Passport clearance cut to 10 seconds at Dubai Airports

Clearing passport control will take as little as 10 seconds instead of minutes waiting for passport clearance thanks to the system developed by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) in Dubai.

A high-ranking official at the GDRFA told that by the end of the year, the system will be fully operational in all Dubai Airports at the arrival and departure terminals.

Brigadier Talal Ahmad Al Shanqeti, the general director assistant of Airport Immigration Department at GDRFA-Dubai, said the ‘Next Generation Borders’ system collects details of passengers 48 hours before they board an aircraft.

The system starts to collect the data when a passenger buys an airline ticket.

“We had an agreement with Emirates airlines to update the system with passengers’ details 48 hours before the flight. The system makes necessary checks on passengers to issue clearance and send the details to the passport control officer who will need only 10 seconds to stamp the passport rather than three minutes in the past,” Brigadier Al Shanqeti told

The system has already been fully implemented at Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport while Terminal 1, 2 and Al Maktoum International Airport are expected to be 100 percent ready by end of the year.

“We have 65 employees working in a command room to check the passengers’ details and send clearance to the passport control officer so he only needs to identify the passenger in front of him before stamping his passport. The system works on arrival and departures.”

The passport officer in the past used to take a longer time to identify passengers in situations where a name was similar to someone on the watch list but the new system will reduce waiting time because the passenger had already been securely identified.

“In the past, the officer used to take a minute or more to clear a passenger but the new system helps the officer to clear four passengers in a minute,” Brigadier Al Shanqeti added.

He said that even if the passenger makes a last minute booking, his details will be in the system an hour before the flight timing.

“There has been an increase of seven to nine percent in a number of passengers travelling through Dubai airport and the new system will help decrease clearance time for passengers and make them happy,” he said.

The GDRFA Dubai has 1,600 passport control officers working round the clock. “In Dubai, a passport control officer clears 55,000 passengers per year on an average while globally the ratio is 17,000 passengers. With the new system in place, better results will be achieved.”

Brigadier Al Shanqeti praised the officers’ work at a ceremony held to recognise their efforts.

Last year, an officer topped the list for clearing 133,000 passengers in a year.

RTA Dubai diverts 8 licensing services to smart channels

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is intending to divert several licensing services to smart channels starting from the end of this month. The step is part of a strategy to gradually divert all services in line with our government’s policy to limit the number of clients at service centres and make the Smart City initiative a reality.

“As of the end of this April, customers seeking 8 licensing services will be prompted to use smart channels (RTA Website (www.rta.ae), Dubai Drive App, Service Kiosks, and the Call Center (8009090). The services will be gradually phased out at service centres such that they will cease by the end of June,” said Abdullah Yousef Al Ali, CEO of Licensing Agency, RTA.

“The services that will go online are: renewal of registration of individually-owned vehicles that need testing, list of registered vehicles, return from tourist trips, registration of the first owner, vehicle(s) ownership certificate, re-insurance certificate, replacement of lost/damaged ownership certificate, and clearance certificate,” he added.

“The RTA is planning to divert more services by the end of September this year, namely: payment of fines, renewal of vehicle ownership with a different number plate, and the changing of the number plate. Accordingly, the processing of these services will be channelled through the said electronic and smart platforms.

“RTA’s policy of migrating licensing services and others to electronic channels is in response to leadership directives to reduce the number of visitors at service centres and enable clients to process their transactions smoothly at their own convenience. The policy saves customers time & effort, concurs with the Smart City initiative and supports RTA’s first and third strategic goals: Smart Dubai, and People Happiness, respectively,” concluded Al Ali.

UAE economy returning to growth

The UAE has been resilient to the impact of the prolonged oil price slump. Following the recent rise in oil prices to over $60 (Dh220) per barrel, there is a sense that the worst is behind the UAE’s economy and confidence is gradually returning, according to Institute of International Finance (IIF).

“We expect non-oil growth to pick up to 2.7 percent in 2018 and 3 percent in 2019, driven by private consumption and non-oil exports, as fiscal consolidation eases and global trade improves. The deceleration in headline growth last year was due to the oil production decline,” said Garbis Iradian, Chief Economist, Mena, IIF.

The UAE possesses large financial buffers estimated at around $800 billion (Dh2.6 trillion), safe-haven status, excellent infrastructure, and a relatively diversified business-friendly economy, which will help the country cope with lower oil prices. Further progress in diversification into non-hydro-carbon trade and financial services is expected to mitigate the adverse impact of lower oil prices. Non-hydrocarbon GDP accounts for only 30 percent of total GDP, and oil exports for slightly less than 40 percent of total exports.

The UAE has continued to improve the business environment and competitiveness, even from an already high global ranking by the World Bank and the World Economic Forum. “We expect the UAE to be one of the best performers among Mena economies over the next five years. Solid growth will continue to be driven by trade and tourism,” Iradian said.

Firmer oil prices

Overall growth has decelerated to around 1 percent in 2017 due to oil production cuts under the extended Opec agreement and fiscal consolidation. However, sentiment has improved with firmer oil prices. The PMI remained relatively high at 54.8 percent in March 2018 despite the introduction of the VAT in early 2018.

“We see a gradual recovery in economic growth this year and next with improvement in global trade and the expected easing pace of fiscal adjustment in Abu Dhabi. Preparations for Expo 2020 and key projects will support activity in the UAE,” said Boban Markovic, Research Analyst at IIF.

Several high-frequency economic indicators, including retail sales and number of tourist arrivals over the past few months, suggest improvement in sentiment and private sector activity. Non-oil activity in Abu Dhabi is improving after a challenging two years during which deep government spending cuts slowed activity. Key projects, such as the construction of nuclear plants and airport expansion, are progressing, albeit with delays.

Dubai has performed relatively well due to its diversified economy and is projected to do well in the current year. “We expect growth in Dubai to remain slightly above 3 percent. However, economic activity in Dubai continues to be dependent on regional prospects, particularly Saudi Arabia and Iran. The volume of property transactions has declined and residential prices have continued to soften,” said Iradian

UAE signs an agreement for hiring Bangladeshis

 The UAE and Bangladesh on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on facilitating recruitment of Bangladeshi nationals in the UAE.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Nasser bin Thani Juma Al Hamli, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, and Nomita Haldar NDC, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Expatriate Affairs.

Al Hamli praised the cooperation between the governments of the two friendly countries in various fields, including the promotion of cooperation to recruit qualified manpower from Bangladesh to the UAE in accordance with the laws and regulations in both countries.

"The signing of the memorandum comes within the framework of the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation to open multiple markets to families and employers in the country and to provide several options for the recruitment of help workers to meet their needs and achieve their aspirations," he said.

Tadbeer centres would soon start providing their service to recruit workers in diverse fields. The MoU said the recruitment office in the UAE shall send a letter of offer to the candidate in Bangladesh, including all the terms of the employment contract.

Both countries agreed to cooperate to make a list of all costs related to recruitment and employment of Bangladeshi workers, as well as spread awareness among them about hiring guidelines before and after their arrival to UAE.