Bogota showcases local investment opportunities at Expo 2020 Dubai

 

 

Investment promotion agency Invest in Bogota meets with investors, business leaders and government representatives

 

 

January 28, 2022

 

 

The Invest in Bogota, a promotion agency for Bogota, Colombia is meeting with investors, business leaders and representatives of government entities at Expo 2020 Dubai to discuss growth opportunities in the capital city of Colombia and Latin America as a whole. Colombia is currently participating in the Expo, considered one of the world’s most important business meetings. 

 

Invest in Bogota is highlighting the city’s strengths in the areas of entrepreneurship and innovation and what makes it one of Latin America’s main markets. The organization’s Executive Director, Isabella Muñoz, leads the forum in showcasing the many investment opportunities available in local enterprises.

 

Muñoz said that Bogota is poised to attract investments from strategic markets such as the African Middle East and South Asia (MEASA). It will particularly put the spotlight on the more than 25 multi-sector projects in Colombia’s mobility and infrastructure sectors, including the second line of the Bogota Metro, CANOAS, and Bronx Creative District, among others.

 

"Bogota has to take advantage of this international window to strengthen trade relations with markets that are of great relevance and in which we have not historically positioned ourselves," noted Muñoz.

 

The organization is also holding meetings with government officials, entrepreneurs, and representatives of private equity funds and companies interested in investing and expanding in Colombia and the region.

The meetings form part of Bogota’s agenda to attract more international investments, promote major national infrastructure projects globally, generate new business partnerships, and boost the capital's export and tourism sectors.

 

"We are positioning the city as a benchmark in sustainability, competitiveness and tourism. In addition, we are working to strengthen alliances and international cooperation with strategic actors to generate resource mobilization, agendas, and activities for the benefit of the city, its businesspeople and entrepreneurs," said Carolina Durán, Bogota's Secretary of Economic Development.

 

These meetings will serve as the continuation of Bogota’s agenda at Expo Dubai, which began with the visit of Durán in November 2021. During her visit, Colombia made important advances in forging new alliances. These included the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding for the District Secretariat of Economic Development to become part of the Global Council of Innovative Entities.

 

Colombia has joined the ongoing Expo to highlight the country’s cultural heritage, innovations, and investment offerings, to name a few. As part of its efforts to attract more foreign investors, Colombia has initiated discussions for it to become a resident country in the Area 2071 incubator. This will provide 10 Colombian ventures with strategic access to funding and training opportunities.

Ministry of Economy & Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development sign MoU to consolidate federal & local efforts to host Investopia summit

 

 

 

 

H.E. Bin Touq: MoU in line with the wise leadership’s vision to develop cooperation and complementarity of roles in various economic fields and support the plans, principles & projects of the 50

 

H.E. Al Shorafa: Signing of the MoU forms part of Abu Dhabi government’s efforts to support and enhance federal and local initiatives to achieve national objectives of the UAE and the ‘Projects of the 50’

 

 

Abu Dhabi, 28 January 2022:

The Ministry of Economy signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) in order to consolidate efforts to support the targets of the upcoming Investopia summit at the federal and local levels.  The summit, set to be held on 28 March 2022 alongside Exp2020 Dubai, is one of the major strategic initiatives under the ‘Projects of the 50’ announced by the UAE Government.

 

The agreement was signed by H.E. Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of the Economy, on behalf of the Ministry of Economy; and H.E. Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa Al Hammadi, Chairman of ADDED.

 

During the ceremony, the Minister of Economy underlined the importance of strengthening integration between the federal and local levels in order to achieve national objectives in accordance with the vision and directives of the wise leadership. These include supporting economic development and strengthening of the UAE's position as a global destination for investments, particularly in the new economic sectors that support the implementation of the initiatives, principles, and projects of the 50. He noted that the signing of the MoU is a major step forward in supporting efforts to consolidate investment opportunities in the country to achieve the goals set by the Investopia summit.

 

H.E. Bin Touq explained that the Summit supports the national ambitions, investment attraction programs, and the UAE’s influential position in the global investment landscape. It is poised to achieve these goals through its ambitious target to enhance FDI inflows into the UAE over the next 10 years through a wide array of sectors in accordance with the latest global investment trends.

 

In addition, the Summit will advance the future of investments in the country in accordance with a new vision that focuses on future technologies, activities of the new economy, climate action and the adoption of community responsibility and governance standards. It supports the goals of the national inward and outward investment agenda by providing a key platform for stimulating FDI inflows into the UAE, which is a key strategic goal among the targets of the economy of the 50.

 

Furthermore, H.E. noted that the Summit is a global platform that seeks to accelerate the growth of various economic sectors, strengthen the UAE’s position as a destination for future investments, and generate innovative ideas in new economic sectors. In addition, it will serve as a platform that brings together the world's most ambitious visionaries, leaders, and investors to launch ideas, create opportunities, and invest in the future.

 

Commenting on the signing of the MoU, H.E. Al Shorafa said: “The signing of this agreement today forms part of Government of Abu Dhabi’s efforts to support and enhance federal and local efforts to achieve national objectives of the UAE and the ‘Projects of the 50’. It will strengthen our economic development, reinforcing the UAE’s status as a dynamic hub for investments, particularly in new economic sectors”.

 

H.E. Al Shorafa further emphasized the importance of Investopia as a platform to enhance the UAE’s position as a thriving business and investment destination, noting that the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) had recently listed the UAE as one of the top 20 global FDI destinations. “This reflects our relentless efforts to diversify economy and investments in infrastructure and human capital development. It also confirms the effectiveness of the UAE’s initiatives in improving business climate, competitiveness, ease of doing business, transparency, and governance”.

 

H.E. added: “The emirate of Abu Dhabi will continue its efforts to ensure an ideal environment for corporates, investors, and entrepreneurs, focusing on knowledge and innovation-based economic sectors. We are attracting and incentivizing those with talent in science, technology, research and development to help find solutions to current and future challenges. We have taken many steps to ensure ease of doing business and enhance regulations and systems to support innovators and entrepreneurs to make Abu Dhabi a preferred destination for investors”.

 

Under the terms of the MoU, the Ministry of the Economy and ADDED will work together to jointly announce future investment plans in the UAE and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi through the Investopia Summit. The two parties will also cooperate in hosting discussions and interactive sessions in the sectors and activities of the new economy, in the presence of decision makers and representatives of the regional and global business communities participating in the Summit. In addition, concerted efforts will be made to highlight business and investment projects and introduce global investors to promising opportunities and sectors in the UAE’s markets. Furthermore, the two sides will cooperate in inviting global and local stakeholders to attend the Investopia Summit and contribute to enriching its investment and new economy sessions.

 

The Investopia summit is one of the major strategic initiatives within the first set of the ‘Projects of the 50’ announced by the UAE Government. It is designed to provide a new global avenue to discuss future investment opportunities and support national ambitions and investment attraction programs. The Summit has set an ambitious target to enhance the inward flow of investments to attract AED 550 billion in FDI into the country by 2031, to reach AED 1 trillion by 2051.

SWATCH تبدأ العام الجديد برؤية واضحة

لا داعي لإخفاء أي شيء مع مجموعة SWATCH CLEAR COLLECTION الشفافة الجديدة

بيل، يناير 2022

 

مع دخولنا عام 2022، نرغب جميعاً في أن نبدأ هذا العام مع رؤية واضحة، وهذا ما ترغب به Swatch أيضاً. وكبداية كل عام جديد، تكون هذه الفترة هي المثالية للتخلص من جميع المعوقات وضوضاء العالم الخارجي ونسيان جميع المشاكل السابقة، والبدء بالتخطيط والتركيز على ماهو قادم في سبيل اتخاذ القرارات المستقبلية الصحيحة في العام الجديد!

ومع كون الشفافية توجه مميز في هذه الفترة، لكن Swatch كانت سباقة في هذا التوجه عندما أطلقت تصميمها الشفاف المميز والجذاب للمرة الأولى في ساعة Gent في عام 1985. ولكن هذه المرة، مع خمسة تصاميم رائعة تشمل مختلف المقاسات لمجموعات العلامة التجارية. كما ستتوفر ساعة BIG BOLD الشفافة المزودة بخاصية SwatchPAY!‎ أيضاً في عدد من البلدان محددة.

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استمتع بالوضوح التام مع ساعة CLEARLY BOLD، ذات التصميم الجريء في عالم الشفافية. تأتي العلبة الشفافة للساعة بتصميم جريء وقوي بقطر 47 ملم، وتحوي قرص شفاف بحلقة فضية اللون ومؤشرات سوداء وعقارب ملونة. ولإرضاء تطلعات الأشخاص الذين يرغبون في عمليات دفع أسهل دون تلامس، تأتي ساعة CLEARLY BIG BOLD مزودة بخاصية SwatchPAY!‎ المتكاملة مع شريحة الاتصال قريب المدى المخفية التي تعمل بطريقة مشابهة للبطاقات المصرفية. 

 

يمنحك تصميم ساعتي CLEARLY GENT وCLEARLY NEW GENT مظهراً يوحي بالمسؤولية بفضل الزجاج والعلبة (بقطر 34 ملم و41 ملم) المصنوعين من مواد حيوية. تجذب اللمسة النهائية اللامعة للعلبة والسوار والإبزيم، الأنظار تجاه هذا التصميم الشفاف.

 

أما ساعة CLEARLY SKIN فهي الطراز الأنحف من مجموعة Swatch الجديدة ولا يمكن الشعور بها أثناء ارتدائها. تأتي الساعة بقرص شفاف وشعار Swatch منقوش باللون الأصفر على الزجاج. أما العلبة ذات القطر 34 ملم فمصنوعة من مواد حيوية ولا يمكن ملاحظتها على المعصم. 

 

سواء أكانت شفافة أم لا؛ الأمر يرجع لك. تتوفر المجموعة عبر الإنترنت وفي متاجر Swatch اعتباراً من 5 يناير 2022. تتوفر ساعة The Clearly BIG BOLD المزودة بخاصية SwatchPAY! في بلدان مختارة اعتباراً من 5 يناير 2022.

 

AUC FACULTY, STUDENT RESEARCH ON STRENGTHENING CERAMICS PUBLISHED IN TOP-TIER ACADEMIC JOURNAL

December 29, 2021, Cairo – Mostafa Youssef, assistant professor of computational materials science and engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at The American University in Cairo (AUC), and Mohamed Abdallah '21, a double major in mechanical engineering and physics, have published their research on an innovative technique for making ceramics more durable in the prestigious Physical Review Materials, a top-tier journal in materials physics. Youssef and Abdallah focused on identifying a model that demonstrated how certain defects in ceramics move when exposed to electrical fields. “We collected previous models from literature starting from the 1940s all the way to 2020,” Youssef explained. “And we made a computer simulation – basically, we brought a little piece of ceramic on the computer, applied an electric field and saw how the defects move.”

Youssef expressed that they are very proud that they made it [in the journal]. “This is a Q1 journal [Impact 3.99] from the family of the Physical Review series whose papers are permanently cited in Nobel Prize awards in physics and chemistry.” Q1 journals make up the top 25% of journals in an area of research.

In his courses at AUC, Youssef and his students explore different materials and their properties using simulations, modeling and theory. The professor had previously conducted research on a related problem in 2017 during his postdoctoral studies at MIT. 

There were five models in total from 1949- 2020, all of which Youssef and Abdallah carefully assessed until they could pinpoint which model was superior. The simulations themselves sometimes took months to finish, and if there were errors in the code that Youssef and Abdallah wrote, they would have to start again.

Prior work found that the air gaps in a piece of ceramic were eliminated when introduced to large electric fields, making the material denser and more durable. “Usually, people do this with very high temperatures using furnaces in a process called sintering,” Youssef said. “But this is quite expensive. And people are trying to find alternatives that are more cost-efficient.” 

Flash sintering is a promising alternative, as it succeeds in densifying ceramic materials faster and requires less heat than traditional sintering. High electric fields are also used to store information to novel types of Random Access Memory cards for computers that will push the current limits of memory speed.

Youssef and Abdallah continued in this area of study in 2019, after they had met the previous year when Abdallah took Youssef’s Numerical Methods course. “During my studies, I grew to appreciate how materials optimization can have a huge influence on the performance of devices or on creating new devices,” Abdallah said. “So maybe seven or eight months after the course, I got in touch with Dr. Mostafa to conduct research as an undergrad in this field.”

“One of the things that hit me during this time is that research is an iterative process,” Abdallah said. “It often doesn’t work out right away, so you need to be flexible and adaptable.”

Youssef admired the patience Abdallah demonstrated throughout the process, especially considering his status as an undergraduate student. “Many undergraduate students need to see something coming out immediately, after three or four months,” he said. “But Mohamed was patient. And I think this is a major quality in good research – patience.” 

Other challenges included securing resources for their research and continuing during the coronavirus pandemic. “These simulations need a lot of computational power. And we were very, very limited on the resources,” Youssef explained. “The other thing that was overwhelming for us was COVID. It took us a while to coordinate things and to see how the workflow could run.”

Even after the two finished their paper, they still faced what Youssef described as an “extremely rigorous” review from the academic journal. So rigorous, Youssef recalled, that Physical Review famously critiqued a paper written by Albert Einstein in the 20th century, which prompted the physicist to stop submitting his work to the journal.

Beyond taking pride in their work, Youssef and Abdallah also hope that their work inspires others, especially undergraduate students, at AUC and beyond to conduct their own research in this field.

“We need such a push for undergraduate research,” Youssef said. “Our undergraduate students are capable of doing high-quality research – it just takes a little bit of patience.”

Abdallah, who is now pursuing a masters at the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland, is grateful for the opportunity and guidance provided to him by Youssef. 

Youssef continues to lead AUC students in this field, reporting that there are two graduate students currently continuing his and Abdallah’s research. 

For regular updates from the University during coronavirus visit www.aucegypt.edu/coronavirus 

For more information about the university news and events follow us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/aucegypt and Twitter @AUC

Founded in 1919, The American University in Cairo (AUC) is a leading English-language, American-accredited institution of higher education and center of the intellectual, social, and cultural life of the Arab world. It is a vital bridge between East and West, linking Egypt and the region to the world through scholarly research, partnerships with academic and research institutions and study abroad programs. 

The University offers 40 undergraduate, 52 master’s and two PhD programs rooted in a liberal arts education that encourages students to think critically and find creative solutions to conflicts and challenges facing both the region and the world. 

An independent, nonprofit, politically non-partisan, non-sectarian and equal opportunity institution, AUC is fully accredited in Egypt and the United States.

Tesla’s 2021 vehicle deliveries surge over 80%, projected to hit 1.5 million in 2022

 

Tesla's goal of pushing electric vehicles into the mainstream is gaining momentum with the company's steady growth in deliveries. As the EV manufacturer expands production, the number of delivered vehicles is also expected to hit record levels in 2022.

Data acquired by Finbold indicates that Tesla's 2021 deliveries stood at 936,172, growing 87.4% from 2020's figure of 499,550. In 2019, the company delivered 367,500 vehicles under different models.

Since the company began delivering electric vehicles in 2014, the highest annual growth was registered between 2017 and 2018 at 137.8%, from 103,100 to 245,200.

In 2014, 2015 and 2016 Tesla’s vehicle deliveries stood at 32,000, 50,000 and 76,200 respectively.

Based on the company's historical year-over-year percentage growth average between 2014 and 2021, Fibold estimates that in 2022 the vehicle shipments will for the first time surpass the one million to stand at 1,544,402, growing 64.9% from last year's figure. Additionally, the target will be influenced by operations at the new Texas and Berlin plants.

Significance of Tesla’s delivery numbers

The report highlights the significance of Tesla's vehicle delivery numbers and their impact on the market. According to the research report:


"Overall, Tesla deliveries are one of the most closely watched metrics for the company. The metric usually underpins the company's financial results and highlights the market's demand for electric vehicles."

In general, Tesla continues to increase its annual vehicle deliveries despite the EV industry facing challenges around the global supply chain and logistics related to the coronavirus pandemic.

However, the company is known to design its chips in-house to beat the semiconductor shortage, an advantage it has over other competing automakers. At the same time, Tesla has also reprogrammed software to use less scarce chips.

Read the full story with statistics here: https://finbold.com/teslas-2021-vehicle-deliveries-surge-over-80-projected-to-hit-1-5-million-in-2022/

The chart: