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OPEC Fund approves close to US$1.2 billion new development funding

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VIENNA, Sept. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund) is significantly stepping up its development support with nearly US$1.2 billion in new funding since June. The latest projects approved by the Governing Board, which met for its 189th session today, support smallholder farmers and businesses, promote the construction of resilient infrastructure, provide clean water & sanitation solutions and increase climate resilience. Partner countries’ reform programs will benefit from dedicated OPEC Fund loans.

OPEC Fund President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa said: “The OPEC Fund is ramping up its efforts with significant new financing approvals which underscore our commitment to transformative development. These investments in our partner countries will boost infrastructure and build resilience, delivering tangible benefits for the people and communities we serve.”

The OPEC Fund’s Governing Board approved the following new projects in today’s meeting and since its last meeting in June 2024.

Public Sector Operations (in alphabetical order):

Armenia: A US$50 million policy-based loan will fund a joint World Bank program to support government efforts to foster climate change mitigation and adaptation, improve environmental management and energy efficiency, promote human capital development and strengthen governance.

Benin: A US$26 million loan will support the scaling up of investments in agriculture to enhance food security through the Horticulture Development Support Project in partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The project will reach 16,000 households and benefit nearly 100,000 smallholder horticulture farmers and family members, nearly half of whom are women and young people.

Colombia: A US$150 million policy-based loan will finance and help the implementation of the government’s Decentralization and Biodiversity Support Program. It is promoting territorial development by strengthening institutions, improving environmental governance and enhancing biodiversity protection. The program is expected to benefit nearly 16.5 million people.

Côte d’Ivoire: A US$60 million policy-based loan for the Economic Transformation and Inclusive Governance Program (PATEGI) – Phase I will promote inclusiveness and governance in public finance management; improve competitiveness and boost the green transition in the transport and energy sectors. The program is being co-financed with the African Development Bank.

Democratic Republic of Congo: A US$30 million loan will improve access to potable water through the development of infrastructure in the Ubangi River basin, specifically in the North Ubangi province in Gbadolité and the rural areas of Mobayi-Mbongo, where access to drinking water is significantly lower (8 percent) than the national average (18 percent).

Honduras: A US$15 million loan will enhance food security by promoting resilient and sustainable agriculture in north-central Honduras. The project will benefit around 140,000 people, prioritizing women and youth.

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Jordan: A US$100 million policy-based loan will support a joint World Bank program targeting human capital, which aims to improve the governance and effectiveness of education, health and social assistance. It will also promote climate resilience including safeguarding households from the adverse effects of rising temperatures.

Oman: A loan facility of up to US$392 million financing, consisting of two tranches (US$180 million and US$212 million), will support the Dibba-Lima-Khasab road project, a strategic investment covering a total length of 72km. The road will reduce travel times, improve traffic safety and boost tourism.

Tajikistan: A loan facility of up to US$100 million consisting of four tranches (US$25 million each) will support the Rogun Hydropower Plant Project, currently under construction on the Vakhsh River. The power plant will have an installed capacity of 3,780 MW, promoting energy security in the country and providing clean energy for the entire Central Asia region.

Private Sector and Trade Finance Operations (in alphabetical order):

Armenia: A US$10 million loan to a local bank will support on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and provide funds for green projects

Botswana: A US$40 million loan to a local development organization will promote economic diversification beyond the diamond industry and support non-mining sectors such as agribusiness, health, education, ICT, finance and energy.

Dominican Republic: A US$17.5 million loan to a local bank will promote on-lending to SMEs, including women-led businesses.

Regional Africa: A US$40 million loan to a regional development bank will support socio- economic development across four countries.

The OPEC Fund also approved four trade finance facilities in Mauritania (US$50 million), Senegal (US$47 million), Egypt (US$35 million) and Pakistan (US$25 million) to support the import of strategic commodities for development.

About the OPEC Fund

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The OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund) is the only globally mandated development institution that provides financing from member countries to non-member countries exclusively. The organization works in cooperation with developing country partners and the international development community to stimulate economic growth and social progress in low- and middle-income countries around the world. The OPEC Fund was established in 1976 with a distinct purpose: to drive development, strengthen communities and empower people. Our work is people-centered, focusing on financing projects that meet essential needs, such as food, energy, infrastructure, employment (particularly relating to MSMEs), clean water and sanitation, healthcare and education. To date, the OPEC Fund has committed about US$27 billion to development projects in over 125 countries with an estimated total project cost of more than US$200 billion. The OPEC Fund is rated AA+/Outlook Stable by Fitch and AA+, Outlook Stable by S&P. Our vision is a world where sustainable development is a reality for all.

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OPEC Fund President Dr Abdulhamid Alkhalifa

 

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“Make Your Way” Bata unveils brand evolution

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Bata Celebrates 130 Years with a new Brand Campaign: “Make Your Way” 

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, Sept. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Bata, one of the world’s leading footwear companies, proudly celebrates its 130th anniversary with a new brand campaign named: “Make Your Way.” This milestone marks a celebration of Bata’s rich heritage, and an exciting evolution aimed at positioning the brand as one of the top choices worldwide. 

 

 

A New Era for Bata

The “Make Your Way” campaign reflects Bata’s renewed focus on style, comfort, and affordability, aiming to attract a younger, trend-conscious audience while honouring its strong heritage. 

“This campaign is about inspiring self-expression and confidence. At Bata, we make shoes to accompany consumers as they create their own path in life and build their road to the future,” says Sandeep Kataria, Global CEO of Bata. 

Strategic Vision

The new positioning, “Stylish, comfort-enhanced, affordable shoes for every side of you to make your way” aims to connect with today’s fashion-conscious consumers, to expand Bata customers base and drive further growth. It will be communicated through Bata’s key labels: “Bata”, “Bata Comfit,” and “Bata Red Label.” This strategy positions Bata as the only major high-street footwear Retailer genuinely targeting ‘Every Side of You’ through authentic and heritage-rich in-house brands, covering every aspect of consumer life: dress, leisure and sport. 

Global Campaign Rollout

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Developed with the agency &Rosàs, the global campaign includes media investments, in-store storytelling, and a redesign of Bata’s e-commerce and social media approach.

Special Initiatives

It will also feature do-good marketing efforts to inspire and support women across various disciplines. Starting in September in Europe, Bata will introduce a special 130th-anniversary edition of women’s ballerinas, supporting women in ballet and dance, fostering participation from diverse backgrounds, and aiding women facing economic challenges. The Ballerinas are a fashionable reinterpretation of the original Batovka, an innovative shoe launched in 1897 by Bata, which embodied the company’s vision about quality & affordability. 

About Bata Group

Bata is one of the world’s leading shoemakers, selling more than 150 million pairs of shoes annually. With comfortable fit, stylish designs, affordable prices, and responsible manufacturing, Bata customers can feel good in their shoes – from their head to their toes. Founded in 1894, the family-owned business operates in over 56 countries across five continents. Bata designs, manufactures, and retails its own footwear, constantly innovating to find the perfect fit. 

About &Rosàs

Founded in 2003, &Rosàs is a leading advertising and communications agency based in Barcelona, known for its consistency, market awareness, and loyalty. 

Press Contact 

Sarah Stocchetti
Global Corporate Communications at Bata Group 
E-Mail: [email protected] 
Mobile: +41 79 724 60 68 

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KM Malta Airlines, the Maltese Islands’ New National Carrier, Implements CellPoint Digital’s Payment Orchestration Solution Ahead of Official Launch

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The partnership will enable Europe’s newest airline to provide passengers with a seamless payment experience and access to their preferred payment methods.

LONDON, Sept. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — CellPoint Digital, a global pioneer in Payment Orchestration, today announced that it will provide Payment Orchestration solutions to KM Malta Airlines (KMMA) as the new flag carrier of the Maltese Islands begins service on March 31, 2024. CellPoint Digital will support KMMA’s payment processes across all sales channels, including on its new website, allowing passengers to pay with key alternative payment methods (APMs) like Apple Pay.

Using CellPoint Digital’s Payment Orchestration platform, KMMA launches service with optimised payment processes, a cost-effective payment strategy, and a customer-centric payment model. This partnership reflects KMMA’s commitment to providing its passengers with a seamless, convenient payment experience and the airline’s recognition of CellPoint Digital as the ideal payment solution provider for its debut.   

The partnership with CellPoint Digital also gives KMMA access to multiple acquirer connections to support its growth strategy, including its preferred acquirer Shift4 (formerly Finaro). This enables the new airline to route its transactions optimally, resulting in lower payment costs and settlement in its preferred currency.

“It’s not often that we get to be present at the inception of one of Europe’s next great airlines, but that’s the opportunity we have with this partnership,” said Kristian Gjerding, CEO of CellPoint Digital. “By prioritising its payment strategy as a cornerstone of its launch strategy, KMMA demonstrates that it cares about providing passengers with the best possible booking experience and setting itself up for future success.”

A New Airline with a New Approach to Payments

KMMA is the brand-new flag carrier of Malta, replacing Malta Air and beginning service on March 31, 2024. The airline, which will fly to 17 airports in 15 major European cities, was established to protect and enhance the connectivity of the Maltese Islands to Europe and beyond, to support the Islands’ continued economic development and to grow into a successful and sustainable airline. Working with CellPoint Digital and implementing Payment Orchestration pre-launch allows the airline to jump-start and future-proof its payment processes – a critical advantage for a nascent airline entering a crowded and competitive market.

“We believe a highly optimised, cost-effective payment strategy is essential to the success of our brand launch,” said Roy Kinnear, CCO of KM Malta Airlines. “That’s why we sought out the experts in commercial aviation payments to provide a comprehensive payment platform designed to meet the needs of our passengers. There’s no one we trusted more to handle our payments from the outset than CellPoint Digital.”

The Advantage of Day-One Payment Orchestration

Payment Orchestration is a concept that describes the end-to-end management of all components of a payment, from authorisation to routing to settlement to reporting, allowing airlines to boost conversions in direct and indirect sales channels at lower transaction costs. CellPoint Digital’s Payment Orchestration Platform, which KMMA will implement, routes transactions intelligently to increase acceptance, simplifies and centralises back-end reconciliation, integrates various payment methods like Apple Pay, and easily accommodates multiple PSPs and acquirers, including KMMA’s preferred acquiring partner, Shift4.

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For more information about the CellPoint Digital partnership with KM Malta Airlines or to speak with company executives, please get in touch with Steven Osei at [email protected].

About CellPoint Digital
CellPoint Digital is a fintech leader in payment orchestration and optimisation. CellPoint Digital’s main solution is a powerful Payment Orchestration Platform that optimises digital payment transactions from cards or alternative payment methods and accelerates the deployment of new payment options. Merchants can easily scale their own payment ecosystem across the world, unify the customer payment experience across their website, mobile apps and other channels, optimise the routing of each transaction, increase conversion rates and minimise payment costs. CellPoint Digital has offices in Copenhagen, Dallas, Dubai, London, Miami, Pune and Singapore. Visit www.cellpointdigital.com to learn more.

About KM Malta Airlines
KM Malta Airlines is the national airline of the Maltese Islands, operating a modern fleet of aircraft to various destinations in Europe and beyond.

The KM Malta Airlines Summer 2024 schedule will operate from 31st March 2024 through until 26th October 2024, with the airline serving 17 airports across 15 key European cities, namely, Amsterdam, Berlin, Brussels, Catania, Dusseldorf, London Gatwick, London Heathrow, Lyon, Madrid, Milan, Munich, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Paris Orly, Prague, Rome, Vienna and Zurich.

 Visit https://www.kmmaltairlines.com/en to learn more.

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Thomson Reuters SYNERGY Conference Debuts in Dubai Bringing Customer-Driven Innovation to Legal, Tax and Finance Professionals

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Innovation updates demonstrating Thomson Reuters multi-million-dollar investment in the MENA region include:

  • The launch of the new and improved Westlaw Middle East, featuring intuitive search and collaboration tools using the best-in-class global research technology for Middle East legal professionals.
  • New enhancements to deepen our know-how content offering in Practical Law Middle East
  • Continuous development of tax offerings to support customers navigating the changing regulatory environment including the rise of e-invoicing mandates
  • Demonstration of our professional-grade GenAI assistant, CoCounsel, powered by a combination of cutting edge LLMs, our content, and software solutions.

DUBAI, UAE, Sept. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Thomson Reuters (TSX/NYSE: TRI), a global content and technology company, today brings its premiere SYNERGY conference to the Middle East and North Africa for leaders in the legal, tax and finance professions.  In an increasingly complex regulatory environment, Thomson Reuters is delivering a customer-driven innovation roadmap to empower professionals with the knowledge and technology to solve business challenges.

Ibrahim Abdel Rehim, Regional Head, Middle East & North Africa, Thomson Reuters said: “By bringing our global flagship conference to Dubai for the first time in 2024, Thomson Reuters is showcasing its continued commitment to investing in the region. Our aim is to provide the knowledge, connections and technology to help professionals understand today and navigate tomorrow with confidence.”

Announcements at SYNERGY MENA 2024 include:

  • The launch of our new Westlaw Middle East: The new and improved legal research application demonstrates major advances in legal search and collaboration tools, enabling Westlaw Middle East customers to complete legal research quicker and more effectively than before. Lawyers in the Middle East will be able to access both Arabic and translated English legislation and case law, supporting them to stay ahead of the complex legal landscape.

    Sonya Syan, Head of Knowledge Management, Al Tamimi & Company, said:
    “As a longstanding client of Westlaw Middle East, we are delighted to see significant enhancements being made to the platform. The new interface is clean and much more user-friendly, catering to the needs of bilingual lawyers while greatly improving research efficiency and accuracy. These upgrades are timely as the region has seen accelerated growth in recent years, driving an increased demand for faster, more informed legal insights.”
  • Practical Law unveils expansion plans to deepen legal know-how content offering in Middle East: For the first time, lawyers will have access to growing repositories of locally maintained content designed to help them keep pace with regional legal developments, compare jurisdictions across the GCC, and gain an overview of the legal system in minutes.
  • Continuous investment in tax offerings: As the region looks to diversify revenue sources and standardize the tax systems, we’ve seen e-invoicing mandates already confirmed across five countries in the region with four more likely to follow. Thomson Reuters is dedicated to ensuring tax professionals stay compliant while navigating changing regulations through our continuous investment in ONESOURCE and our recent acquisition of Pagero, a global leader in e-invoicing and indirect tax solutions.
  • Deep dive into CoCounsel, the professional-grade GenAI assistant: Immersing attendees into the AI technology strategy and demonstrating our commitment to and progress toward transforming the way legal professionals work.

    His Excellency Professor Dr. Ebrahim Alhajri, President, Khalifa University, said:
    “We are committed to staying in the forefront of innovation and providing our students, faculty, and researchers with the best tools to succeed in a rapidly evolving world. Partnering with Thomson Reuters to implement CoCounsel is a significant step in our journey to integrate advanced AI solutions into our academic and operational framework. We are delighted to see the transformative impact this will have on our community.”

Other key topics from the day include:

  • The UAE’s Shift to a Digital First Nation: The opening keynote by His Excellency Dr. Saeed Al Dhaheri uncovers how leaders in the UAE propelled the nation to the forefront of digital innovation, with a look ahead to their ambitious roadmap for continued digital success.
  • Forces Shaping Professional Work: Panel discussion with industry leaders from Al Futtaim, Gartner and Abu Dhabi University exploring how AI and digital transformation is rapidly reshaping the UAE’s professional landscape, including insights from The Future of Professionals report.
  • Navigating Compliance Complexity: Tax, finance and legal experts discuss the latest developments and strategic implications of new regulations on multinationals, including insights from the Ministry of Finance and the UAE Cabinet.
  • International expansion of strategic industries: In a panel hosted by Reuters, leaders from Emirates, Masdar and Gradiant delve into the opportunities and challenges posed by macroeconomic trends on international expansion plans in their industries.

Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters (TSX/NYSE: TRI) (“TR”) informs the way forward by bringing together the trusted content and technology that people and organizations need to make the right decisions. The company serves professionals across legal, tax, accounting, compliance, government, and media. Its products combine highly specialized software and insights to empower professionals with the data, intelligence, and solutions needed to make informed decisions, and to help institutions in their pursuit of justice, truth, and transparency. Reuters, part of Thomson Reuters, is a world-leading provider of trusted journalism and news. For more information, visit tr.com.

Media Contact

Brooke Heywood
Corporate Affairs Manager, Asia and Emerging Markets
[email protected] 

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