At Last, Mobile Phones for the Poor in Africa

A good news offered by the program of the UN for combating poverty to the poor African peoples. The program of the UN and Ericsson Company have agreed on laying net works of mobile phones to 79 villages in ten African countries, which would enable about half a million persons, described by the UN as the poorest in Africa, to enjoy making calls through using mobile phones.
Those who are in charge of the program of combating poverty hope that mobile phones would contribute in improving services of education and health in that region. Based upon a previous study by the UN made in 2005, it showed that providing every one hundred persons by ten mobile phones in the poor areas contributed in increasing the GDP by 0.6% but will these poor people be able to buy mobile phones and pay the bill of their calls? With whom will those poor people talk, which according to the UN, are suffering from hunger, poverty, bad nutrition, an almost complete absence of health services and infrastructure, let alone many famines and human crises.

The Emirati "Tabreed" Company Offers Islamic Bonds With A Value of $300 m

The National Company for Refrigeration "Tabreed" said that it intends to sell Islamic bonds that can be transformed into shares with a total value of $300 by March 2008 with the aim of financing futuristic projects.

"Dubai World" Invests in Zanzibar

"Istithmar", one of the one of the affiliated companies to Dubai World announced yesterday that it had plans for investing $150 m for developing a new luxuries resort in Zanzibar following reaching a big strategic agreement between "Istethmar" and Zanzibar government.

"Orascom" Telecom and New Profits in Algeria

The volume of investment of the Egyptian "Orascom" Telecom Company in Algeria has reached $3.2 bn till September. It is worth mentioning that the holding Orascom Telecom Company, the biggest company in terms of operating the net works of "GSM" in the Middle East and Africa as well as the Indian subcontinent, has achieved during the first nine months of the fiscal year 2006 an increase of its net profits by 11% with a total of 32.02 billion Egyptian pounds compared to 2.875 billion Egyptian pound of the same period of 2005.

The "Central Bank of Egypt" Preserves the Interest Prices Without Any Change

The "Central Bank of Egypt" said that it would preserve the interest prices without any change by 8.75% for deposit and 10.75% for granting loans pointing out that the pressures resulted from inflation were still a source of worry.

The Russian "Zarubezhneft" Company Expresses its Wish to Explore Oil in Bahrain

The Governmental Russian "Zarubezhneft" company informed the kingdom of Bahrain that it intends to have a license for oil exploration in the Gulf opposite to the Bahraini sea shores.

The European Union Says that the Economic Aids to Palestine Are Related to the Peace Process

The Representative of The Bureau of the European Commissionary in the Palestinian territories, John Care, said that the volume of the economic aids to the Palestinian people is related to achieving progress in the peace process between the Israeli and the Palestinian sides, pointing out that the volume of these aids has been increased.

For the Thousand Times, Sarkozy Says: No Place for Turkey in Europe

In a televised interview, the French President Nicolas Sarkozy said that he thought that Turkey would not have a place in Europe, expressing at the same time that he hoped that Ankara would be able to get benefit from "a real partnership" with the European Union. He further differentiated between what he described as a real partnership to be offered to Turkey and integration with Europe which Sarkozy refused.

Iraq Hopes that Russia Cancels its Debts

The Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Mahmud Zebari expressed his country’s wish to sign an agreement by the end of this year for canceling the Iraqi debts to Russia that go back to the era of the Soviet Union.

Small Indexes

 The Muritani Economic has recorded a growth rate by 5.7% during the first six month of this year, according to the head of the delegation of the economic evaluation of the International Monetary Fund.
 Official statements said that inflation in Morocco has risen by 2.1% during the first 8 months of this year, amid an increase of prices of housing units and foodstuff.
 The International Investment "Carlyle Group" said on Thursday that it sold 7.5% of the shares of its general activities to the Emirati "Mubadala" company, which is considered the investment arm of Abu Dhabi government in return for $1.35 bn.

Companies Indexes

 The Giant Anglo-Dutch Oil Company "Dutch Shell" revealed on Friday that it would increase the refinery capacity of its oil refinery "Motiva" in Port Arther in the American Texas state by 325.000 barrels a day making it the biggest refinery factories in the world.
 The two German "Lufthansa" company and "Deutsche Post" for Postal Services have announced that they established a joint company for working in the field of aviation transportation targeting the markets of the Far East.

Bids

 The Syrian Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources and the Syrian Oil Company have signed an agreement with the Canadian "Loan Energy Ink" company for exploring oil in 10.000 k.m. within the territories of four governorates north of the country.

Indicators is a daily economic watch newsletter about the Near East, issued by New Orient News agency in Beirut, Lebanon. It is available on Voltairenet.org in Arabic and English. Also worth a read is Tendencies, the daily Near East political watch newsletter, available in Arabic, English and French languages.