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RIYADH: This year’s Jewelry Salon exhibition opened its doors to the public as part of Riyadh Season with some of the most luxurious and unique designs in the region.
Hosted in the Riyadh Front Exhibition Center, the salon covers 30,000 square meters and will be welcoming visitors until Nov. 6. 
The event that has been taking place in the Saudi capital for 10 years is the largest to date in terms of the number of vendors and attendees, as well as diversity of jewels on display.

Representatives from more than 16 countries will be showcasing rare stones, diamonds and gold at what is regarded as the biggest jewelry exhibition of its kind in the Middle East.
More than 500 VIPs from throughout the region are expected to visit the salon, with the opening day seeing royals, celebrities, and world business leaders in attendance.
Hatoon Al-Khaldi, an exhibition marketing manager, said that influencers, including Balqees and Fatima Al-Ansari, were also due to make appearances.
Veschetti, an Italian family high-end jewelry business founded in 1949, was in Riyadh for the second time showcasing a collection of hand-crafted pieces inspired by Italian culture and made using rare and precious gems.
Business owner, Chiara Veschetti, told Arab News: “We are very honored and happy to be back here in the unique jewelry exhibition in Riyadh after two years with our collection from Italy.”

Another item on display was a carved Burmese sapphire, classified as a “gemological rarity,” found in modern-day Myanmar.
The exhibition was also hosting local designers alongside international industry names such as Piaget, Harry Winston, and Yvel and some of the diamonds on display cannot be seen anywhere else.
One of the exhibits is the world’s most expensive mask, valued at $1.5 million. Created by Yvel during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, it contains 250 grams of 18-carat gold and is set with 3,608 natural black and white diamonds.
Luxury watch, rough diamond and gemstone dealers, gold and precious collectibles retailers and gold wholesalers from around the globe were among other exhibition participants.

Launched in 2010, the Jewelry Salon was set up as a hub for local female designers to display their work and grow their brands. It has now grown into a regional gathering for jewelry enthusiasts, investors, and local and international businesses.
DUBAI: Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the trend toward digitalization has been accelerating, with more people choosing to shop, work, bank, and communicate online.

At the same time, a host of state and private institutions have moved their products and services into cyberspace, taking advantage of growing internet access, better infrastructure, and technological advances.

As a result of this rapid transition, governments and business leaders have been eager to find ways to improve the digital quality of life among their service users. To help them, cybersecurity firm Surfshark has created the Digital Quality of Life Index.

Drawing on a sample of public opinion from 110 countries, the 2021 index has focused on the fundamental pillars of internet affordability and quality, e-infrastructure, e-security, and e-government.
The study, first launched in 2019, is based on open-source information provided by the UN, the World Bank, Freedom House, the International Telecommunication Union, and other sources.

Saudi Arabia ranked 50th overall but came first in the category of most improved mobile speed. It was fifth for overall mobile speed at 97 megabytes per second and fifth for mobile internet stability.

Although the Kingdom had dropped five places over the previous year, its overall performance had improved as many more countries had been included in the new index.

Povilas Junas, a research project manager at Surfshark, told Arab News: “Clearly and undoubtedly, Saudi Arabia’s strength lies in mobile internet. Not only does the country rank first in that category, but the index shows how much the speed has increased over the past year.

“It also ranks fifth in mobile speed and mobile internet stability, which we take from analyzing how mobile internet varies from month to month.”
Worldwide, digital tools have become an integral part of daily life, with the number of internet users jumping from 4.3 billion in 2019 to 4.7 billion today — constituting almost 60 percent of the global population.

Improving digital quality of life is therefore considered an urgent requirement for future prosperity and well-being as the world emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Junas said: “We have to talk about the elephant in the room, which today is defined by the pandemic. Even prior to it, many people spent lots of time online, from TV to movies online, but due to the COVID-19 crisis, we do more things online — we work, study, and meet our friends and relatives because we couldn’t do that outside.

“It’s not only a social aspect but economics as well. Because a good digital quality of life means you can improve your economic status, offer services, and start your own business, as you can interact with partners and customers on the other side of the world.
“Digital quality of life strongly affects both the social and economic development of our lives in general,” he added.

Saudi Arabia has made digital transition a key component of its Vision 2030 strategy to build a high-technology knowledge economy that was not reliant on income from oil exports.

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, the Kingdom ranks among the top 10 developed countries in the world for its robust digital framework, with the pace of digitalization having accelerated prior to 2020.

Since 2017, PwC said, state and private-sector investment of around $15 billion in information and communications technology infrastructure has allowed Saudi Arabia to further leverage its digital infrastructure with a solid base.
“The country’s digital backbone has enabled essential services, including learning, shopping, and even medical consultations, to carry on and protect the economy from the challenges of the pandemic,” PwC Middle East said in an April blog titled, “Vision 2030 in a Post-Pandemic World.”

It highlighted the example of one local online retailer, BinDawood Holding, which reported a 200 percent increase in average sales over a 10-day period in late March 2020, while its average order value rose by 50 percent and app installations by 400 percent.

The findings of the 2021 Digital Quality of Life Index study broadly confirmed the PwC blog’s assessment. Saudi Arabia was found to excel in internet quality, ranking 10th surpassing Singapore, France, and Israel, and in e-infrastructure coming 35th — about 20 percent better than the global average.
However, Saudi Arabia’s broadband internet speed showed room for improvement. Ranked at 41st, with 76 megabytes per second, it lagged far behind first-place contender Singapore, which enjoyed a speed of 230 megabytes per second.
• Digital Quality of Life Index was created by Surfshark to help govts. and business leaders.
• 2021 index measures internet affordability and quality, e-infrastructure, e-security and e-government.
“This is definitely an improvement that would allow Saudi Arabia to rank higher in the index,” Junas said.

Despite its high-quality internet connections, Saudi Arabia also has room for improvement in the affordability index too, scoring 70 percent below the global average.

Surfshark’s study suggested that residents had to work an average of almost nine hours in order to afford the cheapest broadband internet package — three hours and 13 minutes more compared with 2020.
Then again, with a land area of 2.15 million square kilometers, the challenge Saudi Arabia faced in building and maintaining the infrastructure required for providing fast and stable broadband connections was something that Singapore, a small city state, did not have to contend with.

Meanwhile, PwC’s latest “Hopes and Fears” survey found that 79 percent of respondents in Saudi Arabia believed that advances in technology would improve their future job prospects, and close to 90 percent were confident of being able to adapt to using new technologies coming into their workplaces.

“This is a strong endorsement of the success of the digital transformation initiatives already underway,” the study report said. “According to our latest Middle East CEO survey, 59 percent of Middle East CEO respondents, compared with 49 percent globally, aim to increase their investments in digital transformation by 10 percent or more over the next three years, as a direct response to the impact of COVID-19.”
The 2021 Digital Quality of Life Index study revealed Saudi Arabia’s e-security — at around 20 percent lower than the global average — to be one of the potential areas for improvement despite the palpable progress made in recent years.

Surfshark’s chief executive officer, Vytautas Kaziukonis, told Arab News: “Digital opportunities have proved to be more important than ever during the COVID-19 crisis, stressing the importance for every country to ensure fully remote operational capacities for their economies.

“That is why, for the third year in a row, we continue the digital quality of life research, which provides a robust global outlook into how countries excel digitally. The index sets the basis for meaningful discussions about how digital advancement impacts a country’s prosperity and where improvements can be made.”

In order to boost its overall ranking in future indexes, Junas noted that Saudi Arabia should prioritize improvements in its cybersecurity and privacy laws.

“If countries grant more privacy against different data brokers or any sort of services which can access users’ data, the score improves, as it’s quite an important pillar,” he said.

“Another point worth mentioning is that a broader online presence for the country’s government agencies would also improve the Kingdom’s score, which means some services offered by the government that are available offline for citizens could also be enabled online.

“Online services are crucial: If citizens can do their taxes, register for healthcare, or do many other services provided by the state online, then that can help improve the index score,” Junas added.

Twitter: @CalineMalek

RIYADH: The Royal Saudi Air Force continued a joint air-missile combat exercise at Al-Dhafra Air Base in Abu Dhabi, the Saudi Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.
The RSAF participated in the exercise along with the counterparts from a number of countries.
“The exercise is one of the largest and longest-running maneuvers in the region and provides an environment rich in the mutual field and tactical experiences with the aim of benefiting from these experiences and strengthening relations and cooperation,” the ministry said.
The drill also aimed to develop operational coordination between the participating countries and improve the level of readiness to plan and implement air operations. 
The main focus is to protect vital interests, combat terrorism and confront threats and hostilities that target the security and stability of the Arabian Gulf region and the Middle East.
“In the exercise, RSAF pilots demonstrated their combat, skill, and technical capabilities. They proved that their air superiority is not novice,” the ministry said.
Dr. Hani Al-Turkostani has been director of the IT and information consultation center at the Institute of Public Administration since 2019.
Partnering with Deloitte Digital, the center provides consultations to government organizations and helps them achieve their digital transformation strategies. It also improves work procedures using data, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and emerging technologies.
Prior to his current job, Al-Turkostani served for two years as director of the IPA’s educational technology center, beginning in 2017. He was responsible for managing and supervising classroom educational technology, conference call systems, and multimedia production for educational films. He also supervised the IPA’s studio production, including photography, video and audio. He also led the multimedia team for the institute’s e-training initiative, Ethrai.
From 2010 to 2012, he directed the institute’s department of IT network and tech support, where he managed the IT infrastructure and data center, network operations, IT infrastructure projects, and quality of service technologies, gaining hands-on experience with Microsoft, HP, Cisco and VMware solutions and providing consultancy services to government agencies. He also contributed to preparing a digital transformation strategy for the IPA with e-government program Yesser.
In 2005, Al-Turkostani received a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering from Umm Al-Qura University. He also underwent a training program on the fundamentals of computer networking, logical design and digital circuits.
Five years later, he was awarded a master’s degree in the same field of study from George Washington University, US.
In 2016, he obtained a Ph.D. in the same subject from the University of Idaho, US, where he worked in an intelligent transportation project with the US Department of Transportation, conducted research in vehicular ad hoc networks, and presented at the US National Labs.
Al-Turkostani’s publications include his 2019 translation of one the most reliable references in the field of information systems and technology: “The Strategic Management of Information Systems: Building a Digital Strategy,” authored jointly by Joe Peppard and John Ward.
His published works include “On the Reliability of DSRC Safety Applications: A Case of Jamming” (2013), “On the Design of Jamming-Aware Safety Applications in VANETs” (2015), and “The Impact of Jamming on Threshold-Based Agreement in VANET” (2018).
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Interior Prince Abdul Aziz bin Saud bin Naif held talks with UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime Ghada Waly in the capital, Riyadh, on Tuesday.
During the meeting, a number of issues of common interest were discussed and a memorandum of understanding for technical cooperation was signed between the interior ministry and the UN.
The agreement aims to develop a general framework for cooperation and understanding between the two parties to achieve common goals and objectives in the areas of crime control and criminal justice.
Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed Al-Khuraiji also held talks on combating corruption with Waly and Hatem Ali, the UNODC’s GCC regional director, on behalf of Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan.
During her visit, Waly also met with Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir where they discussed international issues and efforts aimed at achieving global peace and stability.
She also met with the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Nayef Al-Hajraf, where he stressed the importance of Riyadh’s initiative to enhance international cooperation between anti-corruption law enforcement authorities, which was issued during the Kingdom’s presidency of the G20 last year.
RIYADH: Ways to develop the Kingdom’s cinema industry have been discussed at a meeting, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Esra Assery, CEO of the General Commission for Audiovisual Media, met Toby Tennant, vice president, EMEA Regional Distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures, and Mohamed Al-Hashemi, regional manager of Majid Al Futtaim Leisure, Entertainment, Cinemas & Lifestyle.
They discussed areas of cooperation to develop Saudi cinema, distribute movies, and develop national competencies in light of the industry’s enormous growth since its launch and the significant turnout of movie distributors to make films.
They said the Kingdom’s cinema industry was undergoing qualitative advancement that attracted local and global investors, especially amid the commission’s procedures that contributed to facilitating and speeding up licensing and rating.
A nationwide ban on cinemas in the Kingdom was lifted in 2018, and more than 1,000 films have been presented in the country in the past three years. There are 45 movie theaters in the Kingdom, with a combined 418 screens and 41,934 seats. Meanwhile, it was announced that the inaugural edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival will feature some of the best Arab and international films.  

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