Bahrain Bay Development's waterfront project in Manama is approaching completion after a decade of work, according to updated forecasts from the project's developers. The development already hosts Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, the global headquarters of Arcapita Bank and the United Tower, which will open this year. Read More »

A New York-style pizzeria is making it big in the Middle East, with plans to open more than two dozen additional restaurants over the coming years. Russo’s New York Pizzeria, a 46-location fast-casual franchisor based out of Houston, Texas, opened its first Middle East location in the UAE back in 2013. Read More »

Al Jazeera America announced this week that it is ending all operations in the United States by April 30. While the move was a surprise to the hundreds of Al Jazeera America employees who found out Wednesday they were losing their jobs, those who study the TV broadcasting industry saw it coming long before.  Read More »

Ooredoo Kuwait recently won a creativity award from the Arab Media Forum for its 2015 Ramadan television commercial. The spot used images from Kuwaiti TV from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s to convey a sense of modern Kuwaiti culture as a mingling of past and present influences. The Arab Media Forum was started in 2001 by the Dubai Press Club. Read More »

The Bedaya Center for Entrepreneurship and Career Development and the Qatar Finance and Business Management Independent Secondary School for Boys have signed a memorandum of understanding to offer additional professional training and counseling opportunities to students.The Bedaya Center will be allowed to recruit students and the school will help promote those programs. Read More »

The UAE Ministry of Economy recently named Dubai diamond trade veteran Ahmed Bin Sulayem to be the 2016 chair of the Kimberly Process. The Kimberly Process is an 81-member international body that facilitates an international certification process for preventing the procurement, distribution and sale of conflict diamonds. The organization was formed in South Africa in 2003. Read More »

A large villa, perfect for a growing family ,is available in Saar for $1.06 million. The 12,916-square-foot villa has six bedrooms, each with an en suite bathroom and built-in wardrobes for storage. In the master bedroom, there is a large walk-in closet. Pets are allowed, and the villa includes a maid’s room. The kitchen is fully outfitted, and a balcony offers a view of the neighborhood. Read More »

Jobs in health care, IT services and telecommunications are the Middle East's fastest growing professions, a report released recently by online job listing company Monster.com said. The report is based on sampling of ads posted for 12 selected industries on the company's website. The report found that the UAE's job market as a whole grew 24 percent. Read More »

Telecommunications company VIVA Bahrain held a pair of "paint races" Friday at the Amwaj Marina on the Amwaj Islands. The Color Me Bahrain Run, a 1K children's race and 5K adult race, were organized by the Bahrain Road Runners. Both events were spinoffs of an international fad of "color runs," in which a course is covered with colored powder that gets kicked up to paint the runners. Read More »

Representatives from two dozen countries are expected in Saudi Arabia this week for the Saudi Print & Pack conference and trade show, looking that will look to create new partnerships in the plastics and petrochemical industries. The Saudi Print & Pack, Plastics and Petrochemicals Exhibition, sponsored by Riyadh Exhibition Company Ltd, began Monday in Riyadh. Read More »

UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said the UAE will sponsor a ministerial retreat later this month for state officials and policy advisers to discuss strategies for creating a post-oil economy. Mohammed said the UAE economy is currently 30 percent dependent on oil, a figure he hopes will become lower over time. Read More »

Qatargas recently celebrated seven years of operation at its liquid natural gas storage and loading facilities without any serious injuries to workers. Since opening on Dec 31, 2008, the Common Lean LNG storage and loading facilities have recorded no lost time incidents, defined as injuries or other incidents that force workers to miss paid production time. Read More »

UAE Minister of State and Special Envoy for Energy and Climate Change Sultan Al Jaber welcomed representatives from more than 150 countries to the sixth meeting of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) last week in Abu Dhabi. The event's focus on renewable energy is supported by this week's designation as Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. Read More »

Automotive paint manufacturer ALPS Coating has established a Middle East regional office in Bahrain. The office opened Nov. 16 in the Kanoo Paint Center, a hub for the automotive paint industry. The new office will serve as a regional base for ALPS Coating as well as a technical training center. Executives from the Malaysia-based company attended the office's opening ceremony. Read More »

Muscat is preparing to host the fifth annual HR Oman Summit on Feb. 15-17. The summit will draw human resources professionals for three days of workshops, training sessions and talks aimed at digging deeper into what conference organizers say is an evolving industry. The conference will look to transform the role of human resources beyond managing personnel and payroll. Read More »

Two thousand investors, businessmen, economists and those with an interest in the future of the Saudi economy will gather for the Gulf Competitiveness Forum on Jan. 24-26.The event has been held by the Saudi Arabia General Investment Authority since 2006. This year's theme is Competitive Sectors, emphasizing Saudi Arabia's interest in stimulating growth in markets outside of oil. Read More »

Hospitality Development Company (HDC) recently launched a new restaurant, Urban Jazz Kitchen, in Doha. HDC officials said Urban Jazz Kitchen will blend the sounds and culture of jazz with exciting new flavors of food to evoke a sense of diversity and modern living. The waterfront location, at La Croisette 10, Porto Arabia in The Pearl-Qatar, will host live jazz six nights a week. Read More »

Located in Dubai's sought-after Sherlock Circus development, this stylish corner-unit apartment, listed at $558,094, boasts a spacious open floor plan with 2,022 square feet of living space and inviting living areas. The beautifully finished apartment has lovely combination living and dining areas, a well-equipped modern kitchen and a maid's room with a connected bath. Read More »

Property Hunter Luxury Real Estate is listing a two-bedroom apartment at Porto Arabia in The Pearl Qatar for $748.359. This 1,840-square-foot apartment features two bedrooms and two bathrooms and is partially furnished. The balcony offers a gorgeous marina view that will take your breath away. There is a fully equipped kitchen and a bright living and dining area. Read More »

Kuwait-based telecom innovator Zain Group said longtime administrator AbdulGhaffar Setareh will become the company's first chief risk officer. Setareh has been with the company since 1995, most recently serving for over a decade as director of the Zain Group Risk Department. Prior to Zain, Setareh spent a decade in the engineering department of the Kuwati Ministry of Communications. Read More »