Sir Martin Sorrell, the chief executive of WPP, said it was important to have a 'focal point' to track progress. Ruben Sprich / Reuters
Sir Martin Sorrell, the chief executive of WPP, said it was important to have a 'focal point' to track progress. Ruben Sprich / Reuters
Sir Martin Sorrell, the chief executive of WPP, said it was important to have a 'focal point' to track progress. Ruben Sprich / Reuters
Sir Martin Sorrell, the chief executive of WPP, said it was important to have a 'focal point' to track progress. Ruben Sprich / Reuters

Business

WPP’s Sorrell wants Egypt the Future to be held annually

Sir Martin Sorrell says it was important to have a 'focal point' to track the economy's progress.

Sean Cronin

July 21, 2017

  • English
  • Arabic

SHARM EL SHEIKH // The chief of the world's biggest advertising company has called for the Egypt the Future conference to become an annual event.

Sir Martin Sorrell, the chief executive of WPP, said it was important to have a “focal point” to track progress.

“It is very important for there to be a focal point for industrial development and investment and this could very well become a regular event,” he said in an interview on the sidelines of the Egypt the Future conference in the Red Sea resort city.

The event which brought together more than 2,000 delegates, heads of state and the chiefs of some of the world’s largest corporations, winds up today.

The conference, unprecedented in its scale for Egypt, was aimed at assuring potential investors that the rewards of investing in the country outweigh the risks.

The Arab world’s most populous country is emerging from four years of political chaos and political stagnation in the aftermath of the 2011 uprising that ousted Egypt’s long standing president, Hosni Mubarak.

He said that Egypt represented a big opportunity for WPP at a time of slow global growth in the advertising industry this year.

“This year continues to be tough,” he said. “So you look at a country with 90 million people that has good education rates, good consumer demographics good GDP growth. That is something companies will find very attractive. It is rare you find opportunities of this size from a fast growth market.

WPP was involved in organising the event through its stake in Richard Attias & Associates.

scronin@thenational.ae

Follow The National's Business section on Twitter

More on Quran memorisation:
While you're here
When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi

  

 

 

 

Known as The Lady of Arabic Song, Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi on November 28, 1971, as part of celebrations for the fifth anniversary of the accession of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi. A concert hall was constructed for the event on land that is now Al Nahyan Stadium, behind Al Wahda Mall. The audience were treated to many of Kulthum's most well-known songs as part of the sold-out show, including Aghadan Alqak and Enta Omri.

 
UAE jiu-jitsu squad

Men: Hamad Nawad and Khalid Al Balushi (56kg), Omar Al Fadhli and Saeed Al Mazroui (62kg), Taleb Al Kirbi and Humaid Al Kaabi (69kg), Mohammed Al Qubaisi and Saud Al Hammadi (70kg), Khalfan Belhol and Mohammad Haitham Radhi (85kg), Faisal Al Ketbi and Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)

Women: Wadima Al Yafei and Mahra Al Hanaei (49kg), Bashayer Al Matrooshi and Hessa Al Shamsi (62kg)

More coverage from the Future Forum
Tomorrow 2021
India team for Sri Lanka series

Test squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Priyank Panchal, Mayank Agarwal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Shubhman Gill, Rishabh Pant (wk), KS Bharath (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Sourabh Kumar, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.

T20 squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Surya Kumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Deepak Hooda, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Avesh Khan

On Women's Day
While you're here
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

On sale: Now

Killing of Qassem Suleimani
What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

if you go

The flights

Etihad, Emirates and Singapore Airlines fly direct from the UAE to Singapore from Dh2,265 return including taxes. The flight takes about 7 hours.

The hotel

Rooms at the M Social Singapore cost from SG $179 (Dh488) per night including taxes.

The tour

Makan Makan Walking group tours costs from SG $90 (Dh245) per person for about three hours. Tailor-made tours can be arranged. For details go to www.woknstroll.com.sg

Know before you go
  • Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
  • If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
  • By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
  • Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
  • Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.

 

Tomorrow 2021
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood

Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.

Plastic tipping points
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
More from this story
Read more
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Plastic tipping point
On Women's Day
While you're here
Plastic tipping points
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Zayed Sustainability Prize
More from Aya Iskandarani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

Neighbourhood Watch
While you're here
On Women's Day
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Generation Start-up: Awok company profile

Started: 2013

Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev

Sector: e-commerce

Size: 600 plus

Stage: still in talks with VCs

Principal Investors: self-financed by founder

While you're here
Whiile you're here
More on this story
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458. 

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

Sharm el SheikhEgyptTechnologyEconomy