The UAE Space Agency and Masdar have teamed up to establish the country’s first space economic zone in Abu Dhabi’s Masdar City in a bid to encourage the growth of SpaceTech start-ups and allow its private sector to tap into the burgeoning space industry.
The new zone will create an integrated business ecosystem to further the growth of space industry. It will create a competitive private sector, build national capabilities and contribute to the country’s economic growth, the entities said in a joint statement on Thursday.
Space is the next frontier of business growth set to propel the national economy for the next 50 years, Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri, UAE Minister of State for Advanced Technology and chairwoman of the UAE Space Agency, said.
“This programme is a game-changer that will take our flourishing space industry to the next level while simultaneously building on the UAE’s established position as a global hub for talent, investment and innovation,” she said.
The new space economic zone will offer world-class infrastructure and an enabling environment to encourage the development of the national space industry.
It will offer businesses an integrated package of benefits including incubation, office space, mentorship, networking, investment opportunities, priority access to government contracts and closer co-operation with global research centres.
“Our aim is not only to drive entrepreneurship and economic development within the fast-growing space sector, but to attract and foster the most talented professionals from across the region and beyond,” Masdar chief executive Mohamed Al Ramahi said.
The strategic agreement between the UAE Space Agency and Masdar was signed at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2022.
Under the scheme, the Masdar City free zone will issue tailor-made business licences for space-related companies across the launch sector, satellite communication, logistics, data analysis, science, technology, engineering and much more, according to a media statement.
Masdar City is home to several education, strategic research centres, businesses and serves as the headquarters of the UAE Space Agency and the International Renewable Energy Agency.
The UAE Space Agency’s space economic zone programme has four key pillars – the space economy accelerator group, space labs, space government services and work space.
It aims to create a sustainable and effective framework to facilitate public-private partnerships, build an attractive and integrated business environment for local and global companies, support the growth of national space technologies and services, and stimulate innovation.
The new agreement “underpins our high-impact strategy to enhance the competitiveness of the private sector and stimulate innovation”, Salem Butti Salem Al Qubaisi, director general of the UAE Space Agency, said.
“We are excited about this new stage of growth for the space industry which will power the UAE during our next 50 years of human progress.”
Results
2pm: Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (Dirt) 1,200m, Winner: Mouheeb, Tom Marquand (jockey), Nicholas Bachalard (trainer)
2.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Honourable Justice, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
3pm: Handicap (TB) Dh84,000 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Dahawi, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
3.30pm: Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Dark Silver, Fernando Jara, Ahmad bin Harmash
4pm: Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Dark Of Night. Antonio Fresu, Al Muhairi.
4.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Habah, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Checks continue
A High Court judge issued an interim order on Friday suspending a decision by Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots to direct a stop to Brexit agri-food checks at Northern Ireland ports.
Mr Justice Colton said he was making the temporary direction until a judicial review of the minister's unilateral action this week to order a halt to port checks that are required under the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Civil servants have yet to implement the instruction, pending legal clarity on their obligations, and checks are continuing.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
MATCH INFO
Leeds United 0
Brighton 1 (Maupay 17')
Man of the match: Ben White (Brighton)
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani