The National Commercial Bank (NCB) participates as main sponsor of the “Jeddah-28” festival, which began on Thursday at the Jeddah Corniche with the support of Makkah Governor Prince Khaled Al-Faisal. The festival will continue for 45 days. NCB CEO Abdulkareem Abu AlNasr said the sponsorship of the festival reflected the bank’s allegiance to the Kingdom and its eagerness to support national development across different areas. He hoped that the festival, which is distinct and unique in its activities, would contribute to supporting national tourism strategy and achieve further growth of Jeddah, which is rich in cultural diversity. AlSharif Khalid Al-Ghalib, head of the bank’s individual banking sector who received the honorary plaque from the Makkah governor said that the festival had become one of the most prominent tourist events in the Kingdom.

Motorola

Motorola, Inc. has announced the appointment of Andrew Morley as vice president, marketing for mobile devices in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Morley has assumed responsibility for overseeing Motorola’s mobile device marketing and brand communications strategy across the region, while ensuring prominence for Motorola’s current and upcoming mobile device portfolio. “I relish the opportunity to work at this level with this great brand, in so many diverse markets, at this crucial period in the mobile industry,” Morley said. Most recently, Morley served as the group marketing director at Harrods, where he managed marketing and strategic communications for the globally renowned retailer. Prior to this, he has served as a chief commercial officer within Cable and Wireless, as well as holding senior business development and marketing roles at BSkyB and Ford of Europe.

Al Mazaya

Al Mazaya Holding, a major property firm in the region, has announced the activation of the Al-Mazaya real estate index, the region’s first index that monitors property movement in the GCC, across a variety of realty sectors. The announcement follows the completion of all the technical preparations, such as installing the relevant real estate data and checking its outputs in accordance with the accurate statistical bases upon which the real estate indices will be issued, to demonstrate the changes occurring in property price fluctuations. Additionally, work on electronic applications has been achieved to enable Al-Mazaya to distribute its real estate data and figures to all concerned parties, as well as to the media. Rashid Al-Nafisi, chairman of Al-Mazaya Holding, said in Dubai: “Our vision has been not only to introduce competitive real estate projects, but also to make Al-Mazaya a reliable and trustworthy source.”

Cognos

Cognos, a world leader in business intelligence and performance management solutions, has won an International Stevie(r) Award for best product development team. The 2007 International Business Awards (IBAs) are claimed to be the only global, all-encompassing awards program honoring great performances in business. The Cognos product development team is being recognized for its R&D initiatives in the past year, particularly for the innovative development of the “Cognos 8 Go!” consumer modes. Extensions to the Cognos 8 Business Intelligence platform, the consumer modes, including Cognos 8 Go! Mobile, Search and Office, help improve decision-making and increase business intelligence user adoption rates within an organization by letting users view and consume reports, analyses, etc. “We have always fostered a culture of innovation at Cognos,” said Derek Morrison, regional GM, Cognos.

DIFC/DIB

DIFC Investments and Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) said yesterday that they had initiated a project to establish “Waqf Trust Services”, the first Islamic trust services provider in the world exclusively offering Shariah-compliant trust services, which will operate from the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), upon approval from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). The company is set to operate along the guidelines of the “Trust law of 2005”, enacted by Sheikh Mohammed ibn Rashid Al-Maktoum, vice president, prime minister of the UAE, ruler of Dubai and president of the DIFC. The law is primarily intended to ensure the proper succession and preservation of lineage while allowing families to manage their wealth in such a way as to guarantee the rightful disbursement of their inheritance while maintaining a strict adherence to Shariah guidelines.

Toshiba/ABM

In the Kick-Off Awards Presentation Ceremony that was held in Cape Town, South Africa recently, Arabian Business Machines Company (ABM) received a gold award from Toshiba. This prestigious award was presented to ABM in recognition of excellent sales performance of Toshiba Digital MFP in the Kingdom. This was the second consecutive award given to ABM due to its consistent growth in sales of Toshiba Digital Copiers (MFP). The award was received by Karar Hussain, country operations manager, who represented ABM at the ceremony. ABM is continuously endeavoring to set greater records of success in all segments of the Saudi market that include government, ministries, educational sector, large corporate and small medium business. In almost 130 years of business, Toshiba has consistently built on its solid resources in knowledge, skills and service excellence to achieve an enviable reputation for technical innovation and customer confidence.

Red Sea Housing

Red Sea Housing Services, a global leader in the manufacture of modular buildings in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, has begun distributing dividends for fiscal year 2006 at the rate of SR1.5 per share. Shareholders registered with the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) at the close of trading on May 5, 2007 will be eligible for the distribution. The company’s first general meeting, also held on May 5, 2007, approved the board of directors’ recommendation of SR1.5 per dividend. Dividends will be paid through direct transfer to shareholders’ accounts registered with Tadawul. However, shareholders whose accounts are not correct can visit any Riyad Bank branch in the Kingdom and receive their dividend after providing proper ID and their stock certificates. Red Sea Housing Services is a public company listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange that was established in 1986.

Velcan Energy

Paris (Euronext) listed sustainable energy company Velcan Energy has won a 40-year concession to build and operate a major hydro power concession in India. Velcan Energy, an independent renewable energy producer will invest 300m euros in the eastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh through its subsidiary based at the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), Velcan Energy Holdings (Dubai) Ltd. The four concessions (Pauk 50mw, Heo 90mw,Tato I 80mw, Hirit 84mw) are expected to generate revenues in excess of 90m euros and Ebitda of 84m Euros by 2012. The concessions will also generate carbon credits. The negotiation of the deal was conducted by a global team comprising executives from all three offices across Brazil, India and the UAE. Antoine Decitre, MD, Velcan Energy, said: “This is an important development for our Dubai-based subsidiary. We see DIFC as an important platform for our future growth.”

Emaar

Emaar Properties, a global property developer with a significant presence in 16 countries including Syria, has appointed Sarhad Haffar, an architecture and design management expert, as general manager of Emaar Syria SA. Haffar will identify new growth opportunities in the country and also focus on the development of Eighth Gate, Emaar’s pioneering master-planned neighborhood in Damascus developed in partnership with IGO, an offshore investment and property development company. “Syria is a key market in our international expansion drive and the $500 million Eighth Gate highlights our commitment to the country by developing mixed-use projects that create job opportunities for the local population, strengthen ancillary industries and promote economic growth,” said Dr. Nader Mohammed, regional managing director, Emaar International.

SEDD

Sharjah Economic Development Department honored two of its employees for their constant commitment and devotion to their work. Mohammed Kamel and Salem Juma Sahouh, who have long been recognized for their distinguished contribution to the worksite, received the honor of “Outstanding service employee” and “Employee of the month” respectively for June 2007 from Salim Saeed Al-Suwaidi, SEDD’s director of licensing and registration. Salim Saeed Al-Suwaidi said: “We are proud of the team at SEDD, especially because the members of this team are doing their best to improve the performance level of the department as a whole. The recognition is our way of saying ‘Thank you’ for your efforts, which made a difference here at SEDD.” The employee evaluation process, through which eligible recipients for these two awards are selected, entails various scoring criteria including punctuality and work attendance.