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CONTENTS06.15

40“We are very excited to get into this region and to build the neighborhood.”House of Genius Cofounder Toma Bedolla.

10 | VENTURE MAGAZINE | JUNE 2015

CONTENTS06.15

58 TEchNoloGy SESAME: A Scientific Step Forward Jordan has never excelled at scientific study. But a newly revamped, first-of-its-kind research facility could change that.By Elisa OddOnE

48 REfUGEEs World Refugee Day: Standing TogetherTo mark World Refugee Day, two top UNHCR representatives examine how best to mitigate the impact of the Syrian refugee crisis.By andrEw HarpEr and KHalEd HOssEini

features

54Cover storyEssentials 2020Orange Jordan CEO Jean-Francois Thomas lays out the telco giant’s strategic plan for the coming five years.


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oPINIoN20 Tech TalkDisruption CallingRelentless convergence continues to rattle telecom operators and their once lucrative business models. What can they do to adapt?By Zeid nasser

24 The AnalystHotel Electricity Rate Cut: A Misguided Move Slashing electricity rates for hotels won’t solve Jordan’s tourism crisis. By Jawad abbassi

46 Media and SocietyNot Free EnoughThe Freedom House Index shows no reason for Jordan to celebrate World Press Freedom Day.By Osama al sharif

MoNEy42 Amman Stock ExchangeIndustrial Sector Boosts IndexThe ASE rises following a strong performance by the Industrial and Services Indexes. By aram rabadi

REVIEw66 Hot WheelsA Super SupercarThe breathtaking McLaren 650S Coupe.By Ghaith Madadha

64 Hot ProductsSamsung Back to its BestThe new Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge.By sadad Talhouni

62 BUsINEss sENsEJordan’s Gaping Gender Wage GapWhen men and women have the same job and do the same work but are paid differently.By Jane Hosking

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Sirish Kumar, Cofounder and CEO of Telr

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Photography Alaa’ al-Sukhny

Contributing Writers Aram Rabadi, Ghaith Madadha, Jawad

Abbassi, Nader Museitif, Osama al-Sharif, Robert Carroll, Sadad Talhouni, Zeid Nasser

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Samih Darwazah, the founder of Hikma Pharmaceuticals, died last month at the age 85.Long a towering figure in Jordan’s business community for creating such an important firm, he was also one of the country’s first pharmacists, and served both as a Senator and Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources. An AUB graduate and an honorary doctorate recipient, Darwazah founded Hikma in 1978 and listed it on the London Stock Exchange in 2005, making it one of a handful of companies in Jordan that can be truly considered world-class. It is one of the companies that contribute to the national economy, while raising Jordan’s name high in the process. Although it started off modestly with a capital of JD300,000, this year it became the FTSE 100’s fourth pharmaceuticals stock. Each year it continues to penetrate new markets, acquire new subsidiaries, and generate healthy revenue. Both involved in the company from its early days, Samih’s two sons,

Said, who took over the company in 1995, and Mazen, the company’s vice-chairman and MENA CEO, continue their father’s legacy, taking it to new heights. To document his success and share his long journey, Samih wrote a business memoir called Building a Global Success on the rise of Hikma. We have lost a true entrepreneur who dedicated his life to improve a sector and build a family business that will hopefully continue to succeed, honoring Samih’s name and legacy. On his father’s influence, Said told JO magazine in early 2005: “He was more of a friend throughout. I was there with him from the start. We traveled the path together and we shared the success. His policies had a major influence on the family. We all subscribe to the same school of hard work and giving back to society.”

editor's letter

Dina al-Wakeel senior associate

Losing a Legend


THIS yEAR HAS SEEN A GOOD SHARE of volatility, on both global and regional levels. The price of oil has dipped since the middle of 2014, bringing with it lots of negative speculation within oil-dependent economies. Softer growth in China and Europe caused a serious slowdown in emerging markets and commodity exporters in Africa and Australia. Compound these with a strong dollar and falling currencies in Europe, Asia, and Africa and you find quite a complex global scene. Divergence is ever more evident; post financial recession we saw China and Asia balancing the crisis in the United States and Europe and driving demand from emerging markets. Fast forward a few years later and we see a slow but steady US recovery and mediocre prospects everywhere else. Volatility is synonymous with markets. If anything, we had too little of it in post-recession times. Looking ahead, more volatility is expected in the coming few months. Oil prices have been gaining ground since their low point. A lot of speculation is taking place over the US Fed move to potentially hike up interest rates this month. Our region is no less volatile with all the conflict, geopolitical uncertainty, and investment sentiment. So brace yourselves. It’s never easy to navigate a business in complex and volatile contexts. But unless you’re the CEO of a Fortune 100 company, or an investment bank with trading floors in every major time zone, you don’t really have to worry about every aspect of the global economy. One cannot control the macro forces, which is why micro economics are so important. Demand shifts and changes, but it’s always there—along with supply. Thanks to our hyper connected world, markets change faster than ever, and so do opportunities. Operating a strategy within a narrow scope or a limited target

market is very risky. Investors and entrepreneurs should look to the largest markets possible and remain flexible as to where they sell and how they structure and continuously restructure their supply chains. So when the dollar strengthens it makes sense to sell to a growing US market. In the same way it makes all the sense to buy from Europe as the Euro weakens. It isn’t rocket science but the art of the game is in anticipating and being ready to change and adapt. To most of us, the term “business model” is used to denote a static structure that operated for years at length. Such a notion is being challenged in unprecedented ways. What a business does is going after opportunities—fast, efficient, and in a manner that’s attractive for customers to remember it and to

come back for more. What a business does today may not be relevant next year; but if the business is modeled on volatile and changing markets such change should not affect its raison d’etre. It’s very easy to fall into the comfort trap of choosing obvious and convenient markets during the good times. But cycles teach us that the upside is there because it’s preceded and followed by a downside. A little planning and flexibility on the strategy side in exploring new markets and niches can go a long way when volatility points downwards.

THE STRATEGIST NaDEr MusEiTiF

Nader Museitif is a director of Merg-ers and Acquisitions and franchising at Aramex. You can contact him at [email protected]

Market volatility never really goes away. The trick is learning to adapt to it.

Volatility Is Good

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TELECOM OPERATORS ARE IN A curious position at the moment. They owe their very existence to the same mobile infrastructure and devices that are now sucking away their revenue. It’s a classic case of self-cannibalization. Telcos are selling less and less SMS bundles, but more—and ever larger—3G and 4G bundles. But these are the very same data subscriptions that are allowing users to rely on messaging services that are fast replacing SMS. That means telecom operators are suffering from a net loss. Talk minutes have also been dropping, especially international calling, due to the use of Voice over IP (VoIP) with desktop and mobile apps like Skype. This is set to drop to a new low with the arrival of voice calling on Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. When Facebook bought WhatsApp for $19 billion, it demonstrated the company’s future plans to generate revenue from the approximately 500 million users on this service, who are chatting and sharing every day. This acquisition surely spooked telecom operators, and the recent addition of voice calling confirmed their fears.All this shows we live in an era in which software is beating the network and the hardware it runs on. These voice calling apps join Google’s G-Talk, Microsoft’s Skype, and others like Viber and Tango in an assault on the future revenue of telecom operators. ‘Social calling’ app owners will take the lion’s share of revenues from the VoIP communication shift. Telecom companies, on the other hand, will obtain the ‘minimum fees of transportation’ while also losing out on the VAS (Value Added Services) revenue.Such app-calling services are considered to be part of the Over-The-Top (OTT) type of services which a user receives ‘over the Internet’ and aren’t provided directly by telecom operators or Internet Service Providers (ISP). What this

means is that your operator doesn’t benefit from any subscription fees or advertising revenue. Looking at the losses to telcos due to this phenomenon, research firm Ovum forecast that consumer use of VoIP through OTT will grow at a compounded annual rate of 20 percent between 2012 and 2018, culminating at 1.7 trillion minutes. Accordingly, a calculation of losses shows a whopping total of $380 billion, of which $63 billion will be lost in the final year onwards.So can standard mobile network calling services maintain some of their

paid calling minutes? The answer is yes. To begin with, the fact these apps can only make calls to those you are ‘connected to’ or those who ‘accept to receive your calls’ means that traditional calling will continue to be important, though smaller than before.you will need to call land lines and office numbers which chat apps can’t handle. Other than using paid mobile-to-land-line VoIP services like Skype, users will probably opt for the less expensive and hassle-free option of opening the number keypad and dialling.your mobile subscription comes with thousands of minutes which you will use. Perhaps the size of your calling plan will get smaller, but you’ll still need it. So, it’s not all doom and gloom, yet!For most of us, the aforementioned logic would apply. However, other than the VoIP shift there’s also an ongoing generational shift among users. For teens, the green phone icon is just another app on their screen and WhatsApp is the same. This levels the playing field between ‘telecom voice’

and ‘voice over IP.’ As you would expect, this has got many stakeholders nervous. Some governments and regulatory bodies are planning to intervene to protect their national telecom operators. The idea is to prevent losses to such huge corporations which pay taxes and employ the local workforce. This would be a step backwards, and a move against the freedom of economic forces. Still, OTT Regulation is coming. In countries like China, where the world’s biggest mobile carrier operates with 760 million subscribers, OTT apps are being blamed for the

disappointing financial results and there could be some attempts to slow down this trend.But the majority of governments across the globe will not intervene. That’s why the heyday of big profits from high SMS margins and international calling has ended. At some point in the future, local calls may follow.Put simply, no regulator or operator can halt the march of technology and consumer choice. Perhaps a more fruitful approach would be to reorganize operations to lessen the blow and find the means to capitalize on the evolution of the telecommunications industry. The fast-pace of developments suggests we’ll be seeing more disruption to the telephony in the coming decades, whereby not even the ‘voice chat app’ owners will be safe.

TECH TALK ZEiD NassEr

Zeid Nasser is a tech and media writer and commentator since the 1990s. He’s also the founder of vari-ous local and regional media [email protected]

Relentless convergence continues to rattle telecom operators and their once lucrative business models. What can they do to adapt?

Disruption Calling

TRADITIONAL CALLING WILL CONTINUE TO bE IMPORTANT, THOUGH SMALLER THAN bEFORE


yEARS AGO, I TOLD My FATHER I wanted to be a CEO when I grew up. Of what kind of company, it didn’t matter. No doubt feeling very proud of his son’s ambition, my dad nevertheless took the opportunity (as he often does) to share some advice: “Get a job in sales. That’s where you’ll learn the skills to be a CEO,” he said.At the time, the correlation between sales and being CEO wasn’t clear. After all, doesn’t a CEO have a VP of sales?When I graduated from high school I decided to serve a two-year mission for my church in South America. I thought it would be a magnificent journey of service and spirituality, but it also turned out to be an intensive course in face-to-face sales. I spent my days selling my religion to strangers in Santiago, Chile. And I loved it.

After my mission I went to college. I thought student government would be fun, so throughout my college career I took the lead on several student body government campaigns (including my own). I was surprised to learn that politics was the art of selling ideas.My professional work since then has stretched across the banking, tech, and venture capital industries. None of my job titles even hinted at sales. yet day after day, I have needed to develop and utilize selling techniques in order to do good work.In his book To Sell is Human, Daniel H.Pink looks at the art of selling in a “broader sense –persuading, influencing, and convincing others.” While only some work in actual sales roles, the business landscape is shifting towards a model where everyone is selling.This is especially true for startup

companies, where the same person might be doing marketing, people management, sales, and design all at the same time. This breadth of skills is absolutely crucial for entrepreneurs, and becoming the status quo everywhere else. Pink calls it “elasticity,” and warns that we now live in a world that punishes "fixed skills and prizes elastic ones."It’s time to take a look at yourself to see if you have invested enough time and energy to become a proficient seller. It very well may be the most important skill you need for a successful career. I’m not a CEO (yet), but I’ll be following my dad’s advice in order to become one someday.

STARTUP JORDAN rOBErT CarrOll

Robert Carroll is an investment ex-pert at Oasis500 in Amman, Jordan. He also leads the Jordan chapter of Startup Grind, powered by Google for Entrepreneurs. You can find his advice for entrepreneurs and VCs at www.JordanVC.com.

Mastering the art of selling will put any entrepreneur in good stead.

Learn to Sell

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http://www.JordanVC.com

JORDAN’S TOURISM SECTOR PLAyS an important role in the Kingdom’s economy. According to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MOTA), tourism receipts in 2014 rose 6 percent year-on-year to JD3.1 billion, while the number of overnight visitors to Jordan over the same period rose 1.1 percent to almost 4 million.Last year, some 60 percent of overnight tourists visiting Jordan chose to stay in hotels. Hotel guests totaled 2.4 million, while around 1.6 million tourists stayed in apartments rather than hotels. Hotel guests stay an average of 2.1 nights only, generating over five million hotel nights. Amman is the prime tourism destination followed by Aqaba, Dead Sea, and Petra. Last year, Amman’s share of total hotel nights was 59 percent and its share of total guests stood at 54 percent. Aqaba followed with a 22 percent share of both nights and guests. The Dead Sea came in third with 14 percent of guests and 12 percent of hotel nights. Petra was in fourth place, with a share of 7 percent of guests and 6 percent of hotel nights. Between them, the four main destinations of Amman, Aqaba, Dead Sea, and Petra accounted for 98 percent of hotel nights and hotel guests in 2014. yes, 2014 was a good year for hotels, which was clearly reflected in the results of those listed on the Amman Stock Exchange. Seven publicly traded companies that own 13 hotels generated revenues of JD142 million, up 5 percent on 2013. Operating profits increased by 6 percent to JD42 million.Unfortunately, hotels didn’t get off to an auspicious start in 2015. According to MOTA, tourism receipts in the first four months of the year dropped by 15 percent to reach

JD880 million, down from around JD1 billion over the same period in 2014. Tourist numbers also dropped by 13 percent, while tourists arriving in groups dropped by 41 percent. This drop was also reflected in the results of the publicly traded companies: In the first quarter of 2015, the aggregate revenues of the 13 hotels at ASE dropped by 17 percent to stand at JD25 million, while operating profit dropped by 44 percent to a mere JD4.3 million.In May, the government announced actions aimed at energizing the tourism sector. The measures

included waiving taxes on plane tickets and waiving visa fees for tourists that stay longer than three days and visit the tourism sites. Moreover, the government decided to reduce the electricity charges for hotels across Jordan by 50 percent to become 91 fils, down from 181 fils. The official calculations suggest that the electricity rate reduction will amount to JD28 million annually.The visa reduction measures, which encourage more tourists to visit Jordan is welcome, but the massive electricity rate cut is ill-advised. The rate drop disproportionately favors hotels less hit by the current crisis than hotels suffering from very low occupancy rates. After all, hotels with low occupancies will have reduced electricity consumption by default as most of the hotel rooms remain empty.The new rate sells electricity at

below its actual cost. This means that the government is subsidizing hotels only while neglecting the other main components of the tourism service sector (restaurants, clubs, malls, recreation parks, etc). Moreover, it neglects that 40 percent of tourists choose to stay in furnished apartments, not hotels. These now pay four times the electricity rates paid by hotels. The rate drop is revealed to be even more illogical when considering hospitals and schools will now be expected to pay four times the rate paid by five star hotels.

Short of a comprehensive rebalancing of electricity rates in the country, the more sensible decision would have been for the government to keep the electricity rate for hotels unchanged. It should have then taken the surplus it generates from the tourism sector electricity bills (around 28 percent, which is the difference between 181 fils and the actual cost of around 140 fils per kWh), and poured it into the marketing and promotions budget of Jordan’s tourism sector. The root cause of the problem lies in falling tourism numbers. The solution should be to drive up these numbers, not reducing rates for some players at the expense of others.

THE ANALYST JaWaD J. aBBassi

Jawad J. Abbassi is the founder and GM of Arab Advisors Group. Contact him on [email protected].

The decision to slash electricity rates for hotels won’t do anything to solve the crisis in Jordan’s tourism sector.

Hotel Electricity Rate Cut: A Misguided Move

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THE MORE SENSIbLE DECISION WOULD HAVE bEEN FOR THE GOVERNMENT TO kEEP THE ELECTRICITY RATE FOR HOTELS UNCHANGED


mailto:[email protected]

UniTEd sTaTEs, May 2Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather fight for the WbC title at the MGM Grand Arena.

EGypT, May 16Egypt’s ousted Islamist President Mohamed Morsi waves his hands behind the court’s bars as he is sentenced to death over 2011 jailbreak charges.

MONTHIN PICTURES

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UniTEd sTaTEs, May 13Work crews at the scene of a New York bound Amtrak train that derailed leaving seven people dead and several others injured.

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UK, May 8Tellers carrying out the counting of ballot papers at bidston Tennis Center, Wirral for the Wirral West constituency in the 2015 Uk General Election, which was won by David Cameron’s party.

nEpal, May 15A woman carries a baby as she stands on debris of collapsed buildings following a second powerful earthquake that struck Nepal, killing dozens.

dEnMarK, May 10Thousands of cheerful participants take part in the Color Run Copenhagen. The popular American event has expanded all over the world and now takes place in seven Danish cities.

VENTURE MAGAZINE | 2726 | VENTURE MAGAZINE | JUNE 2015

What is it? The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or TTIP for short, is a huge trade deal currently being negotiated between America and Europe.

What’s good about it? The pact, which could boost the economies of each side by well over $100 billion annually, aims to free up trade by harmonizing regulations. For example, the deal in theory would enable manufactures to produce a single product that could be sold on both sides of the Atlantic without having to make potentially costly adjustments to comply with unnecessary different regulations. This could mean, for instance, that car makers would save a great deal of money by no longer having to make two different types of windscreen wipers.

any objections? Some critics, particularly in Europe, say the TTIP would allow multinationals to use supranational courts to force national governments to water down environmental regulations or gradually privatize public health systems like the NHS in britain. The TTIP has also come under attack over worries it could for the first time allow American farmers to export highly processed genetically modified “Frankenfoods” to Europe. On the surface, the economic benefits of the TTIP appear clear. but negotiations have been underway for around two years, and there are fears they could drag on for many more due the political controversy surrounding the potential pact. The United States is thrashing out a similar trade deal with several Pacific Rim countries, which many observers believe has a greater chance of becoming a reality in the short-term.

THE TransaTlanTic TradE and invEsTMEnT parTnErsHiphe European Bank for Reconstruction and

Development (EBRD) has loaned the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) $13 million to fund the construction of a landfill-gas recovery system which converts municipal waste into energy.The project, which is the first of its kind in Jordan, is expected to be operational by the first half of next year and will generate approximately 29,000 MWh of electricity.The system will work by processing and treating the gas emitted from decomposing garbage to produce the electricity, which will then be delivered to the national grid, replacing electricity produced by grid-connected power plants that previously used heavy fuel oil. The EBRD expects this will reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Jordan by nearly 155,000 tons of CO2-equivalent annually, as well as helping to manage solid waste. The project will be implemented through the establishment of a new solid waste company, owned by the city of Amman, and by introducing a public service contract between the city and the newly created company. EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti hopes the project will benefit the environment in Jordan and aid in waste management. “We aim to strengthen the operational, financial, and environmental performance of municipal solid waste management in Amman,” he said in a press release. Chakrabarti added that the project provides a unique opportunity to promote sector reform. Since it began operating in Jordan in 2012, the EBRD has pumped close to $300 million into several SMEs, energy, and municipal development projects. –JH

GAM TO CONVERT WASTE INTO ENERGY

cHEaT sHEET

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“It would be positive if the accord could in some way help with the establishment and recognition of an independent, sovereign, and democratic State of Palestine.”The Vatican’s deputy foreign minister, Monsignor Antoine

Camilleri, after the Vatican concluded its first treaty that

formally recognizes the State of Palestine.

“If someone is asking for help, we as fishermen have an obligation to help without looking at race, religion, or anything.”

One of the fishermen from Aceh who helped save over 1,000 Rohingyas and Bangladeshis stranded at

sea after they fled Myanmar.

“No one can set the price of oil. It’s up to Allah.”Saudi Arabia’s oil minister Ali al-Naimi on speculating about the future of oil prices.

“The security system [failed] to coordinate among themselves on issues that affect the security of citizens and their stability.”Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on the resignation and retirement of key security figures, including Interior Minister Hussein Majali.

QUOTED

f in the past Jordan’s education system was directed at encouraging students to

embrace an academic path, now the pendulum must swing back towards vocational training, Arabian Business Consultants for Development CEO Laith al Qassem said during last month’s Educating for the Needs of the Labor Market conference.The seasoned business consultant, who’s also a board member of the young Entrepreneurs Association and helped establish around 20 startups, sees the shortage of skilled workers in Jordan as a strong incentive to boost its vocational programs and train the workers.

Why isn’t the higher education system producing young Jordanians with skills that employers need?One should have a realistic understanding of the needs of the labor market. For example, we have around 120,000 registered engineers in the country. Of them, only roughly 10 percent work in the field. We need craftsmen and technicians to be able to translate this engineering knowledge into practice. The number of graduates in engineering is a nice trophy for the country, but it doesn’t help Jordan’s economy unfold.

What’s the state of vocational training programs in Jordan?The length of vocational education depends on the chosen sector; it could go from several months up to two years. At

the end of the program each apprentice receives a certificate. But convincing parents and students to join vocational programs over universities is a tough task as their understanding of the labor market is based on a societal misconception. They both look down on vocational education in favor of universities, seeing the academic path as a way to earn a higher salary.

What could be done to encourage young people to join vocational programs?The school system should identify students’ talents and channel them into the right program from a very early age. There also must be a national program that talks about the nobility and importance of technical skills for the economy and raise their status in the eyes of society. Vocational education must be considered as important, or even more,

than an academic career.

What role should business play in getting more young Jordanians to sign up for vocational courses?The vast majority of Jordan’s businesses are micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. Because of their sizes, most of them lack the ability to do proper human resources recruitment, which can identify the skills and requirements needed in a certain company. This creates obstacles for straightforward communication between businesses and the vocational training corporations. If there was support for Jordan’s enterprises to help signal their needs to vocational training associations, it would be possible to build a network to train students and make economic use of them. This would bolster Jordan’s economy and help tackle unemployment in the medium-term. –EO

EDuCATiON

iVOCATIONAL TRAINING BOOST NEEDED – AL QASSEM

Laith al Qassem, CEO of Arabian business Consultants for Development


ordan’s first utility-scale wind project is set to begin operating

in September, said the head of the company behind the pioneering project which aims to help diversify Jordan’s energy basket away from its overwhelming reliance on expensive fossil fuels.Jordan Wind Project Company (JWPC) Chairman Samer S. Judeh said the 117 MW wind farm currently under construction in the Tafileh governorate will comprise 38 turbines, each with a rated capacity of 3.08 MW and some of which will begin operating imminently. “Partial energization of the facility will commence very soon,” said Judeh.Conceived in 2009, the Tafileh wind project received $221 million of its $287 total funding from a syndication of six international banks: the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which is part of the World Bank Group, the

European Investment Bank (EIB), the Dutch Development Bank (FMO), the OPEC Fund for International development (OFID), and Europe Arab Bank (EAB). The Danish Export Credit Agency (EKF)

provided guarantees for a portion of the financing.The rest of funding was provided by three investors; Paris based InfraMed Infrastructure Fund, Masdar Power of Abu Dhabi, and EP Global Energy of Cyprus. To secure financial backing, Judeh said a series of stringent

environmental and social impact assessments had to be carried out. “The development period for the project was quite challenging. We undertook a very extensive environmental and social impact

assessment in line with the standards required from our financiers,” he said. “The existing conditions in the project area were studied thoroughly, and the project design was modified extensively to minimize impacts to the area based on the data we collected.”Judeh said several factors were taken

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AUTUMN LAUNCH FOR FIRST WIND FARM

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into account when choosing the location of the wind farm. First and foremost, there had to be enough year-round wind to make the project viable. “The project needs a large amount of wind data in order to determine the appropriate turbine model and estimate generation amounts … The wind conditions were measured and recorded continuously for over two years. The results of the measurement campaign showed that the site was indeed as windy as we had hoped,” explained Judeh. He added that one of the advantages of renewable projects would also be bringing much needed investment to the underdeveloped southern governorates of Jordan. Ultimately, he believes his project was important to blaze a trail for others to follow in Jordan’s nascent renewable energy sector. “All new projects and new industries are difficult to venture into at the beginning. Developing this project and securing its financing was a difficult and lengthy process because it was a learning experience both for the developer and the government,” said Judeh. “We were the groundbreakers and many of the contracts and conditions that were negotiated for this project were carried forward to become templates for other projects.”The disruption of the Egyptian gas following the toppling of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak ratcheted up pressure on Jordan to generate electricity using heavy fuel while looking for alternative sources of energy. yet an almost 50 percent drop in oil prices last year raised worries that it could mean less interest in renewable energy projects. Judeh stressed that the fall in oil prices doesn’t mean that Jordan should ease off on developing renewable energy, particularly that oil prices continue to fluctuate. He estimates that the Tafileh wind farm alone will save the treasury $50 million a year in what would otherwise be paid to generate electricity using diesel, heavy fuel, and gas. According to Judeh, wind projects in general generate more power that solar projects due to the fact that they operate on a 24 hour basis. –dw

gateway news&views

THE TAFILEH WIND FARM ALONE WILL SAVE THE TREASURY $50 MILLION A YEAR IN WHAT WOULD OTHERWISE bE PAID TO GENERATE ELECTRICITY USING DIESEL, HEAVY FUEL, AND GAS

Samer S. Judeh, Chairman of Jordan Wind Project Company

The Tafileh Wind Farm


SAuDi ARABiA

The Riyadh ExpressIn a further sign the Gulf region is serious about diversifying its transport infrastructure, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported a new 1,400 kilometer railway line that links Riyadh with the northeastern city of Al Qurayyat near the Jordanian border, is set to open soon.The London-based pan-Arab website said the Saudi Railway Company will operate two trains in the line. One will operate during the day, and can accommodate up to 444 passengers, and another that will run during the night and features 377 seats. both will pass by several Saudi governorates, including al Jawf and al Qassim.

QATAR

Mega Jet DealQatar has signed a $7 billion deal with France to supply the Gulf state with 24 Rafale fighter jets, Reuters reported.The huge deal also includes the training of 36 Qatari pilots and 100 technicians by the French military. “If we are present here in Qatar and the region it is because France is considered a reliable country which a partner country can give their confidence to,” French President Francois Hollande was quoted as saying. France also signed multi-billion dollar deals to supply Rafale jets to Egypt and India earlier this year.

SAuDi ARABiA

Sky-High Flats for SaleJeddah’s kingdom’s Tower isn’t due for completion until 2018, but apartments in what’s slated to become the world’s tallest building are due to go on sale late this year, the developer’s CEO told Reuters. The $1.2 billion kingdom Tower will be over 1 km high, Jeddah Economic Company Chief Executive Mounib Hammoud said. Dubai’s burj khalifa, which stands at about 830 meters, currently holds the coveted title of the world’s tallest building.The kingdom Tower will include offices, a 200-room Four Seasons Hotel, 121 serviced apartments, and 360 residential apartments.

GULF ROUNDUPinflaTiOn waTcHinflation in April dropped by 1.07 percent over the same month last year. Indicators for Rent rose by 5.8 percent, Education by 3.7 percent, Communication by 0.23 percent, and Clothing and Footwear by 5 percent. However, Transportation, and Fuel and Lighting dropped by 13.9 percent and 12 percent respectively.

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2.3 1.22 1.4 1.5

8.5 7.03 6.7 5

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gateway news&views

TECH SUPPORT

MARKETING SOFTWARE

MailChimp

Hubspot

Salesforce Service Cloud

Having a tough time juggling managing customers, closing sales, and analyzing marketing campaigns? These three marketing software tools can help you target customers better to improve sales and ensure your company’s success. BY JANE HOSKiNG

MailChimp is a powerful email-marketing tool, which helps you target customers better by sending automated emails based on customer behavior and preferences. To create more effective marketing campaigns, MailChimp cleverly captures your email engagement data, showing you who has received an email when they opened it, and the exact links that they clicked on in the email. MailChimp provides email designs that aren’t only sleek and creative, but also easy for your subscribers to share your campaign via social media. How many shares, retweets, and likes you receive are analyzed so that you can keep track of the reach and success of your campaigns. If you are using MailChimp to market a product you will even be able to track your sales from the first URL click to the point of purchase. Price: Free for limited features and plans from $10 a month FeaturesUsability

Instead of interrupting customers, Hubspot is designed to attract them. This inbound approach to marketing software turns your website and product into a magnet using just one platform. Hubspot includes tools to help you create content and blog posts, optimize it for search engines, and share it via social media. It also has tools for email marketing, creating landing pages, and data analytics. All together, this works to convert site visits into sales. While intuitive, it can take a little while to learn the ropes of Hubspot. But once you’ve got the hang of it, Hubspot is an amazing marketing tool, as long as you’ve got the cash to fund it. Price: Plans from $200 a month and a free one month trial periodFeaturesUsability

Salesforce Service Cloud is one of the most widely used Customer Relationship Management Systems (CRM) by sales, service, and marketing professionals. Not only does it help you manage your customer accounts, track sales, and monitor marketing campaigns, but it also allows you to collaborate better within your team. Salesforce’s analytics are incredibly effective in predicting sales cycles and learning customer behavior, all of which are very helpful for both sales teams and managers. Price: Plans from $25 a month and a free one month trial periodFeaturesUsability


JORDAN WAIVES VISA FEE IN TOURISM BOOST DRIVE

n a bid to support Jordan’s ailing tourism sector, the government is

rolling out a raft of measures, including waiving the cost of certain visitor visas, introducing a unified entry ticket for archeological attractions, and slashing hotel electricity bills. Regional unrest continues to make foreign tourists wary of booking trips to Jordan and the wider region. The number of visitors to Petra in the first quarter of the year was down 37 percent to around 150,000, according to the Jordan Tourism Board.The government said it was waiving the JD40 visa fee for tourists arriving in Jordan via local tour operators, but only on the condition they spend at least two consecutive nights in the Kingdom. The fee is also being waived for independent tourists staying a minimum of three nights and who have purchased a JD70 unified tourist site ticket.The departure tax will also be lifted for all scheduled flights from Aqaba and Amman, on the condition that tourists

purchase the unified tourist site ticket and spend a minimum of three consecutive nights in Jordan.Several hotels in Petra have been forced to close during the latest tourism downturn. In response, the government announced it would be cutting hotel electricity bills by 50 percent. All this will be implemented

gradually until September, Jordan’s Minister of Tourism Nayef al Fayez wrote on Twitter. Whether the new regulations will actually boost the state of the Kingdom’s tourism sector and help ease some of the challenges that hinder its growth, however, remains to be seen. –EO

TOuRiSM

he Aqaba Development Corporation (ADC) said the

port’s newly-completed liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal will receive its first shipment this month, and will ultimately be able to cover all of Jordan’s electricity needs. “The LNG will generate 100 percent of Jordan’s electricity needs and fulfill the country’s long-term strategic requirements for natural gas,” ADC CEO Ghassan Ghanem told Venture in a phone interview.Shell tankers carrying the LNG shipment from Qatar will berth at the terminal before discharging its load into the Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU).ADC commissioned UK-based BAM International and its Jordanian partner MAG Engineering in 2013 to build the terminal as part of a JD55 million engineering, procurement, and construction deal. The facility will be leased for 10 years by Jordan’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.Ghanem said the terminal will be able to receive ships with a deadweight—a measure of how much weight a ship can carry safely—of up to 220,000 tons. “We guaranteed Jordan with a strategic

terminal in the long-term as this is the weight the latest generation of carriers can transport,” he said.According to a recent report by the Oxford Business Group (OBG), the FSRU can produce 7.5 million cubic meters of regasified natural gas per year. Once fed into the Jordan Gas Transmission Pipeline to generating stations across the country, steady flows of natural gas will save Jordan hundreds of millions of dollars every year.The Kingdom has been investing in alternative energy projects amid growing pressure on its budget following the disruption of the cheap Egyptian gas flows in recent years. The FSRU will provide Jordan with a more diverse energy basket, making it less vulnerable to external shocks that have hindered supplies in the past, OBG said.LNG can be sourced from about 20 countries worldwide, breaking the dependence on a system of pipelines that may be subject to attacks or political turmoil. The FSRU will also add 160,000 cubic meters of LNG storage capacity, significantly enhancing the country’s flexibility in managing its purchases of gas. –EO

enovo launched its first range of smartphones in Jordan last

month, joining other big Chinese tech manufacturers like Huawei in trying to capture a slice of the Kingdom’s growing handset market.Lenovo released seven budget-to-midrange models, ranging in price from around $100 to $350. Al Bakhit Communication Company will be the main distributor and aftercare provider for the brand nationwide.Lenovo is already the biggest

seller of laptops and PCs in Jordan, according to Rony Mezeraani, general manager for Lenovo Levant, Egypt, and North Africa. Now the company has its sights set on being the Kingdom’s leading smartphone brand. “Jordan is an important country for our smartphone business, a dynamic market that embraces tech, innovation, and style,” he said. “We are very upbeat about the future of Lenovo smartphone market growth here, bringing an added value proposition to an enthusiastic community of users.”Chinese smartphone brands, with their high specs and keen pricing, are fast growing in popularity, particularly in developing markets. Last year, Xiaomi usurped Apple and Samsung as the top smartphone manufacturer in China. –sT

FIRST LNG SHIPMENT ARRIVES IN JUNE LENOVO LAUNCHES FIRST SMARTPHONES IN JORDAN

T

l

gateway news&views

ENERGY TECHNOLOGY

i


espite a difficult regional context, the Qatar National Bank (QNB)

Group said it expected Jordan’s real GDP growth to reach 4 percent over 2015, accelerate to 4.3 percent in 2016, and 4.5 percent in 2017.Jordan’s economy would continue to recover on the back of continued economic reforms, stronger construction activity and mining exports, as well as higher government investment, QNB said in a statement. Sustained lower energy prices were also likely to increase competitiveness and domestic demand, it added.In April, the IMF forecast a growth of 3.8 percent in Jordan’s GDP over 2015, reaching 4.5 percent in 2016. QNB said it expected Consumer Price Index inflation to slow to 0.8 percent

this year on the pass-through of lower oil prices, but to recover between 2016 and 2017.“Lower global oil prices are expected to lead to negative foreign inflation in 2015, which will be counterbalanced by the continued presence of refugees in Jordan, adding to domestic inflation,” QNB said. “Overall inflation will pick up in 2016-2017 on a gradual pick in foreign inflation due to the expected recovery in oil prices and stronger domestic demand.”Furthermore, the financial institution said lower oil prices would narrow the current account deficit in 2015, and the deficit will then widen between 2016 and 2017 once oil prices rebound. “We expect a large reduction in the energy import bill, supported by the

lower oil prices and the start of LNG imports, following the launch of the LNG terminal at the port of Aqaba, starting in May 2015,” QNB said.It also said it expected a new bilateral agreement with India for Jordanian phosphate exports, as well as a projected recovery in the price of potash, both leading to higher export growth. QNB expected lending growth to rebound in 2015 (7.4 percent), 2016 (8.9 percent), and 2017 (9.5 percent) as lower government bond rates and reduced government financing needs push banks to increase their lending book. “Profitability should rise on further declines in non-performing loans and continued high capitalization ratios,” the QNB said. –la

GDP TO GROW 4 PERCENT IN 2015 - QNB

d

ENERGY

t’s pretty obvious that Jordan, an energy-poor country with almost

year-round sunshine, is set to benefit greatly from advances in solar power technology.But even with the encouraging appearance of more and more photovoltaic panels on the roofs of homes and businesses, the challenge remains of how to store the energy they generate when the sun isn’t shining in a way that’s practical, reliable, and cost-effective.A game-changing solution may now have arrived in the form of the Tesla Powerwall, a relatively affordable, wall-mounted lithium ion battery that

charges using electricity generated from photovoltaic systems.Tesla, a company best known so far for producing electric cars driven by the likes of our own Prime Minister, says the battery offers independence from the utility grid and the security of an emergency backup in the event of a power outage.The Powerwall measures just 130 cm X 86 cm. The 10 kWh model designed for weekly cycle applications costs $3,500, while the 7 kWh daily cycle version costs $3,000. When combined with a photovoltaic system, either of these should be more than enough to cover the daily energy needs of the

average Jordanian home. Multiple batteries can also be linked together if more power is needed.Since its announcement in late April, Telsa has reportedly taken orders worth around $800 million in potential revenue. There’s no word yet on when and if Tesla might be bringing it to Jordan. But given the clearly massive market for such a potentially revolutionary product in the Kingdom, and the expensive electricity bill everybody’s complaining about, we reckon it won’t be too long before we see the Powerwall or a similar competing battery appearing in homes here. – la

s part of the “Jordan Relaunched” program unveiled

at last month’s World Economic Forum, the Kingdom laid out investment opportunities worth $20 billion that aim to create 180,000 desperately-needed new jobs over the

next decade.If successfully funded, the ambitious proposals, which cover the energy, transport, water, ICT, and infrastructure sectors, will join a raft of other confirmed projects worth some $7 billion that were also

announced at the three-day meeting at the Dead Sea.Against a backdrop of continuing regional economic and political turmoil, delegates at the event called for greater investment to be made in countries like Jordan.In turn, Suma Chakrabarti, the president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), said the Kingdom should not shy away from telling the world about how it’s managing to succeed against the odds. “One doesn’t get to choose its neighbors and there’s no doubt that Jordan is [located] in a very tough neighborhood,” he said. “But what Jordan must show is that it is not defined by regional conflict, but on the contrary, is a stable place to do business.”The EBRD started operations in the Kingdom in 2012 and its investments, up to date, are valued at some $340 million that could extend to $680 million if all the projects, mostly in renewable energy and aiding SMEs, on the table went ahead. –EO

i

a

ENERGYECONOMY

TESLA HOME BATTERY: THE ANSWER TO JORDAN’S SOLAR ENERGY CONUNDRUM?JORDAN RELAUNCHED: OPPORTUNITIES, INVESTMENTS, AND PARTNERSHIPS

gateway news&views

SOLAR PANELInstalled in an array on your roof, solar panels convert sunlight into electricity

INVERTERConverts direct current electricity from solar panels or a home battery into the alternating current used by your home’s lights, appliances and devices

HOME BATTERyPowerwall stores surplus electricity generated from solar panels during the day or from the utility grid when rates are low

Source: Tesla


gateway executive interview

TElr-MadE sOlUTiOns fOr rEGiOn’s E-cOMMErcEOnline payment company Telr is hoping to speed up the adoption of e-commerce in the region by offering merchants unique, tailor-made solutions.

BY DiNA AL WAKEEL

Sirish Kumar, the co-founder and CEO of online payment gateway Telr, said his company is working quickly to boost the number of online merchants in the region, and change the prevailing preference for cash on delivery (COD) amongst online shoppers.

Led by former Paypal, IBM, and WorldPay executives and employees, Telr currently offers its services and products to merchants in Dubai and Singapore. But Kumar believes e-commerce in the region is at an important inflection point, and his company will therefore soon be expanding into several other markets, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt.

Why did you decide to leave PayPal and set up your own online payment system?During my time with PayPal, I concluded that the emerging markets were in need of good, effective local solutions to enable buyers and sellers to trade in local currencies. I think emerging markets, and particularly the Middle East, are on an inflection point. It is convergence of social media and mobile pay. If you look at the world average, mobile share of total Internet traffic is around 10 to 12 percent, but in countries like Saudi Arabia it’s around 18 percent. Social media penetration is the highest in the Middle East, with around 51 percent in the UAE, compared to a global

average of 27 percent. Naturally, users, particularly the young, are figuring out ways to utilize these channels for e-commerce and we are seeing an increased number of users engaging in online transactions using popular channels like Facebook and Instagram as their store fronts. If you combine social media and mobile together, I think we are at another inflection point where these users will need innovative solutions to help manage their online transactions through social media.

Do you think that global companies like PayPal failed to tailor specific products for the region?We will definitely see an increase of domestic e-commerce as a proportion of total e-commerce in the near future in this region, and that’s very good for everyone. I believe everyone who comes here has something to offer, and international expertise brings with it best practices, while local players bring the promise of developing

Christopher Schroeder, American entrepreneur and venture investor

innovative local solutions. For example, what we are doing is we bring in a lot of expertise in offering e-payment solutions to merchants with websites and those without websites, such as merchants that sell through social media. More importantly, we will also offer local solutions in the near future. For example, when a local merchant is selling to a local buyer, how can they use an online banking system without necessarily going through the international process of payments? These are the kind of scenarios Telr is working on solving, and I believe this gives us a competitive edge over traditional solution providers.

What else differentiates you from other companies?First, we stand for enabling the merchant to draw on the local currency of their country. I believe this is not a feature offered by international e-payment companies. Second, we offer merchants analytics that help them understand how

their business is actually doing. I can’t stress how important this value-adding feature is. Data-driven and accurate analysis of their performance is key to better and more accurately understand their positioning and improve. We also offer a one-stop solution where we provide merchants support on quickly developing shopping carts and logistics services. We’ve also recently signed a partnership agreement with MasterCard with an ambition to increase online transactions and incentivize sellers to do more transactions online instead of COD.

But international companies have been having a tough time trying to change the COD trends in the region. Do you think you’ll have more luck?In the long-run, I believe the e-commerce ecosystem—both merchants and consumers—will benefit from dropping COD as a payment option. COD is not a great experience for consumers and has high cost impact to the merchants. To facilitate reduction of COD, we are continuously working towards fostering meaningful and strategic partnerships with both merchants and banks to help enable sellers to maximize their investments in the e-commerce sphere, for easier access to funds, and speeding up the on-boarding process.

Today in the Middle East region, domestic e-commerce contributes only around 10 percent of the total e-commerce activity, whereas in Southeast Asia domestic e-commerce is around 40 percent. I believe lack of trust in payment solutions is only one element that

inhibits the growth of e-commerce. The absence of a comprehensive e-commerce ecosystem and the lack of domestic merchants are two other challenges that have contributed to slower growth in e-commerce in the past. Now the trends are showing much higher growth. The number of local e-merchants has increased by 25 and 30 percent in many parts of the Middle East.

So you think that people’s distrust in the security of online payments is not a major issue?

I will say that distrust in payment solutions is not the only issue. Companies, like Telr with experienced product and technical team, is a PCI DSS level one certified company. From Visa’s and MasterCard’s perspectives, we are equipped and capable of managing online transactions securely. Security and trust are of paramount importance to us. We also undergo regular audits with the PCI Security Standards Council to ensure all our systems meet and exceed global security standards.

How many institutional clients do you have and how many payments do you process?We cannot disclose this information, however what I can say is that we have experienced double-digit month-on-month growth since we launched last year. One of our top priorities is expanding into new countries where we can add true value. Our ambition is to expand in around seven countries in the Middle East in the next 12 months. This will help merchants to open their business in different countries and take advantage of the corridor.

In some countries, governments are rising up to the occasion and realizing that e-commerce results in entrepreneurship and contributes towards the growth of e-commerce and GDP, like the UAE and Saudi Arabia. In Saudi Arabia, if you want to set up your online business it takes a few days, while it takes 9 to 15 weeks in other parts of the Middle East.

Besides your expansion plans, what else are you lining up for the future and how do you foresee the future of e-commerce in the region?We are committed to working hand in hand with our merchants to provide them with all the necessary tools to grow their consumer base without the need for them to invest too much into their technical infrastructure. Our success is derived from theirs, so we will continue to provide all the necessary support to help them grow.

TODAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST REGION, DOMESTIC E-COMMERCE CONTRIbUTES ONLY AROUND 10 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL E-COMMERCE ACTIVITY, WHEREAS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA DOMESTIC E-COMMERCE IS AROUND 40 PERCENT

Sirish Kumar, Cofounder and CEO of Telr


A typical House of Genius meetup brings together a group of 15 experts from a variety of backgrounds, including PhD professors, artists, public servants, and musicians—who remain anonymous until the end of the session—to listen, discuss, and solve key problems faced by three business entrepreneurs. Then each of the participants offers solutions, insights, and suggestions that may assist the presenter.

Formed in Colorado in 2010, House of Genius sessions are now held in 30 cities across the globe. House of Genius cofounder Toma Bedolla says he hopes to bring the uniquely collaborative concept to the Middle East, including Jordan.

What’s the best way to describe what House of Genius is all about?At its core, it’s an entrepreneurial community service. We want to make entrepreneurship a community endeavor as opposed to just an individual one. At our events we do community outreach for participants who are not normally engaged in entrepreneurship. We have entrepreneurs who have presented more than once. But the way our sessions work is that in the next event that you come to, it will be a room full of new people, so each session is a new and unique experience.

is the model that you follow the same everywhere?

A very good example of our core format is the diversity, the anonymity that we impose, and planting the seed of serendipity.

What we create is an environment that allows people to participate and see how pure and beautiful collaboration can be when we get out of our own way.

Those sessions are never recreated or revisited because you do the reveal [of who each participant is] at the end and once you know people it’s human nature

to put them into boxes. When are you planning to come to the Middle East?

We’ve come close to opening in Dubai. The timing has always been a challenge for us. We’ve had talks to open in Cairo, Morocco, and definitely Amman. We’ve also talked to a group out of Saudi Arabia, and another one in Kuwait. We are very excited to get into this region and to build the neighborhood.

Where do you want to take House of Genius?We want to double in size in the next two years which will put us on pace to reach 100 cities worldwide. Then put the technology platform in place to connect them all from a data perspective, and also to expand the notion of community and to really start to connect.

I would love to see it happen more frequently.

Each community has sessions once a month and we see some communities starting to really yield a sense of pressure to start doing more than one a month. We’re just on the other side of four years now and we understand what we do really well now. And part of this growth is for us to be able to serve even more entrepreneurs.

EnTEr THE HOUsE Of GEniUsHouse of Genius offers budding entrepreneurs the world over the chance to pick the brains of industry leaders. It now looks like the popular meetups might be coming to our part of the world soon.

Soundbite

BY DiNA AL WAKEEL

Toma Bedolla, Cofounder of House of Genius


Market Brief

indUsTrial sEcTOr BOOsTs indExAPRIL 20, 2015 – MAY 19, 2015BY ARAM RABADi

T he General Index gained 0.69 percent to close at 2,169 points as the market received strong support

from the industrial sector where the index gained 2.19 percent to close at 1,888 points. At the same time, the Financial Index gained 0.17 percent and the Services Index gained 0.04 percent. Meanwhile, 218 million shares were traded and the market’s activity reached JD188 million. The financial sector accounted for 71 percent of the market’s activity leaving the services and industrial sectors to account for 15 percent and 14 percent of the activity, respectively.

The Mining & Extraction Index was the top performing Industrial Index after gaining 10.11 percent to close at 1,984 points. Arab Potash

(APOT) led the mining & extraction sector with a 24.17 percent gain to close at JD20.96, making it the market’s second best performer for the period. APOT also announced that it signed an export agreement with Zuari Agro Chemicals Limited for 230,000 metric tons of Potash. Moreover, APOT’s quarterly net income increased from JD23.1 million in the first quarter of 2014 to JD32.2 million in the first quarter of this year.

Jordan Steel (JOST) was the second best performing mining & extraction stock after gaining 21.15 percent to close at JD0.63.

COMPANY

BEST PERFORMERS

WORST PERFORMERS

MOST ACTiVE

CLOSE(JOD)

CHANGE(%)

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TRADiNG ACTiViTiES

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Trailing P/E: Market capital weighted P/E of index elements

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2169.00

0.69

0.16

1.33

14.30

VOLuME (SHARES)218,203,530

VOLuME (JD)188,362,222

VOLuME (uS$)265,590,733

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7.50

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0.67

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0.49

0.89

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39.66

24.17

24.07

-28.77

-26.87

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2,434,337

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noPaR FoR tRading & inVestMent

sPeciaLiZed inVestMent coMPounds

aL-tajaMouat FoR cateRing & housing PR

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In the first quarter of the year JOST just broke even posting around JD30,000 in net profits. In comparison, JOST lost close to JD1 million in the first quarter of last year. Continuing with the quarterly results, Jordan Cement Factories (JOCM) gained JD2.2 million in net profits in the first quarter of the year after losing JD4.6 million in the same quarter last year. In other news, Jordan Phosphate Mines Company (JOPH) was the most active mining & extraction stock with JD3.5 million in trading.

The Food & Beverages Index gained 4.63 percent and Jordan Dairy (JDA) was the market’s top performer after gaining 39.66 percent to close at JD7.50. Meanwhile, the Textiles, Leathers, and Clothing Index gained 2.36 percent as Jordan Worsted Mills Company (JOWM) led the sector with a 4.27 percent gain to close at JD4.15. Moreover, Century Investment Group (CEIG), which dropped 1.9 percent to JD2.06, was the most active industrial stock with JD3.9 million in trading. Finally, the Paper & Cardboard Industries Index was the last rising industrial sub-index. The index gained 2.13 percent as Jordan Paper and Cardboard Factories (JOPC) led the sector with a 6.9 percent gain to close at JD0.31.

The Banking Index gained 0.77 percent as the rest of the financial sub-indices declined. The Real Estate Index posted the heaviest loss at 3.34 percent and the diversified financial services and insurance indices dropped 2.58 percent and 1.17 percent, respectively. Shareco Brokerage Company (SHBC) was the top performing financial stock and the market’s third best performer after gaining 24.07 percent to close at JD0.67. Meanwhile, Arab Bank (ARBK) was the top performing banking stock after gaining 17.62 percent to close at JD6.61. ARBK increased its capital by 71.2 million shares to 640.8 million shares through a stock dividend and the shares were listed on the Amman Stock Exchange

(ASE) during the period. The real estate sector was the

market’s most active sub-sector with JD97 million in trading. AD-Dulayl Industrial Park and Real Estate Company (IDMC) led the market with JD37 million in trading, and Al-Tajamouat for Catering and Housing Projects (JNTH) was the market’s second most active stock with JD15 million in trading. Meanwhile, ARBK was the most active banking stock with JD13.2 million in trading.

In other news, the quarterly net income of Capital Bank of Jordan (EXFB) dropped from JD10.6 million in the first quarter of last year to JD6.0 million in the first quarter of this year. At the same time, the quarterly net income of Arab Orient Insurance Company (AOIC) increased from JD1.8 million to JD2.7 million.

Jordan Petroleum Refinery (JOPT) made the news on several occasions during the period. In a disclosure, JOPT announced that its quarterly net profits increased from JD7.9 million in the first quarter of 2014 to JD8.8 million in the first three months of this year. Moreover, JOPT increased its capital from 62.5 million shares to 75 million shares through a 20 percent stock dividend. JOPT also gained 7.86 percent to close at JD5.90, becoming the best performing utilities & energy stock and helping the sector’s index gain 4.93 percent to become the best performing services sub-index ahead of the Health Care Services Index, which gained 4.85 percent. In addition, JOPT was the most active services stock with JD12.2 million in trading representing 43 percent of the services sector’s trading activity.

PROViDED BY:AL ARABI INVESTMENT GROUP

“Member of the Arab bank Group”[email protected]

[email protected]

THE MINING & EXTRACTION INDEX WAS THE TOP PERFORMING INDUSTRIAL INDEX AFTER GAINING 10.11 PERCENT


T he Jordanian government’s decision in 2012 to begin a phased withdrawal of

electricity subsidies was undoubt-edly a good one from the point of view of the Kingdom’s strained public finances.

But as a result, many business sectors have faced higher electric-ity costs and lower margins, and the subsidy cuts have also proved unpopular with many households. Electricity prices have been rising at a time when oil and gas prices have been tumbling globally, making Jordan one of the few countries in

the region to see its power costs rise.yet many suggest that the subsidy

cuts aren’t having as negative an impact as they might have, with Jordan able to benefit from the deflationary effects of falling oil and gas prices. At the same time, the long-term benefits from the Kingdom shedding this major fiscal burden may well make the short-term pain worthwhile.

With proven hydrocarbon reserves of only around 1 million barrels of oil and 200 billion cubic feet of natural gas, Jordan imports over 90 percent of its energy needs—a quantity that’s equivalent to around 40 percent of the state budget, according to the US Energy Information Administration.

In the past, Jordan bought oil from Iraq and later, piped natural gas from Egypt to the generators of the Kingdom’s central power pro-vider, the National Electric Power Company (NEPCO). However, the Iraqi deal is no longer in effect, while the pipeline from Egypt has been repeatedly sabotaged. This has left Jordan more dependent than ever on imported fuel oil for its power stations.

In recent years, the higher price of

these imports has severely impacted NEPCO and the Jordanian Ministry of Finance. The electricity subsidy jumped from JD161 million in 2010 to an estimated JD1.1 billion in 2011, after the Arab Spring and the first major disruption of Egyptian supplies. The 2011 figure repre-sented 3.8 percent of GDP, with the total growing since. One of the outcomes is that Jordan had to pay out JD1.1 billion in 2014 to service its resultant burgeoning public debt.

This means cutting subsidies has been a major tool in the govern-ment’s fight to cut its losses and

ensure long-term financial stability, with all subsidies to be removed by 2017 as part of a phased withdraw-al. Since the cuts began, the fiscal deficit has fallen from JD1.8 billion in 2012 to JD1.3 billion in 2013, and an estimated JD1.1 billion in 2014. This improved fiscal position even allowed some tentative expan-sion in the 2015 budget.

COST OF DOiNG BuSiNESSStreet protests greeted the initial decision to cut subsidies in 2012, while fierce opposition in parlia-ment to a further 15 percent hike in electricity at the start of 2015 led to a more moderate 7.5 percent rise.

Businesses have often had to pass on the electricity hikes to their customers with higher prices, and suffer cuts in margins. This has made some Jordanian products less competitive, according to Toufic Tabbara, CEO of Lafarge’s opera-tions in Jordan. “Energy prices in the Kingdom are very high, which translates to higher end costs for products. This means Jordan’s ce-ment and concrete is priced higher than regional and international market prices, making it wholly uncompetitive to export in the region,” he said.

However, other industrialists believe that electricity prices are fair, given that other large manufacturing countries in the region, such as Turkey and Israel, have higher energy costs. “The problem is that the industry and commercial tariffs pay to subsidize housing electricity tariffs. Households should pay more, but the problem is people have become accustomed to this status quo and any change leads to public backlash,” said Sheldon Fink, CEO at PBI Aqaba, which develops and manages the Aqaba Industrial Estate.

yet there is evidence that Jordan may now be benefitting from its subsidy cuts. As global oil and gas prices tumbled last year, the price of many commodities, including food, fell too. This has kept infla-tion down, despite the electricity price hikes. Indeed, in January-February 2015, consumer prices eased by 0.8 percent. This has helped households and businesses shoulder the burden, as the costs of other inputs have declined.

Moreover, Jordan’s energy import costs—and therefore its electric-ity prices—should ease with the opening of the new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal at Aqaba. Higher electricity prices have also made the math on projects such as Arab Potash Company’s natural gas pipeline from Israel more attrac-tive, while continuing to provide incentives for companies to invest in renewables, such as solar, and energy saving schemes.

There is also room for further cost efficiencies down the road. Currently, the LNG, coupled with the gas expected to soon come from Israel, will go straight to NEPCO to power turbines and be made into electricity, which will then be sold on to businesses. One further development might be to redirect some of that flow to industry, making more cost-efficient gas a direct production input, rather than obliging firms to buy power.

Oxford Business Group

words By Oliver cornock

Oliver Cornock, Regional EditorTHE INSIDE EDGE

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sUBsidy cUTs:liGHT aT THE End Of THE TUnnEl? They’ve been painful, but there are signs subsidy cuts may have started to bear fruit.

CUTTING SUbSIDIES HAS bEEN A MAJOR TOOL IN THE GOVERNMENT’S FIGHT TO CUT ITS LOSSES AND ENSURE LONG-TERM FINANCIAL STAbILITY


ast month, Jordan, along with most countries, marked World Press Freedom Day. We didn’t rate well. The Freedom

House Index placed Jordan 155 out of 199 countries, with the general label for the Kingdom being “not free,” the Internet considered “partly free,” and the press “not free.” That’s quite an indictment for a country whose top officials continue to brag about press freedom and how freedom of expression is guaranteed under the Constitution.

The Amman-based Center for the Protection and Freedom of Journalists (CPFJ) issued a statement on the occasion confirming that journalists in Jordan and the rest of the Arab world continue to suffer from various kinds of violations, such as denial of access to information, censorship, and harassment by government agencies. This is in addition to cases of incarceration in publication-related charges. Last year’s edition of the CPFJ’s annual State of Media Freedom in Jordan report claimed that over 70 percent of journalists admitted they had been victims of containment attempts.

On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, top UN officials issued a statement saying that “freedom of expression and press freedom are critical to the successful implementation of good governance and human rights around the world.” They reaffirmed that both freedoms were “essential” for the shaping of a new global sustainable development agenda.

The fact that Jordan is labeled “not free” in the Freedom House Index is depressing. In April, Jordanian journalist Jamal Abdul Nabi was incarcerated for publishing an article online criticizing the Saudi-led air strikes against yemen. He was accused of “disturbing relations with a foreign state.” A top Muslim Brotherhood leader was also sentenced to 18 months in prison by the State Security Court on a similar charge. He had published an opinion on his personal Facebook page criticizing the UAE’s position on the

Muslim Brotherhood. The former Deputy Prime Minister

and Minister of Information Marwan Muasher decried the state of Jordan’s media freedom in an article he published in Al-Ghad daily last month. He wrote that even when the Ministry of Information was abrogated in 2003, other government organs took over its responsibilities and continued to exert pressure on the press and other media outlets. He also wrote that he had recommended

establishing independent boards for Jordan TV, radio, and the official news agency and that the government should sell its shares in the local daily press. None of these recommendations was adopted, even when the Royal Committee for the National Agenda made similar suggestions in 2006.

MiXED SiGNALSThe Jordan Times published an article recently which said the government is planning to launch an independent TV channel, replacing previous plans to open a third channel affiliated with the Jordan Radio and Television Corporation (JRTVC).

“All I can say is that the Jordan Radio and Television Law was amended to enable the government to establish a private TV station,” JRTVC Director General Ramadan Rawashdeh told the newspaper. Noting the new channel will offer public service broadcasting, he said it would be fully independent from the JRTVC.

It’s not really clear how this would work in practice. Public broadcasting is usually financed by the public for the sake of the public. To insert the adjective “private” as a qualifier is confusing. It’s not understood how this new private-public TV station would be

financed at a time when the JRTVC is in bad shape due to the lack of funding. Another question is how truly free this new TV channel would be, especially at a time when official broadcast outlets have been unable to raise the bar and present themselves as more than just government mouthpieces.

JuDGiNG OPiNiON POLLS A new poll carried out by the University of Jordan’s Center for Strategic Studies (CSS) found that up to 88 percent of Jordanians consider

poverty, unemployment, and price hikes the biggest challenges facing the Kingdom. No news there, you might say. We’ve always known the economy tops the list of main concerns for Jordanians. The issue is how does the government respond to these genuine concerns?

On the other hand, Jordanians expressed satisfaction with the performance of security bodies, with 95 percent saying they feel safe at their residences during the day and 90 percent feeling safe at their residence at night. This supports the accepted wisdom that Jordan is one of the safest countries in the region.

However, over 80 percent consider refugees a source of danger to the Kingdom, while 77 percent said migrant workers pose a threat to the safety of the community.

In contrast, another CSS poll on the popularity of the current government was covered in different ways by the local press. Addustour and Al-Ghad said that the popularity of Abdullah Ensour had risen from last year and the public confidence in his government was up. But the newly-renegade Al-Rai, which has an axe to grind with the government, somehow read the poll results differently and concluded the exact opposite.

words By Osama al-sharif

Media and society

Sadly, there was no cause for Jordan to celebrate World Press Freedom Day.nOT frEE EnOUGH L

EVEN WHEN THE MINISTRY OF INFORMATION WAS AbROGATED IN 2003, OTHER GOVERNMENT ORGANS TOOk OVER ITS RESPONSIbILITIES AND CONTINUED TO EXERT PRESSURE ON THE PRESS


refugees

World Refugee Day:

Standing Together

W orld Refugee Day once again gives us the opportu-nity to reflect on the vital

role Jordan has played over the years as a safe haven for so many of the region’s traumatized and displaced.

Hundreds of thousands of Syrians have fled into Jordan since their country began to violently fall apart in 2011. On the whole, they’ve been made welcome. But the challenge remains of how to integrate them better to mitigate the strain their arrival has had on Jordan’s

social and economic fabric.For an idea of how best to move

forward, Venture is publishing the fol-lowing insightful articles from UNHCR Representative to Jordan Andrew Harper, and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and author of The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini.

In Syria, we are witnessing the worst humanitarian catastrophe of the past 70 years

With its long and proud history of taking in the displaced and dispossessed, Jordan has more reason than most to mark World Refugee Day on June 20.

BY DiNA AL WAKEEL


n June 20, we mark World Refugee Day in recognition of the bravery of the millions who

have been displaced and to renew our commitment to do more to protect and assist them. This year’s World Refugee Day will be marked in the midst of an unprecedented global displacement crisis with record numbers fleeing armed conflicts. Over 50 million men, women, and children have been forced from their homes.

Almost 12 million Syrians are now displaced, either within Syria or as refugees in surrounding states. Half of those displaced are children, equivalent to the entire population of Jordan. Every day, more Syrians are being killed, displaced, and wounded, with the chance they will be able to return to their homes becoming more and more remote. After four years of conflict and destruction in Syria, it’s even more critical for the international community to renew and strengthen its commitment and support to the people of Syria, and

to those countries generously hosting Syrian refugees. Jordan has a proud history of providing sanctuary to those fleeing conflict, but this generosity can only be sustained if the international community raises its commitment to

match the increasing needs of refugees and Jordanian host communities.

In Syria, we are witnessing the worst humanitarian catastrophe of the past 70 years, and the response, in support of both refugees and of host communities, needs to match the exceptional nature of the conflict.

Given the unprecedented and increasingly protracted character of the crisis we need to not only renew our commitment to reinforcing the stability and security of asylum states such as Jordan, but also to invest in unlocking

the potential of refugees to contribute to their host communities. The response needs to acknowledge the new demo-graphic and economic pressures on the ground so that we address both the immediate and longer-term imperatives

of the crisis. In the immediate term, the Syrian crisis has, above all others, served to illustrate the inadequacy of today’s development cooperation poli-cies in a time of multiplying conflicts. The UNHCR notes the support received by host communities accommodating large numbers of refugees falls well short of covering the costs, no matter the generosity of the humanitarian response. That’s why the UNHCR is today pressing bilateral and multilateral donors, and international financial institutions to review existing criteria

and priorities that exclude Jordan or Lebanon from accessing World Bank grants because of their status as middle-income countries. At the same time we recognize that the myriad of

competing global crises is putting a massive strain on a finite international aid budget. Donors are demanding that we put in place a more sustainable strategy to support refugees, while at the same time protecting and reinforc-ing Jordan’s stability and security.

In the longer-term, the UNHCR is advocating for a policy shift from short-term ad hoc interventions towards one that will be mutually beneficial for refugees and host communities, reflecting refugees as individuals who can contribute rather than as liabilities. For too long, the perception has been of refugees as “takers,” draining the resources of their hosts, when in fact the reality is more complex; one in which refugees are often not provided the chance to contribute or give back to their communities.

The UNHCR acknowledges that accommodating refugees represents a major cost to host communities, particularly during the initial phase of an emergency. But it’s also true that over the course of protracted displace-ment, the contributions of refugees to the economy tend to increase. Already tens of thousands of refugees are work-ing without authorization in Jordan, leading to greater vulnerability, as they risk being exploited by unscrupulous employers who withhold payment or force them to work in unsafe conditions. A recent vulnerability assessment com-missioned by the UNHCR indicated that 86 percent of refugees live under the official Jordanian poverty level. If we recognize that there is a symbiotic rela-tionship between prosperity and security

at all levels, then we need to take these findings seriously. The challenge is to bring those working, or who have in demand skills, out of the grey or black market and into the formal workplace so

that they can ultimately contribute to the revenue and tax base of Jordan.

Unlocking refugee potential is obviously extremely sensitive at a time of relative high local unemployment. But given the hundreds of thousands of other migrant workers present in Jordan, many of whom work under the radar, could we not give the same opportunity to refugees when they would only compete with other foreign workers?

Apart from the pure humanitarian considerations, this would result in a massive increase in capital retention. As many studies have indicated, much of what migrant workers earn is sent back to their country of origin in the form of remittances. For refugees, what’s earned is spent in the country

of asylum. Given the importance of capital investment to Jordan, retaining and capitalizing to the maximum that investment is paramount.

In order to unlock the potential of refugees we must assess and agree on the areas where there’s no competition with the Jordanian host community, and allow refugees to plug existing gaps in the Jordanian labor market. Other mea-sures may target skilled Syrian labor at the industrial zones in the northern

governorates, or encourage Syrians to sponsor refugees to start their own businesses with additional incentives to employ Jordanians. Moreover, Syrians are known for being skilled artisans and as we have seen in Zaatari refugee camp, if they are provided with the opportunity to support themselves, this not only reinforces their dignity but also provides valuable services and goods to their local community. A proactive approach would positively impact the local economy by increasing funds available to refugees to purchase goods and services from Jordanian businesses and farms, thereby bolstering jobs and investment. For the refugees, it would guide them away from the potential exploitation and abuse in the informal labor market and equip those who work to voluntarily return home, once this becomes possible, with the resources to do so. It would also mean that parents would not have to send their children out to beg, or send them to bed hungry every night.

The theme adopted by the UNHCR in Jordan this World Refugee Day is “Standing Together,” reflecting the resilience of the refugees and host communities in Jordan and the steadfast commitment of the Jordanian govern-ment in safeguarding the rights and well-being of refugees.

The UNHCR believes we can offer

a new vision that supports the host community in offering sanctuary to those fleeing the horrors of war, while at the same time empowering refugees with the means to support themselves and give something back to their hosts. In providing the opportunity to refugees to contribute rather than to be the recipients of aid, we ask for no more than how we would like to be treated if we were in their situation.

Jordan has a proud history of providing sanctuary to those fleeing conflict, but this generosity can only be sustained if the international community raises its commitment

The challenge is to bring those working, or who have in demand skills, out of the grey or black market and into the formal workplace

O

refugees

Andrew HarperUNHCR Representative to Jordan

The response, in support of both refugees and of host communities, needs to match the exceptional nature of the conflict


recently took my twelve year-old daughter to see Avengers: Age of Ultron. I paid nearly $60 for tick-ets, popcorn, sodas, and snacks –it would have cost $120 if my wife

and son had joined us. One hundred and twenty dollars for a couple of hours of 3D superhero mayhem. About the price of a pair of sneakers.

But for a family of Syrian refugees in Jordan? That is the difference between having a home and living on the streets, the difference between your kids going to school and having to send them out to work. It’s the difference between just about coping and holding the family together, and having to resort to dangerous survival strategies like early marriage, prostitution, even, in extremis, returning to Syria. Can we be surprised that sometimes the knock-on effect of such high risk decisions leads to the even higher risk decision that some Syrian families are forced to make, by undertaking the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean Sea to seek safety in Europe?

Two days before I took my daughter to the movies, I sat with a Syrian refugee named Hassan, the 75-year-old patriarch of a family of 15. Two years ago, Hassan and his clan uncoiled themselves from their roots near Daraa, Syria, and moved to the basement of a dilapidated building in the Jordanian city of Madaba. Like 85 percent of Syrian refugees in Jordan, Hassan’s family chose to live in an urban environ-ment, a setting more familiar to them than the artificial setting of a camp,

despite the services provided in camps, and despite the fact that urban life for refugees can often prove an undignified, enormously daunting task.

Indeed, the UNHCR estimates that two-thirds of Syrian non-camp

refugees live below Jordan’s poverty line, and one-out-of-six below the abject poverty line. Hassan, a spirited man with a creased but winsome face, told me his family savings have long evaporated. Like the overwhelming majority of Syrians in Jordan, he has no work permit and thus little income with which to pay rent, by far the biggest expense for refugees in Jordan.

“How do you survive?” I wondered aloud, and Hassan pointed to his young daughter-in-law, Fatima, a mother of eight children, whose husband—Hassan’s eldest son—was detained in Syria four years ago and has since disappeared without a trace.

Ironically, Fatima’s loss is also the family’s lifeline, because it has qualified her for the UNHCR’s cash assistance program, which targets the most vulner-able Syrian refugees living in Jordanian cities. Through this program, she monthly receives $170 that the family uses to help pay rent, buy food and school supplies for Fatima’s children. Fatima and her family are one of 21,000 Syrian families who would likely be homeless if not for this innovative and highly effective program.

The question of cash versus in-kind donation is an old debate in the humanitarian world. A donor’s impulse to send shoes or blankets is an understandable one. But the reality is all items are a representation of monetary value. Items have a price tag and they often get sold in order to serve a priority need. Cash, I learned through speaking to Hassan and other refugees, gives

refugees freedom of choice and restores a sense of dignity, enabling them to make their own decisions to best meet their families’ specific needs.

It’s also a much speedier method of assistance. Unlike items that have to be

shipped, received, secured, warehoused, and distributed through special centers, a process that can take weeks or even months, cash reaches the intended recipient in a matter of days, if not hours. And there’s a huge cost saving with cash, too.

The UNHCR’s Lifeline Appeal program makes a convincing case for direct monetary assistance being far more cost effective than in-kind donations. In Jordan, out of every $100 that the UNHCR receives, almost $98 is delivered to the families that need it. That’s almost impossible to achieve with in-kind assistance. In Jordan, the

Khaled HosseiniGoodwill Ambassador for the UNHCR

I

cash assistance program also eliminates the potential for fraud, as it uses no ATM cards or PIN codes, which can be lost or stolen. I accompanied Fatima to a nearby bank, where I watched her

withdraw cash from an ATM machine that uses state-of-the-art iris scanning biometric technology, ensuring that only

she can receive the donated cash. Research shows that refugees like

Fatima use 98 percent of cash assis-tance on basic needs, mostly on rent, but also food, health, and children’s

needs. Cash also helps the local economy, and enables refugees to bet-ter integrate into their host community.

Since it’s a less visible form of aid than in-kind assistance, there’s less stigma attached to it; no long queues at public distribution centers, and no vouchers in supermarkets. It can help lessen some of the tensions created by the enormous strain that has been put on the local economy, infrastructure, and society since the start of the Syrian refugee crisis.

I asked Hassan how his family would cope without the monthly cash assis-tance. He smiled, then sighed, as if from a deep well of weariness. “Well, God is here,” he said.

That was answer enough for me.

refugees

the UNHCR estimates that two-thirds of Syrian non-camp refugees live below Jordan’s poverty line Cash gives refugees freedom of choice

and restores a sense of dignity, enabling them to make their own decisions to best meet their families’ specific needs


coverstory

Orange Jordan CEO Jean-Francois Thomas has just unveiled Essentials 2020, a far-reaching strategic plan that lays out the company’s vision for the telco sector over the coming five years, with a core focus on the customer.PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALA'A SuKHNY

EssEntials2020T hrough Essentials 2020, Orange

Jordan aims to vastly improve the customer experience by

pumping hundreds of millions of dinars into its fixed and wireless networks by the end of the decade. This process already began with the telco’s recent introduction of 4G, and Thomas said both private and enterprise customers should expect other major developments and announcements soon.

Orange Jordan, along with the rest of the Kingdom’s telco industry, has been through a tough few years; mobile communication apps have shaken up business models, while relations with the government have been strained as margins were squeezed by ever higher taxes and operating costs. At one point, some began to wonder if Orange even saw a future for itself in Jordan. Thomas hopes to use Essentials 2020 to turn a page on all the past uncertainty, and reaffirm his company’s desire to be at the heart of the Jordanian market.

What are the main ideas behind Essentials 2020?Every five years we have an exercise in strategic planning at a group level, as it’s absolutely necessary to know where we are going. Our group CEO Stephane Richard wanted to share

our vision with the stakeholders, which include financial analysts, the media, our partners, our staff, and our customers. So on March 17 at a major event in Paris, he unveiled our Essentials 2020 strategic plan. As the name suggests, the strategy reflects our commitment to connect people with all that is essential to them.

We want to offer an unmatched customer experience. The telecom sector has often got by on just being good enough. We want to get out of that zone. Putting the strategy in front of everybody is also a way pushing everyone internally to deliver. We made the bet that if we manage to be the best in terms of overall customer experience, then our existing customers will remain with us and new customers will come on board.

A major pillar of the strategy is offering enriched connectivity. We’re going back to the basics in terms of being able to offer the customer the best possible connectivity. Over the next five years, we plan to spend more

than JD300 million on developing our networks on the fixed side and on the mobile side. This amount is roughly 50 percent more than we have typically invested over a similar period in the past.

There was talk that you were pulling out of the market. What message do you hope to send with this investment?There’s an old saying that I like which goes: “The ships are safe in harbor.” But that’s not what ships are made for. If we want to be part of the game we can’t sit on the fence. We have to invest more in our networks because we believe this is the only way we can provide a better customer experience. Either we disappear, or we survive. The only way to survive is to improve significantly the customer experience and gain market share by converting new customers to our services.

What is this money going to be

Over the next five years, we plan to spend more than JD300 million on developing

our networks on the fixed side and on the mobile side


invested in?Last month’s introduction of 4G services was a real milestone for us. We think this country deserves 4G and we couldn’t just leave Jordanians with one choice of provider. We bought frequencies in the 1800 MHz spectrum and selected Huawei to build the new network. Today, we are covering most of Amman. The rollout will be extremely rapid, with nationwide coverage by the end of Q3. What’s more, we’re using part of our existing 900 MHz band to boost our 3G services, which is where most customers will likely remain for the

immediate future.

What will demand be like for 4G?It’s difficult to say. But I believe that anybody with a 4G compatible handset will try and go for 4G. The experience is totally different. It’s like if you buy a Ferrari and just drive it on little country roads. If you have a Samsung S6 or an iPhone 6, you will want to take the full advantage of its capabilities.

What’s happening with your fiber network?We’re also massively boosting our

roll out with more outdoor DSLAMS (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer). Without getting too technical, they’re basically outdoor cabinets that give people living within a 2 to 3 kilometer radius access to faster ADSL bandwidth and a fiber experience offering Internet speeds of up to 80 megabits.

At one point in time, we were asking ourselves if we should go fully wireless and abandon the unique asset we have in the form of our copper wire network. We decided to develop both tracks. Today, our fixed broadband network continues to be immensely

successful. We have been broadening our customer base and increasing our Internet speeds. If you live in a household with multiple devices and want to stream Internet via a big screen TV, fiber is still the best solution. We will be the only ones to provide this convergence. We will not go fixed everywhere in the country –we will have to make choices. But in major cities and major urban areas, we can go with both.

Also, in the next five years, we will go all IP. This means all our legacy telecom switches, which have been there for 25 to 30 years, will

be replaced. They’re still working perfectly, but they’re consuming a lot of power and it’s getting harder and more expensive to maintain the outdated technology. Full IP means we’ll be able to offer new services and better convergence.

What about improving customer service?We have multiple contact points with our customers. The management of these contact points is complex. We used to have a call center for fixed and another for mobile. By the end of the year, we’ll have all our call centers in one building. We are doing this due to the launch of our conversion offers, where we package together our services. Today, we can bundle

together fixed line, the Internet, and post-paid mobile subscriptions. We’re also aiming to include the prepaid offers in the near future.

We have launched an app called “My Orange,” which allows people to manage different elements of their subscriptions through their smartphones. This app has already been downloaded about 50,000 times. I won’t go so far as to say the PC is dead, but people are now interacting on their smartphones like never before. Unlike apps developed by our competitors, real transactions can be carried out on ours. you can upgrade, buy bundles, buy data, and access information about your account. We’re aiming to have 50 percent of our transactions with our customers done online.

What about enterprise services?Technology is quickly disrupting business models everywhere. The taxi industry, for example, has been totally disrupted in a matter of a couple of years by Uber. Why? The reason is that everyone has a smartphone in their pocket, which is changing the

relationship between the taxi and the customer. I recently met with the CEO of one of Jordan’s major banks, which has branches across the Middle East. They used to operate independently, but now they want to establish a single tech center in Amman which can upgrade software for the whole network of banks. This has only been possible because the cost of bandwidth is going down and its reliability is going up. Orange has an important role to play in supporting this transformation. It means changing our own business model in terms of what we bring to the customer. Today, we are delivering connectivity. We want to go one step further and begin delivering security, cloud, and managed services. We

want the customer to be able to concentrate on their core business, and rely on us to take care of their IT connectivity issues.

Is there a risk of stretching yourselves too thin by taking on all this?If we don’t differentiate ourselves, people will just switch to another operator like they’re shopping for any other commodity. We believe there’s room for us to expand outside what we are doing in our core business. But it’s crucial not to jump too far away from your core business. In the past, our group tried to push into producing content, competing with the likes of Canal Plus and BSkyB. It’s not our business to do that and we failed. It was too far removed from what we do the best, which is content delivery. Our successful music streaming partnership with Anghami is a good example of what can be achieved. Our group is also looking to develop services for wearables, the Internet of Things, and machine-to-machine technology. They all show great potential.

coverstory

We think this country deserves 4G and we couldn’t just leave Jordanians with one

choice of provider


technology

hen discussing Jordan’s efforts to develop a knowledge-driven economy, the

important role research and develop-ment can play is too often overlooked in favor of highlighting the latest hip Internet startups.

But as surprising as it may seem, important scientific work is being carried out in the Kingdom. For the latest evi-dence, look no further than the cutting-

edge research facility—the first of its kind in the region—being renovated and upgraded in the town of Allan, some 35 km northwest of Amman.

The revamped $100 million center, set to be launched by 2016, is called Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East, or SESAME for short. The joint venture by scientists and governments of the region is mod-eled along the lines of world-class research centers like the CERN, the Geneva-based European Organization for Nuclear Research.

Originally built in 2009, the center will house a device that emits electromagnetic radiation dubbed synchrotron light, which reveals more about its microscopic structure when bounced off material. The light emitted by the device, with wave-lengths ranging from infrared radiation to x-rays, is produced by shooting

electrons at nearly the speed of light for several hours round the center’s 133 meter-long, ring-shaped tube. The emitted light is eventually collected by optical systems connected to the ring, allowing multiple experiments to be carried out simultaneously.

Scientists specializing in disciplines spanning medicine to archaeology will now have a powerful electron microscope on their doorstep, and won’t have to travel outside the

region to pursue their research.“This machine can be described as

a very big and rather expensive light bulb,” said Giorgio Paolucci, scientific director at SESAME. “We produce light or x-rays in a very controlled envi-ronment, allowing us to study any kind of structure spanning atoms, molecules, viruses, ancient artifacts, and new industrial material. Its applications are only limited by imagination.”

LAB REVAMPAlready equipped with an old model of a German accelerator from a Berlin laboratory where Paolucci started his career more than two decades ago, SESAME’s existing laboratory is currently undergoing a huge expan-sion for a launch set for the end of next year.

If all goes as planned, its opening will allow Middle East scientists to realize an aspiration that dates

DATA HAVE SHOWED THAT GENERAL ECONOMIC GROWTH FOLLOWS THE ESTABLISHMENT AND ExPAN-SION OF ANY SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH CENTER LIKE JOR-DAN’S FACILITY

W

Jordan has never excelled at scientific study. but a newly revamped, first-of-its-kind research facility could change that.

BY ELiSA ODDONEPHOTOGRAPHY BY ALA'A SuKHNY

SESAME:A SCIENTIFIC STEP FORWARD

Yasser Khalil, Egyptian Nuclear Engineer and SESAME Administrative Director


as far back as the 1980s. “The old machine has been rebuilt in Jordan only to be used to pre-accelerate the electrons. To meet researchers’ needs, a completely new storage ring has been designed by SESAME’s 40-scientist staff,” the Italian scientist said, explaining that some of the main components are currently being built in CERN and laboratories between Italy, France, and Germany.

Attributing their wide impact across the scientific spectrum to economic benefits, many of the rapidly emerg-ing economies, including Brazil, India, and Singapore, have built their own synchrotron light sources. Jordan has decided to follow suit.

The light produced at the facility can be used for structural molecular

biology by distilling the proteins’ mechanisms at the atomic level and providing guidelines for developing new pharmaceuticals, a field of pivotal importance for Jordan’s economy.

Scientific findings could provide fertile soil for medical and energy breakthroughs.

Synchrotron sources also offer tools for environmental studies, tests of materials, and archaeological sciences. The light it produces has recently become a core element for develop-ing new smart materials, which are products with characteristics that react to changes in their environment.

Egyptian nuclear engineer and SESAME Administrative Director yasser Khalil said his staff was trying to rejuvenate regional interest in the

field by attracting researchers from across the Middle East.

“As more beamlines are built, the number of [researchers using the facility] is expected to grow to 1,000 or more, this will consequently tackle the brain drain in the scientific sector witnessed across the region,” Khalil said.

iNTERNATiONAL COOPERATiONMembers of the project’s council also include Turkey, Cyprus, Egypt, Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Bahrain, Iran, and Pakistan. External parties from France, Italy, Russia, and the United States, among others, will act as observers to the experiments, help develop technology, and train staff.

“Providing an opportunity to over-come some of the hostility between the nations in the region is one main idea behind this project,” Khalil said. “We want to use science to promote intercultural dialogue within the Middle East. Scientists from across the region will rub shoulders at SESAME while carrying out research and experiments together.”

In light of its geographical position and accommodating entry proce-dures, Jordan has been chosen as the center’s headquarters.

The Jordanian government’s willingness to provide land for such a space holds huge benefits for both the scientific community as well as local economy, as the research center will be launching new proj-ects on a regular basis, potentially generating hundreds of jobs inside the Kingdom.

Data have also showed that general economic growth follows the establish-ment and expansion of any scientific research center like Jordan’s facility.

In light of the large number of

professionally trained technicians in the region, scientists at SESAME are confident that companies in high-tech or high-precision mechanics will open Middle Eastern labs in the future.

“There will be a growth of the num-

ber of people coming to Jordan, and local companies will start producing parts for the scientific instruments,” Paolucci said. “It is not something that will happen in the next few years but instead will take some time due to the complexity and expertise neces-sary to build such an industry.”

Private companies are also expected to start commissioning SESAME to carry out experiments. But involving the private sector might take a long time as it is hard to explain how companies can benefit from the center’s programs and identify specific market needs.

“This could take around 10 years,

but it will surely have positive economic effects,” Paolucci said. “Once the machine is working, people will start coming, and we will do our best to involve companies and get their samples analyzed.”

But trust is needed to lure a business-minded private sector into the laboratory.

“To work with a specific com-pany you need to know as much as possible about their processes, which means to know their secrets,” Paolucci said. “Human relations and trust count more than legal agree-ment in these cases, especially when one talks with top-notch tech and chemical companies and businesses working with new materials. But I saw this happening in several labs around the world and I am sure this will also be the case in Jordan.”

technology

SCIENTIFIC FINDINGS COULD PROVIDE FERTILE SOIL FOR MEDICAL AND ENERGY BREAKTHROUGHS

Giorgio Paolucci, Scientific Director at SESAME

Parts of the Synchrotron light device already present at SESAME


issue extends far beyond the Kingdom. A recent report by the ILO revealed that globally, women earn approximately 77 percent of what men earn.

But for Shahin, as well as being unfair, this doesn’t make good busi-

ness sense. “Pay should be based on the job and not on gender,” she said, adding that gender shouldn’t even come into the equation when deciding the wage of an employee. “It should be an unbiased, professional decision, evaluated on merit.”

While women are often unaware that they’re receiving less than their male counterparts, if they have any inkling that they are getting less, companies risk losing them. Lower wages for women may also mean that companies fail to attract talented women in the first place. “Businesses are losing out by not attracting women and are therefore losing the value of having women in their company,” said Shahin. “Women have as much to offer as men. They add value to busi-nesses and diversity,” she continued.

While outright discrimination is certainly one of the reasons why women receive lower wages than men—when women are paid less for doing the same job—often there are less obvious forms of discrimination at play as well.

According to Jordan’s National Steering Committee for Pay Equity (NSCPE), this includes the under-valuation and underpayment of jobs that are dominated by women, such

as health and education, even though these jobs require a high level of skill and are of equal value to society as many male dominated profes-sions. “In Jordan, when skill level is taken into account, women are paid considerably less than men,” said the NSCPE’s on their website.

But even in these female dominated sectors there have been reports of pay disparity between men and women. For example, a report released in 2013 by the ILO, the Jordanian National Commission for Women, and Jordan’s Ministry of Labor, a

significant gender pay gap was found to exist in Jordan’s private education sector—as high as 41.6 percent in private schools and 23.1 percent in private universities.

Other factors contributing to the problem of pay inequality can include career interruptions for women due to childbirth, which can have an impact on their career development, and cultural issues. Shahin believes that in Jordan men are often seen as the breadwinner of the family which leads some to believe that they are therefore more deserving of a higher wage.

If men and women have the same job and do the same work, they should be paid the same wage right? While this may seem like simple logic, the reality, however, is quite often a different story.

BY JANE HOSKiNG

Jordan’s GapinG Gender WaGe Gap

BusinessSense

ccording to a report by the International Labor Organization (ILO), men working in Jordan’s private sector

earn on average 41 percent more than women, and 28 percent more in the public sector.

When it comes to wage equality for similar work, Jordan was ranked 74 out of 131 countries in 2014 by the World Economic Forum’s Pay Equity

Indicator, with a score of 4.44 out of 7. Back in 2009, Jordan’s score was 5.4, indicating that gender-based pay discrimination is getting worse.

Nadia Shahin, general manager of Amin Kawar and Sons Shipping and Transportation, has had incredible success in her career despite working in a very male-dominated industry. While she credits her employer with treating her as an equal in the company, she recognizes that for

many women working in her industry and in many professions, this is often not the case.

She believes that pay inequality is a big problem in Jordan but also believes it’s a universal issue. “Pay equality is a problem all around the world,” she said.

While women in Jordan do face greater discrimination when it comes to pay than women in many other coun-tries, Shahin is certainly correct that this

While outright discrimination is certainly one of the reasons why women receive lower wages, often there are less obvious forms of discrimination at play as well

a


hotproducts

review

THE saMsUnG Galaxy s6

and s6 EdGE caMEras arE

sOME Of THE BEsT in THE

MarKET

Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge

saMsUnG BacK TO iTs BEsTAfter tripping up with the underwhelming Galaxy S5, Samsung are back on top of their game with their latest flagship smartphones. BY SADAD TALHOuNi

Samsung’s Galaxy line has been on a downhill trajectory following the underperformance of last year’s S5. To counter this trend and capture consumer interest once again, Samsung carried out a major overhaul of their flagship smartphone range.

The tech giant decided to incorporate the unibody design concept from its Alpha series into their new S6 and S6 Edge. Samsung has done away with the plastic and

encased the devices with front and back glass covers surrounded by an all-metal band.

The S6 retains the look and feel of the Samsung S line. The Edge, however,

comes with unique curved edges on the side of the phone that give it a beautifully futuristic, space-age look. It’s slightly thicker than the S6 (7 mm

vs. 6.8 mm) and slightly lighter (132 g vs. 148 g), but it’s not in any way obtrusive. We can’t stress enough how aesthetically pleasing the S6 Edge is. Unfortunately, while it’s easy on the eye, it’s not easy to hold. The screen curves smoothly into the handset from the front, the back is completely flat.

This, coupled

with the sharp and thin metal

frame, makes for an unpleasant handling experience, and requires some time to get used to.

Both devices offer a 5.1 inch Super AMOLED Quad HD screen, with 577 ppi pixel density, supposedly the best in

the market. While it certainly is a stellar screen, we’ve reached a point in screen quality where improvements are barely noticeable. Samsung claims the

Edge has some innovative functions for its curved

side screens, but in practice that

doesn’t really pan out. Features like

People Edge, a quick access bar for

your favorite contacts, or Information stream, which

displays news feeds and quick notifications on the curves, are cute, but they’re quite limited and not game-changing. This basically means the S6 Edge differs only visually from its curve-less companion. And despite the fact that the Edge costs almost $200 extra, the beauty of its design makes it difficult not to recommend.

Internally, hardware specifications for the S6 and S6 Edge are virtually the same. They’re fitted with an Exynos

7420 chipset and Mali-T760MP8 GPU with 3 GB of RAM. They run on Android’s latest Lollipop OS with Samsung’s revamped Touchwiz interface on top of it. Samsung was wise to simplify their UI and make it run much smoother, while still retaining its visual identity.

The heart rate monitor on the back of the device is more reliable, while the fingerprint scanner has been vastly improved. you don’t need to swipe your finger for recognition anymore; simply placing it on the home button will quickly register the print. One of the unfortunate side-effects of a unibody case is the inability to switch out the battery or insert an external memory card. Without expandable storage, you have to choose the handset that suits your needs, with three options of internal memory available: 32, 64, or 128 GB.

The Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge cameras are some of the best in the market. The 5 MP front and 16 MP rear facing cameras are extremely quick to access and snap away with, especially with the double click shortcut on the home button. Image quality is high, and we were most impressed with the clarity of photos in low light conditions. The camera features, along with the rest of the features on the phones, have been decluttered. All the Samsung bloatware has now been hidden away, and can be downloaded if needed.

Finally, battery life is a little disappointing. The S6 comes with a 2550 mAh battery, while the Edge comes with a slightly larger 2600 mAh pack, both notably smaller than the S5’s 2800 mAh, and it shows. With heavy usage, the phones struggle to last a whole working day, although when idle the phone is an excellent energy saver.

The new S6 phones have forgone interchangeable batteries, expandable storage, and waterproofing for a sleeker, more premium build. Though it may seem counterintuitive, the slick, simplified user experience, excellent cameras, and gorgeous design (particularly in the case of the Edge), make these smartphones a must-have, and prove that Samsung is still the brand to beat in the closely

fought smartphone market.


With futuristic sci-fi looks and more viscerally engaging driving dynamics, the 650S was meant to bridge the gap between McLaren’s 12C supercar and its advanced P1 hybrid sibling. However, given similarities and customer preference, the 650S effectively replaced the 12C, while a smaller 570S sports car soon arrives to round off the high tech British brand’s extended model range. The 650S is a luxury supercar with sublime precision, faultless agility, intuitive intimacy and—like its predecessor—fluently forgiving

ride characteristics.Best in bold bright colors, the 650S’ notable design departure from its more straight-laced predecessor is its theatrically swooping front-end. The new corporate face, which was first seen on the P1, features dramatically curved headlights and intakes, and resembles an upside-down McLaren logo. Thick scalloped wings serve as markers for front wheel position, while deep carbon fiber covered side gills feed air to the 650S’ twin-turbo mid-engine. Thin slatted rear lights and integrated dual exhausts are little

altered, but the 650S’ carbon fiber rear bumper section and air diffuser project were given a more urgent posture. Additionally, several carbon fiber components, including a low-set air splitter, are used for weight reduction.Mid-mounted for slightly rear-biased and low within-wheelbase weighting, the 650S’ twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V8 engine features revised pistons, cylinder heads and valve timing, bigger intercoolers, and freer exhausts. With an additional 25 BHP and 57 lb/ft, the 650S develops 641 BHP at 7,250 rpm and 500 lb/ft torque at 6,000 rpm.

MCLAREN 650S COUPE

a sUpEr sUpErcarMany believe the breathtaking 650S is the supercar the 12C always should have been. It’s hard to disagree.BY GHAiTH MADADHA

hotwheels review

Mid-range torque remains abundantly muscular, but has more peaky delivery. Virtually lag-free at low-end, the 650S pulls hard from 2,000 rpm and urgently rips through revs. The 650S’ combination of ride refinement and handling precision is unique among peers, with light and stiff carbon-fiber and aluminum construction and adaptive hydraulic suspension. Its hydraulic suspension automatically softens for comfort and hardens for taut cornering, canceling the need—and weight—of anti-roll bars. It was nuanced, composed,

and buttoned-down through roughly paved corners and even coped with rutted and unpaved roads approaching the UAE’s Jebel Jais hill climb. With razor-sharp turn-in, poised body control, tenaciously grippy and committed cornering, the 650S was dart-like and agile.It is also refined inside and remains so at high speed, where it is tightly buttoned down. With revised aerodynamics, including front air splitter and automatically rising spoiler/airbrake, it develops 24 percent more down-force for improved steering precision and feel, while long slender mirror stalks promote better air flow. The sophisticated and perfectly weighted Alcantara-clad steering turns with tidy wrist-flick movements. Textured and detailed feel through corners, its steering nevertheless offers reassuring high speed directional stability. Standard carbon ceramic brakes are highly and tirelessly effective.The 650S’ cabin is superbly ergonomic for larger drivers, with fine leathers, suede roof-liner, real metals, and carbon-fiber trim. Entering through up/out swinging doors, its cabin provides excellent front visibility, seating adjustability, and alert driving position. Adjustable gearbox and suspension controls are situated below the vertical infotainment screen and narrow floating carbon-fiber center console, designed for improved

seat width. Three suspension settings are available, ranging from supple to hard-edged. The median sport mode is best for brisk road driving. Successively edgier throttle and 7-speed dual-clutch gearbox response settings provide visceral exhaust popping in sport mode, and added shove in track mode when up-shifting.

spEcsEngine: 3.8-liter, mid-mounted, dry

sump, twin turbo V8-cylinders

Gearbox: 7 speed dual-clutch automated,

RWD

power, BHp (ps) [kw]: 641 (650) [478]

@7250 rpm

Torque, lb/ft (nm): 500 (678) @6000 rpm

Torque-to-weight: 509.8 Nm/ton

0-100 km/h: 3 seconds

Top speed: 333 km/h

fuel consumption: 11.7l/100 km

construction: Carbon-fiber monocell,

aluminum frames

Height: 1199 mm

width: 2093 mm

length: 4512 mm

steering: Power assisted rack and pinion,

2.66 turns

Brakes, f/r: Carbon ceramic discs,

394/380 mm, 6-/4 pistons calipers

Tires, f/r: 235/35R19 / 305/30R20


TiME TO rUnApple’s new smartwatch works great as a fitness tracker. but for runners, the much-hyped device lacks several key features, not least built-in GPS to map workouts with real accuracy. That’s not a problem with dedicated running watches, though. Here are four of the best.BY LAiTH ABOu-RAGHEB

thecuttingedge

2Garmin Forerunner 620www.garmin.comno list of running watches would be complete without garmin’s all-conquering Forerunner 620. besides doing all the basics brilliantly, the device also helps you train smarter by offering recovery tips and providing detailed data on your cadence, ground contact time, and vertical oscillation.The BoTTom Line: For runners looking to up their game, the Forerunner 620 promises to help enhance their training and performance considerably.Price: $400

1TomTom Runner Cardiowww.tomtom.comthis tomtom running watch has a ton of great features, but by far the most innovative is its integrated heart rate monitor that tracks the flow of blood through your wrist, doing away with the need to strap a bulky sensor to your chest. and unlike the apple Watch, it’s waterproof to 50 meters.The BoTTom Line: tomtom has combined its gPs expertise with some great hardware to produce one of the best running watches on the market. Price: $270

review

3Suunto Ambit2it might not have the mainstream recognition of other brands featured here, but for serious runners, suunto has long been a byword for technical excellence. the ambit 2’s rugged and durable exterior houses a vast array of clever monitoring technology, which tracks everything from gPs location and speed, to weather conditions and altitude. The BoTTom Line: With these sorts of specs and build quality, there’s no gambit to taking on a suunto ambit.Price: $550

4Nike+ SportsWatch GPSwww.nike.comnike has started to focus more on developing its apple Watch running app than its own range of fitness trackers. Which is a shame, really, as the nike+ sportsWatch gPs has built up a strong following due to its ease of use and great range of features like automatic run reminders. it also comes in a range of eye-catching colors, like this neon green Volt version.The BoTTom Line: even though it’s starting to show its age, nike’s sportsWatch gPs remains a dependable and simple-to-operate device.Price: $200


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Universal Civilizations Academy Honors Mothers on Mother’s Day

“My mom is the reason for my happiness in life,” words saidby one of Universal Civilizations Academy (UCA) students to mothers. UCA invited mothers on Mother’s Day to celebrate, honor, and highlight the importance of their role in the lives of their children. The event included diverse performances from songs to folklore dances done by our kindergarten students. Arabic and English songs were also performed by students from grades 1-3.”

Sky Software Implements FBM Materials Management at Intercontinental Dubai Marina Hotel Sky Software is pleased to share its FBM Food Beverage & Materials Management system’s successful implementation at the luxurious InterContinental Dubai Marina Hotel opening soon in Dubai. The selection of FBM was based on its previous successful installations at IHG hotels, and its ability to meet the chain requirements and apply its policies and standards. Implementing FBM has provided the hotel with a full-featured software solution capable of managing their food and beverage, stores cost control, recipe management and purchasing requirements. In addition to the comprehensive set of detailed and summarized reports the system was able to provide.

Longines Future Tennis Aces 2015: a meeting of talented young players in the heart of ParisFor the sixth successive year, Longines is inviting 16 promising young tennis players under the age of 13 to showcase their talent in a competition worthy of the very greatest professional players: the Longines Future Tennis Aces tournament. Held from 28th to 30th May, the 2015 tournament, enhanced by former French tennis player Arnaud Clément as its patron, will pit 16 youngsters against one another on a clay court installed in front of the Eiffel Tower. In addition, the final of the “Rendez-vous à Roland Garros” circuit, with which Longines has partnered for the first time this year, will be held on the very same court. The winners will receive a Wild Card, allowing them to compete against the best international players in the French Open’s Junior tournament.

UCA Achieves First Place in Quran Memorization Contest

Proper interpretation of the Holy Quran and memorizing its recitations forms a fundamental part in the school of Universal Civilizations Academy. UCA has an integral learning process in religion which increases faith awareness. UCA has had the honor to take part in the Quran Memorization and Recitation Contest, held in Al Jazeera Schools, at the level of private schools in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

VENTURE MAGAZINE | 71

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New versions of the PanoMaticLunar and PanoReserveElegant red gold meets matt black, cool stainless steel encounters intense blue. For Basel world 2015 two new versions of the PanoReserve and PanoMaticLunar make their debut at the same time. The two timepieces from the successful Pano Collection are now available in red gold versions with a matt black dial, and in polished/satin brushed stainless steel editions with a dark blue dial.

Orange Jordan signs strategic partnership with BLU TacticalOrange Jordan recently announced its strategic partnership with BLU Tactical — the largest paintball facility in the region. Under this partnership, Orange will sponsor various elements of BLU Tactical’s operations, in addition to providing high-speed wireless broadband connectivity throughout its premises. One of the primary objectives of this partnership is to promote paintball as a dynamic and social sport with a considerable following worldwide, which provides young men and women, students and tourists with an engaging and entertaining activity that encourages sportsmanship and friendly competition. The partnership will also allow Orange to directly interact with BLU Tactical’s visitors through a variety of activities, leveraging on the facility’s lively ambiance that flows in harmony with the Orange brand.

MedLabs Laboratories participate in LabourDay celebrations at the Children’s Museum

MedLabs Laboratories, the leading network of medical laboratories in the region, participated in the Children’s Museum Labour Day event held on Wednesday29/04/2015, at the museum premises. MedLabs team of medical technologists presented a brief interactive explanation about the role of medical laboratories in disease diagnosis, using creative games and activities that specifically highlighted the role of red and white blood cells in the body, to a large group of enthusiastic children. MedLabs’ team also performed simple glucose and hemoglobin screening tests for a number of teachers, parents and some students.

Euro-Arab Insurance Groupconducted a free medical day Euro-Arab Insurance Group in cooperation with the All Jordan Youth Commission andwith the support of a group of institutions and leading companies in Jordan, has conducted a free medical day in “Al-Areed healthcare center” in Theban / Madaba, and this activity stems from the Group’s strategy to support and encourage local voluntary social works and to consolidate the principle of community solidarity. The medical day covered the following medical specialties: General medicine and examination, Gynecology, Clinical examination for breast, Internal medicine, Diabetes screening, Hypertension examinations and HP lab tests.

Sky Software Powers InterContinental Bangkok Hotel with its Horizon QMS to Boost Guest Satisfaction

Sky Software is proud to announce its grand implementation of Sky Horizon Quality Management System (QMS) solutions suite at InterContinental and Holiday Inn Bangkok hotels. This is the first implementation of Sky Horizon QMS in the Far East, Thailand, which was a result of long-term preparations, included several online presentations that were conducted with the purpose of analyzing and covering all the hotel needs and requirements, Sky Software then was given the green light to start the project. Sky Software has also granted the hotel’s staff and technicians with the ability to access the QMS system via Sky Horizon QMS Mobile application, allowing them to access the QMS system features via more than 120 active smart phone devices, which helped them to significantly shorten the response time for their guest requests.

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ESKADENIA Software participates as an exclusive technology partner at Jordan’s National Health Insurance Conference -2015ESKADENIA Software, the leading Jordanian-based provider of world class software products & services, is named as the technology partner of the “Comprehensive Health Insurance Conference 2015” of Jordan Association of Medical Insurance JAMI. The conference took a place on the 25th & 26th of April at Mövenpick Resort & Spa - Dead Sea, Jordan. As part of ESKADENIA Software and Jordan Association for Medical Insurance’s (JAMI) technical partnership, JAMI launched its new website powered by ESKADENIA’s Content Management System (ESKA® CMS). ESKADENIA Software provided JAMI’s team with a user-friendly interface that offers full control over corporate web presence, from content administration to structure management and event announcements.

The Astron revolution continues with the new Dual-Time caliber

Astron GPS Solar was launched with caliber 7X in 2012. In 2014, the collection was expanded with a second-generation caliber, 8X, featuring a chronograph. In 2015, the Astron revolution continues apace with the addition of a third caliber, designed specifically for the global traveller. The worldwide success of the Astron GPS Solar series is perhaps unparalleled in the prestige watch market in recent times and the arrival of the Dual-Time caliber offers yet more proof that GPS Solar is a technology platform that delivers real, practical advantages that are appreciated by all.

Mövenpick retains “Jordan’s Leading Resort” title for 2nd Year

One of the world’s top ranking resorts has been named Jordan’s best touristic destination in the coastal city of Aqaba. Mövenpick Resort & Spa Tala Bay Aqaba was named “Jordan’s Leading Resort” at the 2015 World Travel Awards for a second year in a row – a title nominated by a majority of votes from over 500,000 travel professionals and high-end travellers worldwide. Beat Peter, General Manager of Mövenpick Resort & Spa Tala Bay, received the award during a ceremony held in Dubai.

SEVENFRIDAY M2/02

Sevenfriday has released the third piece in its M-Series Collec6on; the M2/02. The design is inspired on industrial revolution machine parts made from copper and cast iron. Seven Friday M2 automatic watch with a square black and rhodium finished six-layered dial and comes with specially hardened and antireflective treated mineral glass. This model features three customized discs including hour, minute, second, is fitted with a black calf leather strap, and fastens with a traditional pin and buckle. Watch is water resistant to 100 meters.

executivereelRamadan Street Market at Grand Hyatt Amman

Iftar is an age-old tradition that brings together family and friends. This Ramadan, a new and exciting experience awaits our guests at Sawani Terrace. Venture into the Ramadan Street Market and sample the best of local and international cuisines, exploring multiple live-cooking food stations and taking in enchanting sights and sounds from live performers.


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Racing against time for children and families in Nepal:

IKEA Foundation gives €3 million to UNICEF emergency relief effortsIn the aftermath of the violent earthquake that hit Nepal with devastating force on 25 April, IKEA Foundation has contributed €3 million to UNICEF to support emergency relief efforts. Children are always the most vulnerable in emergencies. Current estimates indicate that over 1.7 million children have been affected by the earthquake in the worst-hit areas of Nepal. In addition to the terror of the experience, the lives that have been lost and homes destroyed, children and families face life-threatening shortages.

Tremendous thrust right from the start: the Audi TT club sport turbo technology concept carA powerful rear wing and a power output of 600 hp the Audi TT club sport turbo impresses with its power and design. From May 13 to 16, Audi will be showing its technology concept car on the Wörthersee Tour in the Austrian town of Reifnitz. The inspiration for the show car came from the successful Audi 90 IMSAGTO of the late 1980s. A new technology is making its debut under the hood. The car’s electric biturbo add seven more dynamism to the driving experience with its spontaneous response.

LG ELECTRONICS REPORTS SOLID 1Q NET PROFIT AS SMARTPHONE SHIPMENTS INCREASELG Electronics (LG) today announced unaudited first-quarter net profit of KRW 38.4 billion (USD 34.91 million) and operating profit of KRW 305.2 billion (USD 277.45 million), up significantly from the previous quarter. Consolidated revenues of 13.99 trillion (USD 12.72 billion) were virtually unchanged from the same period a year ago as soaring smartphone sales were offset by modest revenue declines in TVs. LG’s mobile division recorded its highest first-quarter revenues since introducing its first Android device in 2010. The Home Appliance & Air Solutions Company also saw profitability rise compared to the same period last year.

The Prix de Diane Longines 2015: Races, Elegance and Wonders in ChantillyThe Prix de Diane Longines launching has taken place yesterday on the “Tir aux pigeons” domain, in the heart of the Bois de Boulogne. As Title Partner, Official Timekeeper and Official Watch, Longines joined France Galop to unveil the program of the 2015 edition of this much awaited race day where sport performances, outstanding elegance and many surprises will meet up. Besides, the Longines Ambassador of Elegance Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will enlighten the 2015 Prix de Diane Longines. On Tuesday 19 May, Longines and France Galop presented to the media and guests the program of the Prix de Diane Longines on the “Tir au pigeons” domain, a true haven of greenery, as a teaser of this year’s theme: “Garden Party”.

Huawei Launches the P8; A Revolutionary Light Painting Smartphone that Breaks New Ground in Fashionology by Combining the Best of Fashion and TechnologyToday at the legendary Old Billingsgate, London’s renowned arts and fashion venue, Huawei Consumer Business Group unveiled the Huawei P8 smart phone, a perfect blend of technology, sleek styling, usability and revolutionary low light camera features. The Huawei P8 is the culmination of the P series’ rich heritage of style and functionality, and is once again redefining the smart phone market with easy-to-use features that amaze and inspire consumers.

Nabil Foods participates in HORECA Beirut 2015Nabil Foods, the most prominent name in the frozen food industry in Jordan and the region, recently participated in the 22nd edition of HORECA Beirut, the largest annual food and hospitality trade show in the Levant. This year’s exhibition was held over four days in April at the Beirut International Exhibition and Leisure Centre (BIEL). Nabil Foods was a prominent fixture at the event, with an entire wing of the convention center dedicated to displaying the company’s frozen food products, including cold cuts, poultry, pastries, ready meals, sweets and snacks. Through its participation in this year’s exhibition, Nabil aims to increase its presence in one of the region’s most prominent economies, strengthening its current partnerships while concurrently seeking to establish new ones.

Abu Shakra Launches Radiomir 1949 ORO ROSSO watch from PaneraiBehind the simplicity of the new RADIOMIR 1940 with GMT function lie details of Great sophistication and elegant solutions which reveal the technical virtuosity of the officine Panerai Manufacture at NEUCHÂTEL. The appearance of the Radiomir 1940 is of exemplary simplicity. Yet every detail reveals the complexity of the design, which aims to maximise the characteristics of reliability, robustness, ease of reading and visibility in the dark which have distinguished Panerai watches since their first appearance, on the wrists of the commandos of the Italian Navy in the 1930s.

I.N.O.X. Red The force sees red Launched to mark the 130th anniversary of Victorinox, I.N.O.X. establishes a new industry standard for watch strength and resilience. The superlative all-terrain watch is now evolving into Victorinox Swiss Army’s core collection—first with blue, black and green models, and now with I.N.O.X. red. I.N.O.X. embodies the quintessential values of Victorinox’s most famous creation, the original Swiss Army Knife: authenticity, strength, quality, Swiss savoir-faire and Swiss design. It pushes these qualities to the extreme by enduring 130 strength tests, a ruthless battery unparalleled in the watch industry. I.N.O.X. will survive, for example, a ten-meter drop onto concrete, temperatures from -57° to + 71° degrees Celsius, attack from all manners of corrosive products, a one-minute exposure to a 1,200° degree Celsius flame, and being driven over by a 64-ton tank.

New Vision Provides Exclusive Offers for Jordan Engineers Association The authorized distributor of LG Electronics’ household appliances, home entertainment devices, ACs and mobile phones in Jordan - has signed a partnership agreement with the Jordan Engineers Association (JEA). The agreement was inked by New Vision CEO ‘Shadi Ramzi’ Al Majali and JEA President Eng. Abdullah Obeidat. “Our partnership with the JEA is closely aligned with our policy aimed at extending New Vision products and services to association members and company employees at competitive prices. This step also reaffirms our commitment to growing our local customer base to encompass different segments of society,” commented Al Majali.

CTA Celebrates Earth Hour and Grants Showroom Visitors Great Discounts on Toyota Vehicles The exclusive dealer for Toyota vehicles in the Kingdom - took part in the global “Earth Hour” celebrations of March 28th 2015, switching off all electrical lights in its Mecca Street showroom for one hour. This effort was made as part of the company’s ongoing aim to contribute to environmental sustainability. As an alternative light source during this time, CTA lit candles, aiming to highlight the need to address climate change and global warming. Adding a festive feel to the event, CTA offered great discounts on Toyota models to those who had participated in the event.


Jordan Insurance Company participates in Soccerex Asian Forum for second consecutive yearJordan Insurance Company (JIC) recently concluded its participation in the 2015 Soccerex Asian Forum, which was held on May 3 and 4 at the King Hussein bin Talal Convention Center, overlooking the Dead Sea. The two-day event was inaugurated by His Excellency Prime Minister Abdullah El-nsour, and was carried out under the patronage of HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein, who currently resides as president of the Jordan Football Association, president of the West Asian Football Federation, and FIFA Vice President representing Asia.

Land Rover Continues ‘My Journey, My Inspiration’ Film Series Premium SUV manufacturer, Land Rover, has revealed the third instalment of its inspirational ‘My Journey, My Inspiration’ film series with the story of Bader Al Lawati. Dubbed ‘The Freezing Omani’, Al Lawati’s passion and desire to protect the environment of his homeland prompted him to embark on a gruelling journey to the freezing Antarctic, a place few Omanis have ever been.

Grand Millennium Hotel Amman receives “2015 Jordan’s Leading Business Hotel” award for the second consecutive year For the second consecutive year, Grand Millennium Hotel Amman was awarded the “2015 Jordan’s Leading Business Hotel” award at the World Travel Awards ceremony, which was held in Dubai at the beginning of May. The ceremony was attended by the General Manager of Grand Millennium Hotel Amman Stephan Kaminski, Mr. Helmi Abu Shanab, Sales and Marketing Director as well as guests from the tourism and hospitality industry from all over the world.

ACT marks Global Safety Day with comprehensive awareness campaignAs part of its continued efforts to raise awareness on the importance of workplace health and safety, Aqaba Container Terminal (ACT) recently marked global Safety Day with an awareness campaign held in collaboration with other terminals within the APM terminals network. This year, the campaign focused on the importance of intervention when it comes to safety, under the heading globally “Safe at home, at work “and locally of “if you see it, you own it.” Building on its longstanding expertise in the field, the management of ACT developed a comprehensive internal campaign that tackled several critical safety issues, including operational best practices, traffic safety, drug abuse, health and personal hygiene, and others.

ICS Financial Systems Ltd Named “Best Islamic Software Provider MENA 2015”Global Banking and Finance Review, one of the worlds’ leading global banking and finance publication has announced ICS Financial Systems Ltd. (ICSFS),the global software and services provider for banks and financial institutions, as the “Best Islamic Software Provider in MENA for 2015”. The Global Banking & Finance Review Awards recognize excellence within the global financial community. They have been designed to reflect the innovation, achievement, strategy and progressive changes taking place within the financial sector.


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LAST MONTH’S ISLAMIST WIN OF the Jordan Engineers Association elections provided ample proof that the Muslim Brotherhood remains a strong and influential player in the local political scene. The results came as a shock for those who claimed the Islamist movement has been critically wounded in the aftermath of the Arab Spring, especially after they were removed from office in Egypt, and in light of the fact that the Jordanian branch had suffered internal rifts. Last March, the government approved the registration of a breakaway group under the same name. The new society, whose members were all dismissed from the original 70-year-old group, claimed it was now the only legitimate body of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan. And when the original Brotherhood announced it was planning to hold a public rally in Amman to mark seven decades of existence, the society objected and claimed that the group was not a legally licensed body anymore. Until this point, the government had insisted it had no interest in interfering in the internal political wranglings of the Islamist movement. But when the Minister of Interior and Amman’s mayor warned the group against holding their rally, claiming it wasn’t licensed and was using the society’s name and insignia, it became clear that the government had taken sides. The group backed down and postponed the event. But the newly formed Brotherhood has declared it will go to court to ask that its predecessor’s assets, worth tens of millions of dinars, be transferred to it. If it did try, that would definitely be interpreted as a serious escalation. It’s difficult to gauge the government’s position, which at times has been

contradictory. When the group’s leaders met with the Prime Minister in February, he assured them the state respected their role and contributions and had no intention to interfere in their internal issues. That position has changed dramatically, and it’s not clear if the government wants to weaken the movement or destroy it. There is plenty of evidence that in spite of regional setbacks and internal fighting within the group between opposing flanks, the Muslim Brotherhood remains popular and strong among voters. Along with its Engineering Association election win, the Islamists also won the majority of seats in recent polls for the Jordan Teachers Association, and the University of Jordan’s students union. In the latter, they had a strong nationalist/leftist competitor, but they still triumphed. So the question to now ask is: Is it wise to alienate them? Unlike other countries, Jordan’s experience with the Islamists has been relatively positive overall, despite the fact that they have become the leading opposition in this country in recent years. They participated in previous legislative elections and joined government ranks for a short spell back in the 1990s. Their decision to boycott elections later was appreciated even by their adversaries, who also complained that the Election Law was unrepresentative and had to be amended. Still, when the hawkish flank took over and adopted stricter policies, the group continued to call for political reforms. As internal struggle heated up, some members launched a reform initiative of their own to save the movement. They were chastised and eventually kicked out. This was a

huge mistake, which paved the way for a major fracture that ended in the formation of a new society. Despite this, the group has proved it remains strong and popular. On the other hand, the new society was probably damaged in its infancy by government bias in its favor. The original group appeared to be the underdog, and the claim that it wasn’t licensed, after 70 years in Jordan, was flimsy. There are lessons for everyone to learn here. The original Muslim Brotherhood group must find ways to mend fences with the moderate flank, which doesn’t want to alienate the movement from political life, especially after the experiences of Egypt. For the new Islamist group, which has no grass-root support, it would be wise to defuse the crisis and step back from trying to crush its much bigger brother. As for the government, it should think of the repercussions of helping to divide the Islamist movement group at this crucial time when the country is facing numerous other internal and external challenges. As we fight radical extremists, it’s vital that we think of young Jordanians, with Islamist leanings, who usually found a place within the ranks of the Brotherhood. Without it, those Jordanians will become easy prey for jihadist groups and their nihilistic agenda. I don’t support the Islamists and I believe in a secular and civil state that embraces liberal and universal values. But I believe in their right to express themselves and be part of our political tapestry.

You can contact OSAMA AL-SHARIF at [email protected]

POSTSCRIPT

wHy islaMisTs MaTTEr TO OUr pOliTical sysTEMLike them or not, Jordan’s Islamists represent an important part of the kingdom’s political landscape, and trying to divide them further could do more harm than good. BY OSAMA AL-SHARiF


Date post:	17-Feb-2017
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