Tag Archives: traffic
Shaikh Mohammed to unveil plaques of five-star centres
Shaikh Mohammed to unveil plaques of five-star centres (Wam) / 26 February 2014 Vice-President says diligent work teams deserve praise and appreciation while unveiling five-star plate at Traffic and Licensing Centre in Fujairah. Federal government customer service centres serve as the real ground of competition among public service providers to deliver world-class services to the local community, His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has said, and added the new Star Rating Initiative, which he launched on Monday, will generate true leaders who deserve “our thanks and commendation”. All federal government customer service centres will abide by the Star Rating Initiative. Intended to bring about a quantum leap in the efficiency of government services as per global standards, the system rates public service centres with a number of stars (from two to seven) by placing a special plate at the entrance of each federal customer service centre. Shaikh Mohammed inaugurated Phase 1 of the evaluation and classification of 75 government service centres according to the new Star Rating Initiative on Monday. Three centres obtained the 5-star rating, and Shaikh Mohammed unveiled the first plate at the Customer Service Centre of the Ministry of Justice, Abu Dhabi. Thirty-three centres received a 4-star rating and 39 centres received a 3-star rating. The evaluation and classification process will continue to cover all federal customer service centres by the end of 2014. Shaikh Mohammed made his remarks during a visit to the Traffic and Licensing Centre in Fujairah on Tuesday to unveil a five-star plate which the centre obtained. Shaikh Mohammed pledged to unveil the five-star plaque of the centres himself, saying that diligent work teams deserve praise and appreciation. The Vice-President took a tour of the traffic centre, which is run by 173 employee and provides 77 government services to 110,000 people. Last year, the centre processed 200,000 transactions. During his tour, Shaikh Mohammed thanked the employees for their continuous dedication and diligence to improve public services and promised to revisit them in case they add more stars. In a speech on the occasion, Shaikh Mohammed said, “Direct dealing with the customers carries both tremendous challenges and opportunities at the same time and the true leader is one who succeeds on the ground and who can achieve the highest rate of customer satisfaction. This applies to all — from the head of the government to the junior employee — because the criteria of real success in government work are to serve public interest and create opportunities for them to achieve happiness for themselves and their families.” The UAE is the first country in the world to adopt this rating system for government service centres based on a comprehensive operational framework that emulates the standards applied in hotels, banks and aviation companies. The project is part of the Emirates Government Service Excellence Programme and is managed by the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs. It embodies the practical steps to develop government services according to the international standards and rate all federal customer service centres based on the development of services and responding to customers’ requests. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs; Musabbah Rashid Al Fattan, Director-General of the Dubai Ruler’s Court; Khalifa Saeed Suleiman, Director-General of Dubai Protocol Department; and Brigadier Ahmed Mohammed Ghanem, Commander-in-Chief of Fujairah Police. For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
Qasr Al Hosn festival to give life to traditions
Qasr Al Hosn festival to give life to traditions Silvia Radan / 20 February 2014 Educational archaeological digs and artefacts handling sessions are also taking place next to Qasr Al Hosn. The red and white colours of the old Abu Dhabi emirate flag, from the days of the Trucial States, is flying once again on a small building in the heart of the capital. Cavalia show reflecting themes inspired by the UAE’s history and interactive heritage. — KT photos by Nezar Balout According to a man in an old police uniform guarding the building, this is where the Abu Dhabi’s old police headquarters used to be, very close to Qasr Al Hosn, or the White Fort, Abu Dhabi’s oldest concrete building. The set up is part of this year’s Qasr Al Hosn festival, taking place from February 21 to March 1, on the grounds of the old fort, and it is where police officers will be telling visitors about the guarding of the palace in the old days. “There are no stairs inside the Watch Tower to prevent enemies entering it. The guards used to climb to the top on a rope,” explained Peter Sheehan, historic buildings manager at Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (ADTCA). The Watch Tower is the oldest part of Al Hosn Fort, built in the 1800s. Last year, the building commemorated its 250th anniversary, which was marked by organising the first Qasr Al Hosn festival. Just as in 2013, this year too the grounds of the fort are turned into a massive heritage village, honouring all aspects of Emirati traditions. The area is split into four sections — Desert, Marine, Oasis and Abu Dhabi Island, each showcasing exhibits, workshops, demonstrations and performances. Apart from the police building, the Abu Dhabi Island area also has a Beit Al Zehba, a traditional wedding house where visitors can watch performers prepare for a traditional Abu Dhabi wedding with dancing, music and the adorning of the bride with henna and jewellery. Educational archaeological digs and artefacts handling sessions are also taking place next to the fort, while behind the old school, set up to emulate how traditional Emirati schools used to look and operate, children are invited to play traditional games. Demonstrations of sadu (weaving), henna and dukhoun (traditional scent or incense making) will take place daily, along with horse riding, a souq and, new this year, Emirati chefs showing how to prepare local dishes. The Desert area will have Bedu men showing off their Hatheera skills, the techniques of making traditional Arabic coffee, while others will put on an Yola folk show, reveal the traditional Bedouin etiquette, make horse saddles, teach about kandoora dying and burqa making. New this year is a partnership with the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD), which will set up a houbara bustard pen, to hopefully raise awareness about this endangered species, once hunted by Arabs for food. Falconry, saluki dogs and camels are also part of the desert area. “I could sit and watch falcons all day! I’m fascinated by them! When they drop from the sky, sometimes at 300 kilometres per hour, to catch their pray, my blood races like I’m racing myself,” said Emirati Mohammed Saif. For the next 10 days of the festival he can watch falconry demonstrations every afternoon, as his friend is one of the falcon-owners participating in the show. Fishing and pearling are the focus on the Marine area exhibits, while in the Shasha building there are workshops on paddle making, sail making, dhow building, fishnet making, fish trap making and fish salting. The Oasis area is all about making a living from date palm trees, with exhibits and demonstrations on palm tree climbing to harvest the dates, palm weaving to make household objects like mats and fans and rope making from palm tree fibres. EAD is again present here, this time with a Healing Garden, which exhibits desert plants and their medicinal properties in ointments and herbal remedies. Opened for the first time in years, the Cultural Foundation will host traditional handicrafts, clothing, toys and pottery. Also opened for the first time in decades, is the inner courtyard of Qasr Al Hosn, where guided tours will explain all about Abu Dhabi’s most iconic, historical building, which is under restoration. After its VIP opening tonight, the festival will be opened for ladies only on Friday and to the general public from February 22, from 4pm to 11pm. silvia@khaleejtimes.com Schools to close early abu dhabi — Schools in the Capital will close at midday today due to the Qasr Al Hosn Festival, the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) announced. According to Mohammed Salem Al Dhaheri, executive director of school operations at Adec, students will be released from school early due to various activities and programmes that would require closing a number of roads around the celebration area from 12pm till 7pm, thus affecting the traffic flow. The Adec has instructed schools to inform parents of the early dismissal. It has also coordinated with the Emirates Transport to organise transfer of students to avoid traffic jams and smoothly facilitate their journey back home. news@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
Discovery Gardens gridlock to be resolved soon: RTA
Discovery Gardens gridlock to be resolved soon: RTA Staff Reporter / 17 February 2014 Authority is about to undertake further road works in the area with a view to providing two additional entries and two exits. As motorists’ frustration of being stuck in hours’ long traffic jams in Discovery Garden community at Jebel Ali reaches its peak, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) says it has held an urgent meeting with the developer Nakheel and will study temporary solutions “within a matter of days”. Residents of Discovery Gardens often get stuck in traffic for hours. — KT photo by Grace Guino In a statement to Khaleej Times on Sunday, the RTA said that it is “about to undertake further road works in the area with a view to providing two additional entries and two exits for Discovery Gardens and Ibn Battuta Mall at Interchange 5.5 on Shaikh Zayed Road and Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road.” “Works on these solutions are expected to be completed by the end of this year. These works are undertaken as part of the next five year plan that completes parallel roads in that area.” Hussain Al Banna, Director of Traffic, RTA Traffic and Roads Agency, said: “The RTA had an urgent meeting with Nakheel to work out solutions and alternatives, including streamlining functionality of light signals in the area concerned in a bid to ensure a smooth traffic flow.” On Thursday last week, heavy rain had caused a huge gridlock that lasted for hours. A resident of Discovery Gardens said the traffic jams are routine and very frustrating. “On a normal working day, it takes over 45 minutes to reach the only exit that both the communities have access to,” said the resident. “There are two schools in the area and despite the fact that traffic policemen are present everyday, we are stuck in a jam for hours.” Al Banna said the RTA is undertaking a study. “Within a matter of days, the RTA will embark on studying the provision of temporary entries and exits for the Discovery Gardens through the Shaikh Zayed Road and the Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road out of its keenness to overcome any difficulties impacting the traffic flow.” news@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
