The Egyptian government has extended a formal invitation to Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Saqqaf, Chief Editor of the Yemen Times for a five-day visit which is expected to start on February 7th.
The program calls for meetings with four ministers (including the foreign minister), several other key officials, media leaders, intellectuals, and other personalities. "The climax of the visit is going to be the audience with H.E. President Hosni Mubarak," he said.

In addition, Dr. Al-Saqqaf is expected to give two lectures on Yemen; one at Al-Ahram Strategic Center, and the other at the Arab Organization for Human Rights
The visit, which will take place a week before the Supreme Yemeni-Egyptian Ministerial Committee, is expected to zero in on topics of bilateral concern. The Yemen Times will also raise regional and international issues, and the Egyptian vision and position on them.

 

On Sunday, January 31, at 10.00 AM, Mr. Alfred Berger, head of the foreign Trade Department at the Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urban and Regional Development of the German state of Hesse will hand over medical devices for the Al-Sabiin Mother and Child Hospital in Sanaa. This gift, which includes, among others, devices for infusion and transfusion therapy, are donated by the German company CLINICO Group.

During his visit, Mr. Berger will have talks in the Ministry of Electricity and Water in order to discuss details regarding an envisaged bilateral workshop on wind energy, solar energy, water supply and sanitation to be held in Sanaa this year.
For more than 20 years, the company CLINICO has been a leading producer of medical devices known for its quality and safety in transfusion and infusion therapy. Tool making and extraordinary competence in producing tools for medical devices are the main advantages of CLINICO.
The hand over ceremony will be held on January 31, at 10:00 AM at Al-Sabiin Hospital in Sanaa.

 

In its meeting on January 28, 1999, the Executive Council of The Friends of the League of Arab States Association (FLAS) highly appreciated President Saleh's efforts for holding an Arab Summit. The council members discussed the association's work during 1998 and its program for the year 1999. They also talked about the recent conditions in the Arab World.

 

The Government of Japan extended to the Government of Yemen a Debt Relief Grant Aid amounting to 379,396,000 Japanese yen, approximately US $3,300,000.
Notes on this effect were signed and exchanged on January 28, 1999 by the Yemeni Minister of Planning & Development, Mr. Ahmed Soufan, and the Japanese ambassador in Sanaa, Mr. Akira Hoshi.
The government of Yemen will make the best use of this grant for the purchase of products that contribute to the development of Yemen's economy and the enhancement of the welfare of its people. More specifically, it will be used to combat the outbreaks of malaria in many regions of the country.

 

A seminar on the Future of the Containers in the Free Zone will be held in Aden from March 15 to 18, 1999. The seminar is organized by the Aden Chamber of Commerce and the Yemeni Company for Investment and Development International Ltd. (YEMINVEST), the Yemeni Ports Authority and other relevant authorities.

 

A contract was signed with a Swedish consultative firm on January 28, worth US $1,3 million. The company will study proposals to upgrade electric supply of Sanaa.

 

During 1998, the total expenses of bilateral social, investment, and economic projects between Yemen and China were US $700 million.

 

In a meeting with the press. Mr. Jean-Marc Hosanski, Yemen LNG Project Director at Total, gave a summary of their operations and plans for the Yemeni gas project.
Total has three operations in Yemen, one is for the production of crude oil in Shabwa with a production capacity of 16,000 barrel a day which will increase to 22,000 bpd at the end of this year. The second operation is a joint oil production concession at Jannah. The third is the US$ 2.2 billion LNG project.
This last project calls for constructing a 320 kilometer main pipeline from Marib to Bal Haf, a 100 kilometer spur line from Marib to Sanaa, a 26 kms. transfer pipeline, a plant at Bal Haf, and a storage capacity of 250,000 cubic meters - also at Bal Haf. Exploitation of the 10.2 Tcf proven gas reserves still depend on finding markets as financing.

 

Royal Jordanian (RJ) started last week operating flights between Ireland's Shannon Airport and Chicago using Airbus-310 planes.
An RJ official explained use of that section of Shannon Airport as due to operational matters pertaining to the range of the planes.
He added that U.S immigration officials at Shannon Airport can finalize procedures for passengers entering the U.S., thus facilitating travel procedures.
This route to expected to be active because of tourism between the Middle East and Europe and the USA, and because of demand to be generated by the third millennium of the birth of the Christ.
The new station will also offer transport services to Irish passengers traveling to the Middle East or the Arab Gulf states via Amman. Jordan signed an agreement with Ireland last September for operating these flights.

 

The Center for Artificial Limbs and Physio-therapy organizes a training course in physio-therapy and rehabilitation in Hodeida. The course will be held from February 6 to 15. About 30 people will participate in this course. It will be attended by some specialists in physio-therapy

 

The Embassy of Japan supports Sanaa Juvenile Reformatory for the improvement of its services for disadvantaged children in the framework of the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects aimed at supporting small-scale community-based projects.
An agreement on this effect was signed on January 28, 1999 by the Director General of Sanaa Juvenile Reformatory and the Japanese ambassador in Yemen. This grant will enable the recipient to purchase a 4WD vehicle for the purpose of enhancing its social/ development activities.

 

The Government of Japan extended a grant of US$ 26,418 to the Yemen 21 Forum for the execution of its project for improvement of NGO capacity in Yemen. The grant comes in the framework of Japan's assistance for grassroots projects which is aimed at supporting small-scale community-based projects.

Agreement to this effect was signed on January 25th, 1999, by Professor Abdulaziz Al-Saqqaf, Founder of Yemen 21 Forum, and Mr. Masataka Ishida, Charge' d'Affairs of the Japanese Embassy in Sana'a.
With this grant, together with donations from Yemen Times, the German and UK embassies, the Yemen 21 Forum has been properly equipped to provide logistical support to local NGOs, including temporary office space and meeting areas.

It is worth mentioning that the Yemen 21 Forum was a recently established NGO with the aim of helping Yemen move into the 21st century by improving the capacities of NGOs. Its operations will start next week.

 

On Saturday, January 30th, a group of tribal elders held a meeting with Mr. Nabil Mohammed Ali Al-Khamiry, a prominent Yemeni businessman. The meeting comes following orders by President Ali Abdullah Saleh to resolve the dispute.
The Yemeni business community was in an uproar in 21/12/1998 when a group of armed tribesmen stormed the offices of the businessman on Zubairy Street. They tried to kidnap the man, but his guards fought back killing one of the attackers and injuring another. But the tribesmen were able to get away with a briefcase which contained some money and documents.

"This gives a bad precedence. We already have problems of tribesmen attacking foreigners. Now they have expanded their activities to include Yemeni businessmen," says Nabil.
The tribes now want blood revenge because one of their own was killed in the assault. The President of the Republic responded by providing some twenty soldiers as bodyguards. But of course, this is not a good solution, in the long term.
The business community is waiting for a responsible decision from the state. The next few weeks will show the political will of the state of Yemen.