom’s net-zero agenda, its CEO has said.
Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh, CEO of the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation, was speaking at the “Demand for Energy ... Transforming Costs into Gains” panel during the special meeting of the World Economic Forum in Riyadh.
SABIC aims to convert 1 million tons of waste into feedstock for the petrochemical industry by 2030, he said.
The circular carbon economy has helped the chemicals sector expand its investment horizon since 2020, he added.
Al-Fageeh said that SABIC marked achievements in energy efficiency and reduced its carbon footprint at the end of 2023 by 12.74 percent. The company is targeting carbon neutrality by 2050.
SABIC has also adopted alternative energy from plastic waste, seeking to produce 1 million tons of sustainably sourced chemicals by 2030.
Energy efficiency
Al-Fageeh said that his company had started sustainability programs at an early stage, improved reliability, developed 90 initiatives and projects, and closed a number of sites due to ineffectiveness.
In 2023, SABIC had more than 200 patents, 40 percent of which related to sustainability in energy efficiency.
Concierge robots set to become reality in the hospitality sector
RIYADH: A personal robot concierge is set to become a reality as a new wave of technological innovation takes the spotlight during the Future Hospitality Summit in Riyadh.
In an interview with Arab News during the event, Janet Adams, chief operating officer of global artificial intelligence company SingularityNET, shared details about a new humanoid robot expected to revolutionize the hospitality sector.
“One of our projects which we are pioneering right now is the development of a new class of humanoid robots specifically designed for the service industries,” Adam told Arab News.
“Imagine going to stay in a hotel where you’ve connected with your robot before you go there. They know everything you want. They can greet you at the door because you’ve been chatting as an avatar,” she said.
“And then after you leave, they can stay in touch with you and they can be like a loyalty ambassador, robotic avatar, friend for life who understands your needs, who understands what you enjoy, who makes everything perfect for you in your stay in the hospitality industry,” Adams added.
She further explained that the development, known as the Mind Children project, will roll out its pilot in early 2025.
Furthermore, Adams shared that the company is working on a new breed of technological advancement for AI in language models in the Middle East.
The company is working with Zarqa, a Middle Eastern AI firm part of SingularityNET’s ecosystem, to significantly improve AI language models.
“What we’re doing is we’re taking the best of today’s large language model technology, and we’re infusing it with the best of tomorrow’s artificial general intelligence technology, because we’re leaders in the field of artificial general intelligence,” Adams explained.
“And sometime within the next 12 to 24 months, we expect to see enormous breakthroughs where the limitations of today’s language models are overcome, where we can bring human level reasoning or human style reasoning into our robots and therefore give them the capability to be creative, to understand their environment, to really, truly contribute as a, for example, to hospitality services,” she added.
During the event, SingularityNET also showcased Desdemona, a humanoid robot and the lead vocalist of the Jam Galaxy Band.
“She runs up a huge array of advanced artificial intelligence models. She’s working with vision, with speech processing. We work with toxicity filters. We work with emotion recognition, facial recognition. We have a variety of AI models, including Markov decision-making and generative adversarial networks,” she explained.
“And a bunch of the most advanced AI that’s available on the planet. Together. All work together in this, in what looks like a seamless operation of multiple modules working together. She’s truly a highly advanced miracle of modern AI,” Adams added.
Brazilian energy official from Riyadh: ‘We are on our way to join OPEC+’
- Mendes stressed the importance of South-South cooperation, noting his country’s relationship with Egypt and Saudi Arabia
RIYADH: Pietro Mendes, Secretary of Oil, Gas and Biofuels at Brazil’s Ministry of Mines and Energy, confirmed on Monday that his country is on its way to joining the OPEC+ alliance.
Mendes’ announcement came during his participation in a session titled “Energy Demand: Transforming Costs into Profits” during the special meeting of the World Economic Forum held in Riyadh.
Brazil ranks ninth in the world in oil production at 3.25 million barrels per day.
“Brazil is joining OPEC+. So, the idea is to create cooperation because there (are) differences between regions and we don’t have just one single solution that comes from us or a union; we need to recognize all the solutions,” the Brazilian official said, adding while his country continues to produce oil and gas, it is simultaneously increasing reliance on renewable energies and adopting solutions to reduce emissions.
Mendes stressed the importance of South-South cooperation, noting his country’s relationship with Egypt and Saudi Arabia, where several initiatives are being developed for cooperation in biofuels and technology, including artificial intelligence, is being adopted to reduce carbon emissions.
‘Headquarters of your life’ coming to Saudi Arabia, says Wyndham Hotels regional president
RIYADH: HQ, the new hospitality brand launched by Wyndham Hotels & Resorts and renowned hotelier Sam Nazarian, is set to arrive in Saudi Arabia by the end of 2025, Arab News has been told.
Dimitris Manikis, president of Europe, the Middle East, Eurasia and Africa, at the hospitality group, unveiled the company’s ambitious plans for the Kingdom – including the launch of HQ – at the Future Hospitality Summit in Riyadh.
Speaking to Arab News, Manikis shared insights into Wyndham’s steadfast commitment to Saudi Arabia’s flourishing hospitality landscape, saying: “We are very serious and very bullish about our presence in the Kingdom.”
He added: “We’re really excited to bring this new brand into Saudi Arabia as well, because it’s about smart luxury. It’s about F&B (food and beverage), entertainment, music, and it’s about smart hospitality as well.”
Manikis went on to say: “In the next 18 months, you’re going to have the first HQ brand in Saudi Arabia.”
Citing Nazarian’s track record of success with brands like Mondrian, Delano, and SLS, Manikis said: “Sam is notoriously famous for bringing up new concepts and ideas. So when I asked him: ‘What exactly is HQ and why would you call it brand HQ?’, he said: ‘I want the brand to be the headquarters of your life.’”
The President added: “I have no doubt whatsoever that HQ will be an amazing brand to grow in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in particular.”
Manikis reflected on Wyndham's impressive footprint across the Kingdom, which includes a robust pipeline of 20 upcoming projects. Notable among these ventures are the imminent openings of the Ramada hotels.
Additionally, the introduction of Wyndham Garden last year marked a significant milestone in the company’s strategic expansion efforts.
The optimism surrounding Saudi Arabia’s tourism prospects was palpable in Manikis’ remarks, citing the Kingdom’s remarkable achievement of surpassing the Vision 2030 tourism target of 100 million visitors in 2023.
“The bar has gone to 150 million tourists,” he remarked, highlighting Saudi Arabia’s accelerated progress towards becoming a global tourism destination.
However, he cautioned against neglecting the crucial role of infrastructure development in sustaining this growth momentum.
“Infrastructure, planes, airports, railways, roads, highways,” Manikis said, stressing the necessity of robust infrastructure to accommodate the influx of tourists.
Commending the government’s proactive measures, including the launch of a new airline and airport expansions, he expressed confidence in Saudi Arabia’s readiness to meet escalating demand.
“I do believe that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is actually going to fulfill the promise. And they're going to have an amazing Expo (2030). I don't think there's going to be any doubt about that,” he said.
As anticipation mounts for marquee events like the Expo and the FIFA World Cup in 2034, Manikis underscored the importance of post-event planning.
“It's not just about the event, it’s about what you do after,” he cautioned, advocating for sustainable strategies to leverage event infrastructure effectively beyond the festivities.
In addition to the HQ brand, Wyndham is poised to capitalize on the burgeoning extended stay segment.
“We are very bullish on extended stay,” Manikis stated, recognizing its potential to cater to diverse clientele, including families, business travelers, and digital nomads.
He added: “We added 11 beautiful luxury, extended stay products. And hopefully we’re going to extend the extended stay concept here in the Kingdom as well.”
IsDB, SFD, Arab Coordination Group join hands to raise $500m for education initiatives
RIYADH: A global partnership involving the Islamic Development Bank will inject $500 million into educational initiatives across member countries of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation.
During the annual meetings and golden jubilee celebrations of the IsDB, the Arab Coordination Group and the Saudi Fund for Development also joined The Global Partnership for Education, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The Global Partnership for Education is a multi-stakeholder partnership and funding platform that aims to strengthen education systems in developing countries.
The amount will be raised by the Smart Finance for Education Initiative, an innovative financing tool.
Moreover, partners also pledged an additional $350 million to the initiative, including $150 million from the IsDB, $100 million from the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, and $50 million from The Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development as well as $50 million from the Global Partnership for Education.
The initiative aims to enhance access to quality education in 37 OIC member countries, where 28 million children are without schooling.
Also at the event, the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit, a member of the IsDB concerned with providing Shariah-compliant insurance services, signed a retakaful agreement for a percentage of the shares allocated to Indonesia for the benefit of the country’s Eximbank.
A retakaful agreement is an Islamic reinsurance contract where takaful operators transfer a portion of their risk to a retakaful operator in compliance with Shariah principles.
The arrangement aims to provide strategic expertise and capabilities in the field of retakaful through a quota-sharing treaty specifically designed to support the launch of the financial institution’s new export credit takaful program product.
This comes as the business expected to be insured under this treaty is estimated at a value of $13 million during the year 2024.
During the IsDB annual meetings and jubilee celebrations, the bank’s president, Mohammed Sulaiman Al-Jasser, confirmed that the entity has designed a strategy for eco-conscious growth and low carbon reduction by supporting members to reach the zero-carbon goal.
Al-Jasser also pointed out that 40 of the bank’s projects are about renewable energy, green projects, and financing climate action.
He underlined the bank’s focus on green initiatives and sustainable development sukuk, indicating they are compatible with the Capital Markets Union standard.
The IsDB’s 2024 annual meetings are being held under the patronage of King Salman bin Abdulaziz in Riyadh from April 27 - 30.
The annual sessions coincide with IsDB’s golden jubilee, as the institution celebrates 50 years of promoting economic and social development in 57 member nations under the slogan “Taking pride in our past, shaping our future: authenticity, solidarity, and prosperity" reflecting the bank’s legacy and future goals.
