RTA opens another round of applications for vanity plates

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai has launched a new phase of the Get Your Special Moments on Your Number Plate initiative, offering Dubai drivers a chance to select five-digit plates that reflect dates of significance.

Sultan Al Marzooki, Director of Vehicles Licensing at RTA’s Licensing Agency, said: “Phase II of this initiative follows the remarkable response garnered by the initial phase, which was restricted to those born from 1981 to 1998 under Code S.

"This initiative reflects RTA's core responsibility for offering new and excellent services adding more satisfaction and happiness to customers through engaging them in selecting numbers of importance in their lives as vehicle plates. Therefore, the new phase enables customers to have important or personal dates reflected in their vehicle licensing plates. Such plates must necessarily be of five digits only to cover the day, month and year."

Interested?

Number plates bearing Code T will be issued subject to the availability on RTA’s website against a total fee of AED1,620 per plate. Plates can be sourced from all Customer’s Happiness Centers in Dubai, service providers, strategic partners, from the RTA website or the Drivers & Vehicles smart app. The current phase of this initiative applies to those born from 1967 to 2016.

DED enables licensing of eight new business activities

Source: DED. Bushahab.

The Department of Economic Development (DED) in Dubai has added to the list of business activities licensed in the emirate, bringing the total number of activities to 2,133.  The decision follows feedback on local market needs and the demand-supply situation gathered periodically from various industry sectors as part of facilitating business and providing the necessary resources for business development.

The additions include a number of specialised activities, including: industrial robot assembly, tax consultancy, printing of security documents, scanner manufacturing, hazardous waste collection and transport, health consultancy, financing broker, as well as social media application development and management.

"This is the second time in 2016 that we have added new business activities. Our team constantly evaluates market needs and gathers opinions and suggestions from existing and potential investors across Dubai to understand their requirements in the fast-changing local market," said Omar Bushahab, CEO of Business Registration & Licensing (BRL) sector in DED.

Bushahab added that the decision will strengthen DED's emphasis on developing the emirate's services profile and facilitating license procedures relating to limited liability companies in view of the role of such firms in promoting private sector growth. The additions will further eliminate barriers to business, encourage new business ideas and create new jobs, thereby benefitting investors and the public, he said.

Industrial robot assembly

Includes remotely-operated or computer-assisted robots as well as specially-designed vehicles or telescopic arms that can take the place of humans in dangerous tasks such as detecting explosives or radiation, firefighting and manufacturing processes demanding high standards of precision or labour.

Tax consultancy 

Meant for specialised firms engaged in tax advisory to foreign companies in the UAE, helping them to avoid double taxation, implement tax treaties between countries, and review company statements. The minimum qualification required to engage in this activity is a bachelor degree in business administration/economics/law/accounting or a related discipline, along with the three years of practical experience.

Security document printing 

Covers the printing of high-value documents with added security features integrated into the document for protection against forgery, counterfeiting, tampering or alteration. The documents may include ballot papers, bank notes, cheques, passports, stock certificates and identity cards.

Scanner manufacturing 

All scanners, including 3D, desktop flatbed, drum and hand-held formats, used to scan text, handwriting, or an object and convert it into digital images for electronic transmission or uploads, come under this category.

Hazardous waste collection & transport 

Licences for the collection of solid/liquid/gaseous waste from manufacturing, medical or agricultural activities, particularly those which cannot be disposed in regular landfills or sewer networks due to their potential health risks and hence requiring special treatment. Dedicated vehicles are required to transport such wastes to their disposal sites, assigned by competent authorities.

Health consultancy

Firms providing expertise, guidance and advice to healthcare institutions on improving business functions, patient safety, and holistic approaches in health promotion and disease prevention. The areas of consultancy involve reviewing regulatory compliance, assessing staffing needs and resources, communicating with clients in order to identify operational problems and efficiency gaps, hospital renovation and redesigning and IT solutions. A Bachelor of Science in Health Care Administration/Business Administration/Economics along with three years of practical experience is mandatory for health consultants.

Financing broker 

can act as facilitator between borrowers - whether such borrowers be individuals looking for personal loans or businesses looking at acquisition, development or expansion – and lenders. The Financing Broker assists such borrowers in securing the right finance from banks or other lending institutions.

Firms helping businesses and individuals to utilise social media, including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram,to increase visibility and expand their following as a means for growth are classified under the social media applications development & management activity. The activity involves providing and managing such social media content as well.

Megaport launches pay-as-you-go network interconnection services in Singapore

Singapore businesses will soon have a new network service provider with the launch of network interconnection services from Megaport, a provider of network interconnection services across the region that was founded only in July 2013. 

The company has been granted a Facilities-Based Operator (FBO) Licence by the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) of Singapore, allowing Megaport to build and operate telecommunications infrastructure in the Singapore market.

The initial launch in Singapore will include the completion of a 100 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) enabled network-as-a-service platform, connecting organisations and cloud computing providers between major data centres in Singapore. 

Future network development phases will see Megaport undertake the substantial rollout of a large capacity fibre optic cable network. This will provide other carriers and enterprise clients with access to cost-effective dark fibre* services.

Founded in Australia in July last year by Australian Internet visionary Bevan Slattery, the Megaport platform already connects over 100 enterprise and carrier clients throughout 18 data centres in Australia.

“Infrastructure-as-a-service has changed the way organisations use and manage information technology assets. Telecommunications services have to date resisted this change, attempting to match traditional pricing and long-term contracting models to the on-demand pay-for-what-you-use nature of cloud services," said Bevan Slattery, Chief Executive Officer of Megaport.

“Megaport addresses this mismatch with its innovative and highly competitive product suite. It now will offer rapidly deployable connectivity options to major cloud and managed service providers that can be ordered and configured online - and purchased only for the duration they are required, whether it be months, weeks or even days and at a fraction of the price.”




*Dark fibre refers to connectivity that is not provided by the traditional telecommunications carriers of a country.