
Dubai: Free WiFi now available at all bus, marine transport stations
Need to stay connected while waiting for the bus or marine transport? Here's good news: Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced on Tuesday, June 17, that it has completed the rollout of the free Wi-Fi service in all 43 bus and marine transport stations across the city.
The service, in collaboration with e&, enables public transport users to stay connected via their smartphones, tablets, and laptops while commuting, RTA noted, adding 'the initiative is part of (our) ongoing efforts to accelerate digital transformation across all our services.'
RTA said the Wi-Fi service will undergo continuous evaluation for expansion and enhancement to ensure 'quality connectivity for passengers using buses and marine transport across the emirate.'
Back in March this year, RTA launched its 360 Services Policy 'aimed at enhancing customer experience by providing digital services without requiring in-person visits. As part of its ongoing digital transformation efforts, RTA is shifting its services to self-service models, enabling customers to access them smoothly via shared digital platforms, such as Dubai Now app.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The National
38 minutes ago
- The National
Iran and Israel's technology war fuels communications paranoia
Amid the deadly missile strikes exchanged between Israel and Iran in recent days, another battle is taking place involving communications, technology and the control of information that might prove decisive in the conflict. Minutes after the first Israeli strikes last week, Iran's Ministry of Information and Communications Technology imposed "temporary" restrictions on internet access. Officials in the country have insisted that the internet limits would be lifted when the situation returns to normal, yet that does not seem to be any time soon. On Tuesday, Iran took measures further and banned officials from using devices connected to public networks. WhatsApp users in Iran were also dealt a blow when Iranian media warned citizens that Israel may have compromised the app to collect intelligence. Those concerns are not unfounded, given Mossad's role in the deadly Lebanon pager attacks that killed Hezbollah members and officials, as well as civilians. Iran, however, is no stranger to using technology and communications in various battles. It is the home of Mint Sandstorm, a group designated by Microsoft as a cyber crime actor that has been known to cripple computers overseas and hold valuable data in exchange for ransom. US cyber intelligence agencies documented Iran as trying to hack the email accounts of staffers on Donald Trump's presidential campaign. Although the widespread availability of computers and prevalence of high-speed internet connection have made technology and communications more important than ever in war, their use is hardly new. During the Vietnam War, the US use of encrypted radio signals was thought to be a major advantage, but decades later, it was discovered that the North Vietnamese had found a way to read the signals and determine where the US was seeking to strike or to send soldiers. "Since the advent of telecommunications in the early 20th century, there has been a leapfrogging fight between those who can jam and those who can break codes," said Frank Ledwidge, a former British military intelligence officer. Mr Ledwidge said that vigilance and even paranoia about potentially compromised technology can be the difference between victory and defeat. "If you use it, you will be killed, and if you don't, you may have a chance to survive provided that your circle has not been penetrated in in a similar way," he said. Mr Ledwidge said that although Iran knows how to use technology to cause confusion, the country it appears to have little confidence in securing communication networks or encrypting content critical to national security. "The Iranian regime in terms of response to the Israeli technological and air onslaught, they're running out of options," he said. "Israel has freedom of operation in the third dimension, so they can strike anywhere they like." Iranians also lack basic internet access as a result of the country's increased controls. Although Iran does not officially support other ways of connecting to the internet, such as low-earth-orbit satellite services such as Starlink, there is reason to believe that if Iranians have the proper consoles, they could circumvent internet blackouts. "The beams are on," Elon Musk, Starlink chief and tech tycoon, posted on X in response to someone asking if the service was available in Iran. If that is the case, then that could also be a loophole in Iran's attempt to control the flow of information that it considers to be critical to success. Therein lies how complicated computer network and device security can be, even with all hands on deck.


The National
2 hours ago
- The National
UAE can make AI as important as internet, Emirati official says
Mariam Almheiri, head of International Affairs at the UAE Presidential Court, said the country can help to make artificial intelligence a strategic utility like the internet through its partnerships, regulatory framework and energy infrastructure. 'We tick the boxes everywhere,' she said during the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum in Washington on Tuesday. Ms Almheiri made the comments while taking part in a panel discussion focused on financing energy and infrastructure in the technology age. 'With the recent visit President [Donald] Trump to the UAE announcing the AI cluster, if you think about what that is, it's up to 5 gigawatts of optimised AI data centre power,' she said. Ms Almheiri added that the first phase of that cluster was going to be online by 2026, and pointed out that the UAE has plenty of ways to power it, along with other AI energy facilities. 'If you just think of what that's going to do to take this transformation that we need, we need a transformation in the energy side as well," she said. Among the projects the UAE has begun in recent years are the 1.2 gigawatt Noor Abu Dhabi solar power plant, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and the 5.6 gigawatt Barakah nuclear power plant. Speaking during a separate panel session, Emirates Nuclear Energy Company chief executive Mohamed Al Hammadi said that the Barakah plant provides one quarter of electricity in the UAE, a 'huge energy transition' in the past five years. Over the past decade, the UAE − the Arab world's second largest economy − has been open about its desire to be an AI front-runner as it diversifies its economy away from oil. The country's efforts have resulted in the establishment of start-ups as well as partnerships and investments from industry leaders including Microsoft, Nvidia and OpenAI. Ms Almheiri said the UAE has 'built the bridges' to help with its energy transformation, aided by the partnerships it has formed. 'To move the needle on any transformation when it comes to AI, to make AI strategic utility something like the internet, we need these partnerships and we need the ingredients.' Major planned investments between the US and UAE were also announced during Mr Trump's visit to the UAE last month, including a new 5GW UAE-US AI Campus in Abu Dhabi. The US Commerce Department said the AI campus would be home to large and small companies that could 'leverage the capacity for regional compute with the ability to serve the Global South'.

Zawya
3 hours ago
- Zawya
Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and partners enter new alliance leveraging Islamic and Arab finance for economic transformation
Today, Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) ( UNIDO, the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) and the Union of Arab Banks (UAB), formalized new strategic partnerships under the Islamic and Arab Finance for Economic Transformation in Africa, the Arab Region and Beyond (IFETAA) Programme. Access to finance remains one of the most significant barriers to SME growth and economic transformation, particularly in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. Only one in five African firms has access to credit, and those that do often face prohibitively high interest rates averaging 25 percent, compared to just 5 percent in Europe. Islamic finance, with over US$4 trillion in assets, offers a largely untapped opportunity to address this gap by directing capital stored in monetary markets into the real economy. IFETAA represents a new alliance that will drive capital and capacity towards MSME development, resilience and growth across low- and lower middle-income countries. The signing ceremonies of the 3 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) took place ahead of a high-level roundtable at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, held on the margins of the OPEC Fund Development Forum, and marked the formalization of the programme. 'As traditional development funding continues to decline, Islamic and Arab financial institutions are emerging as key partners in driving industrialization and sustainable development', said UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller. 'Through this programme, we are building a powerful new alliance to support small and medium-sized businesses, increase productivity and resilience, and accelerate economic transformation in developing countries'. 'The IFETAA Programme will unlock urgently needed capital for Africa's economic transformation and AFC is proud to bring its unique expertise in both conventional and Islamic finance to mobilise funding at scale,' said Banji Fehintola, Board Member and Head of Financial Services at AFC. 'As an issuer, guarantor, and investor, we are committed to delivering innovative, Shariah-compliant solutions that drive inclusive and resilient economic growth, whilst contributing to strengthening the south-south cooperation required to advance our shared development goals'. H.E. Shaikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Chairman of AAOIFI and the International Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation announced that ' AAOIFI is proud to contribute to this transformative partnership, which aligns Islamic finance with global development priorities and encourages Islamic financial institutions to voluntarily dedicate at least 20% of their financing – over US$1 trillion – to MSME development. We will work on developing a Shariah-compliant finance programme enriched with technical assistance, regulatory support, and capacity building. IFETAA will also leverage UNIDO's globally recognized Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion model (EDIP)'. By integrating Islamic finance with proven entrepreneurship and business counseling interventions, IFETAA will empower MSMEs to become bankable, resilient, and key drivers of inclusive economic growth. Dr. Wissam Fattouh, Secretary General of the Union of Arab Banks, stated: 'IFETAA is more than a programme – it is a call to action. The Union of Arab Banks is proud to unite Islamic and Arab financial power to serve sustainable development and economic sovereignty. We are mobilizing capital not just to fund growth, but to shape the future of our region. This is about empowering MSMEs, restoring trust in financial systems, and building resilient, inclusive economies'. IFETAA is a direct outcome of the commitments made at UNIDO's A World Without Hunger conference in Addis Ababa in 2024. There, AAOIFI pledged to mobilize 20 percent of Islamic Financial Institutions' loans and advancements towards MSME development, while UAB reaffirmed its commitment to channel US$1 trillion from its member banks towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). AFC, a close partner to UNIDO, expressed its support through its financial mechanisms and expertise. IFETAA will facilitate access to finance by developing a pipeline of bankable MSME projects, establish financial and non-financial de-risking mechanisms, and support host governments in strengthening regulatory frameworks to expand Islamic and conventional bank lending. UNIDO has committed US$500,000 to support the preparation of the IFETAA programme and its initial implementation, which is co-led by the UNIDO Task Force on Islamic and Arab Financing and UNIDO's Investment and Technology Promotion Office in Bahrain. Each of the partner institutions brings unique strengths to the programme. AAOIFI, headquartered in Bahrain, is the world's leading standard-setting body for Islamic finance and plays a critical role in ensuring Shariah compliance and supporting regulators and financial institutions globally. Beirut-based UAB represents over 300 Arab banks and financial institutions while serving as a regional platform for aligning Arab banking practices with global trends, including Islamic finance, ESG, and digital transformation. AFC is a pan-African multilateral financial institution specializing in infrastructure development. It has been expanding its use of Islamic finance instruments, recently closing a US$400 million Shariah-compliant Commodity Murabaha facility. AFC made history in 2017 by issuing a US$230 million Sukuk, the first-ever by an African supranational institution. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Finance Corporation (AFC).