Accor Middle East & Africa launches partnership with ‘She is Arab’, the first dedicated global speakers’ platform for Arab women designed to elevate female leadership development and to drive women’s economic empowerment and advancement in the workplace. As part of the partnership, a series of dialogues and discussions will roll out throughout the year in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and the UAE, including panels, roundtables, fireside chats, in addition to training and coaching sessions focused on leadership skills, public speaking, personal branding and media interaction. These events will tackle topics including the changing nature of leadership, navigating through workplace culture, achieving work life balance, and advocating workplace policies to ensure equal opportunities for women. Sami Nasser, Chief Operating Officer, Middle East & Africa said, “The region today accounts for almost 30 per cent of the Group’s global RiiSE network of close to 30,000 employees from 4,900-plus hotels in 111 countries. Male and female talent from Accor’s hotels in Saudi Arabia and Egypt dominate RiiSE membership in the region. We are thrilled to join hands with ‘She Is Arab’, further cementing our commitment to continuous narrative around gender equality, with the aim of achieving actionable outcomes.” Speaking on the partnership, Noha Hefny, Co-founder, She is Arab said, “We consider this collaboration a testament to Accor’s commitment to social responsibility and its strong support for women-led startups. With the growing momentum and strength of the She is Arab network; we believe our synergies and common values reinforce our shared commitment to women empowerment and gender parity in the MENA region.”

Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) has announced the cancellation of the second period of the Bahrain Food Festival, which was scheduled to be held between March 12 and March 23, 2020. This decision was taken as a result of the recent developments and necessary health precautions undertaken by the Government of Bahrain in accordance with international standards to contain the COVID-19 and to prevent its spread. The Kingdom has been praised by the World Health Organization for its approach in tackling the spread of the virus. BTEA extends its sincere thanks and gratitude to everyone who contributed to the success of the first period of the festival, including participants, attendees and organisers.

Lufthansa reduced flight schedules of its passenger airlines for the period from March 29 to April 24, to curtail the spread of the coronavirus. For all passenger airlines in the Group, a total of 23,000 flights will be cancelled. The flight cancellations will be implemented successively in the booking systems, and affected passengers will be informed of the changes and rebooking options. Further cancellations are expected in the coming weeks. Flight schedule adjustments for the period after April 25 will be made at a later date. The capacity adjustments mainly affect Europe, Asia and the Middle East. In the cancellations, care will be taken to ensure that all destinations on all continents can be reached with a Lufthansa Group airline via the hubs of Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna and Brussels.

Etihad Airways will launch new daily scheduled year-round flights to Vienna. The service will initially operate with four weekly flights between May 22 and June 30, 2020. Etihad is introducing the new service to provide greater choice and convenience for point-to-point business and leisure travellers between the UAE and Austria, and to promote direct inbound tourism to Abu Dhabi. Departures have been conveniently timed to arrive early morning in Vienna, and to connect seamlessly in both directions via Abu Dhabi to gateways across the Etihad network including the GCC, Southeast Asia, and Australia. Robin Kamark, Chief Commercial Officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said, “The announcement of this route brings the number of our European passenger destinations to 22. Austria is an important trade and tourism partner for the UAE and the new flights will enable us to take advantage of the increasing business and leisure demand between the two countries. Trade between the UAE and Austria is strong and there are approximately 180 Austrian companies operating in the emirates. Tourism has been increasing in both directions with Austria becoming an increasingly popular year-round destination with UAE nationals and residents, attracted by the centuries old culture, breathtaking scenery, and famous ski resorts.” Etihad’s two-class Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner features next-generation Business and Economy cabins configured with 290 seats – 28 Business Studios and 262 Economy Smart Seats. The introduction of the widebody aircraft on the route will provide Etihad with opportunities for belly-hold cargo between Abu Dhabi and Vienna, and onwards across the Etihad Cargo network.

Following an intense week of consultation with key stakeholders in its Dubai event, scheduled for April 7, WiT has decided to move its Middle East edition to November 24, 2020. The uncertainty over the developing COVID-19 situation in the region has made it hard to plan for the one-day event. “Our partners were telling us that with the situation so fluid and changing everyday, it would be challenging to put on the event in a month’s time,” said Yeoh Siew Hoon, Founder, WiT. “With the industry in damage control mode, and uncertainty over travel advisories and bans by countries and companies, everyone is currently too distracted and we felt we wouldn’t be able to focus on delivering a quality event. The good news is, we are staying in the same venue, Jumeirah Emirates Towers, and we thank our partners for accommodating this change in plans, and we promise we will return stronger. By then, things will be back in full swing and everyone will have great stories and lessons to share,” he added. Ross Veitch, CEO and co-founder of Wego, one of the event’s two Foundation Sponsors, said, “Things are in a state of flux right now but knowing the Middle East  market as we do, we know it will be resilient, and the fundamentals are there for a strong recovery.” Stuart Crighton, CEO and founder of Cleartrip, Foundation Sponsor of WiT Middle East, echoed his disappointment, saying, “It’s a tough call – it would have been hard to get 100 per cent attention and attendance because of the evolving nature of the problem. We look forward to the return of a stronger WiT on November 24.”

Air Arabia is providing its customers with more flexibility by introducing a new modification fee waiver policy in light of current travel restrictions and to allow customers the choice of changing travel dates. The customers can change their existing and new bookings made until March 31, 2020 for travel until December 31, 2020 with confidence up to 72 hours prior to departure. This applies to all flights across Air Arabia network from its four hubs in the UAE, Morocco and Egypt. The new waiver policy offers passengers the flexibility to modify their travel bookings without charge and reissuance fees, further underlining Air Arabia’s commitment to provide flexibility and prioritise the convenience of its customers. Customers will only need to pay fare difference if there is any at the time of rebooking their flights. Air Arabia’s dedicated call centres and sales offices available throughout their entire network will assist customers with their bookings and enquiries.

In line with the launch of a new direct route by EgyptAir connecting London to Sharm El Sheikh, Rixos Hotels Egypt announced an exclusive holiday package available at Rixos Premium Seagate and Rixos Sharm El Sheikh, for residents from the UK. The first flight from London Gatwick Airport is scheduled to take off on the April 4, 2020 and will operate weekly, every Saturday. Erkan Yildirim, Managing Director of Rixos Hotels Egypt, commented, “This is a beneficial step for the tourism and business markets between the two countries as the direct route would connect the resort city with other parts of the UK as well as the world. It will connect London and the Sinai Peninsula. This new route from EgyptAir is a perfect opportunity to further increase the high occupancy rates of Rixos Premium Seagate and Rixos Sharm El Sheikh, popular destinations of choice for families seeking ultra-all-inclusive staycations. Yildirim concluded,“ EgyptAir chose Sharm El Sheikh as it is known for its tourism and as one of the business centres of the northeast part of Egypt and it is a strategic location with-in close proximity to the main cities of Egypt, in addition to offering the best of the Red Sea coast. It will have a significant effect on tourism in the Sharm El Sheikh region, providing international businesspersons with the opportunity to visit the Sinai peninsula. “

Arabian Hotel Investment Conference (AHIC) 2020 has been postponed to September 21 and 22 due to the spread of COVID-19. However, while the UAE remains safe to travel and continues to adhere to the highest medical and hygiene measures to reduce the risk of transmissions, it has become increasingly clear that the event will inevitably be impacted by speakers, delegates, sponsors and partners unable to attend due to global travel restrictions. The event will be held at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai on the new dates. The new dates also coincide with the final countdown to the year’s most highly anticipated global event – Expo 2020 Dubai.

Etihad Airways has temporarily suspended all flights between Abu Dhabi and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in response to a directive from the General Authority for Civil Aviation, Saudi Arabia, to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The airline operates up to 12 flights per day between Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia. It has cancelled a total of seven flights today between Abu Dhabi and the Saudi cities of Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Medina, and is now advising passengers who were booked to travel today. Another four flights which were en-route to Saudi Arabia at the time of the directive were permitted to land. When flights arrived in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, nationals of Saudi Arabi were permitted to disembark but all other passengers remained on the aircraft, which will return to Abu Dhabi. The fourth flight operated to Medina to repatriate Umrah passengers. In addition to the flight suspensions to and from the UAE, Saudi Arabia has also banned Saudi nationals and Saudi residents from travelling to countries including the UAE and on passengers travelling from or transiting through Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Syria, Italy, Egypt and Korea. Etihad Airways is working closely with regulatory authorities in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia and is continuing to monitor this situation closely. For passengers impacted by the flight cancellations, procedures are in place for fare refunds or for flight changes when services resume.

Reed Travel Exhibitions has announced the postponment of Arabian Travel Market (ATM) to June 28 – July 1, 2020, at the Dubai World Trade Centre in Dubai, UAE. The statement issued by Reed Travel Exhibitions, organisers of ATM, said, “We at Arabian Travel Market want to express our concern for everyone impacted by coronavirus. Like all of you, we have carefully monitored the global health crisis related to COVID-19. Our top priority is the health and safety of everyone involved in Arabian Travel Market; employees, partners, customers and exhibitors.” The organisers added, “Due to the escalation of the COVID-19 epidemic around the world, after consultation with all our stakeholders, the venue management, supporting associations, and in alignment with the advice from the UAE public health authorities regarding travel to and from impacted countries, we have taken the decision to postpone our event which was due to take place on April 19– 22, 2020 in Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). Whilst the UAE is following the strictest medical and hygiene protocols in line with international standards, we have made this decision in the best interest of the industry to enable us to organise an event which provides effective participation and experience for all. The announcement has been made at the earliest opportunity to give as much notice as possible to all stakeholders enabling them to make the necessary arrangements to reschedule their plans, and ensure even stronger attendance in June.”