British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke with UN Secretary-General, António Guterres and Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation on two separate calls on Tuesday evening. AP
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke with UN Secretary-General, António Guterres and Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation on two separate calls on Tuesday evening. AP
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke with UN Secretary-General, António Guterres and Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation on two separate calls on Tuesday evening. AP
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke with UN Secretary-General, António Guterres and Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation on two separate calls on Tue

Coronavirus: Boris Johnson discusses pandemic with UN and WHO chiefs


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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organisation, on Tuesday evening.

“In both calls, the prime minister set out the UK’s support for the international effort to defeat coronavirus and for the work of the UN and WHO in helping to co-ordinate the global response,” a Downing Street spokesman said.

“The Prime Minister and Dr Tedros agreed on the importance of an independent investigation into the origins of the coronavirus outbreak, so we can learn lessons to prevent future pandemics.

Mr Johnson confirmed to Mr Guterres that he would take part in the UN’s video conference, Financing for Development in the Era of Covid-19, on Thursday.

And the leaders of the two world bodies repeated their support for the Global Vaccine Summit to be hosted by Britain on June 4.

The summit "will raise vital funds to save the lives of millions of children worldwide", Downing Street said.

The virtual summit seeks to raise at least $7.4 billion (Dh27.18bn) to support research into vaccines to reduce disease inequality.

The event will help the Global Vaccine Alliance to secure support to immunise 300 million children and save up to 8 million lives by 2025.

It will also strengthen health systems around the world and help to tackle coronavirus in some of the world’s poorest countries.

The summit will bring together private and public sector global leaders, who will try to build long-term sustainability and vaccine supply security.

Mr Johnson has called on countries to come together in a “truly global effort” to defeat Covid-19.

Last week, Gavi, the WHO and Unicef warned that about 80 million children were at risk as the coronavirus pandemic disrupted progress to provide vaccines for other diseases.

The three organisations said the Covid-19 pandemic would disrupt work on life-saving immunisation programmes around the world for diseases including diphtheria, measles and polio.

SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20S23%20ULTRA
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Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

Available: Now

Key developments in maritime dispute

2000: Israel withdraws from Lebanon after nearly 30 years without an officially demarcated border. The UN establishes the Blue Line to act as the frontier. 

2007: Lebanon and Cyprus define their respective exclusive economic zones to facilitate oil and gas exploration. Israel uses this to define its EEZ with Cyprus

2011: Lebanon disputes Israeli-proposed line and submits documents to UN showing different EEZ. Cyprus offers to mediate without much progress.

2018: Lebanon signs first offshore oil and gas licencing deal with consortium of France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Russia’s Novatek.

2018-2019: US seeks to mediate between Israel and Lebanon to prevent clashes over oil and gas resources.

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed

Based: Muscat

Launch year: 2018

Number of employees: 40

Sector: Online food delivery

Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception 

'Outclassed in Kuwait'
Taleb Alrefai, 
HBKU Press 

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates

Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

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Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

Classification from Tour de France after Stage 17

1. Chris Froome (Britain / Team Sky) 73:27:26"

2. Rigoberto Uran (Colombia / Cannondale-Drapac) 27"

3. Romain Bardet (France / AG2R La Mondiale)

4. Fabio Aru (Italy / Astana Pro Team) 53"

5. Mikel Landa (Spain / Team Sky) 1:24"

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

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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

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The alternatives

• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.

• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.

• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.

2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.

• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases -  but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.

Game Changer

Director: Shankar 

Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram

Rating: 2/5

Naga
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