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    Lebanon risks missing IMF preconditions for EFF owing to weak governance: S&P – Arab News - April 19, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    RIYADH: The Saudi-based Red Sea Development Company said on Monday that it had implemented the first wave of Enablon modules an integrated data enterprise software system to automate manual tools and processes as part of its ambitions as a global leader in responsible development.

    The move aims to integrate, automate and streamline governance, risk compliance, health and safety, environment and sustainability, business continuity and internal audit practices across the organization.

    The project was launched in January last year and the design and consultation process lasted 15 months, the company said. Wolters Kluwers Enablon was selected based on its industry-leading position as a provider of integrated software solutions, it said.

    We began this journey at the height of the global pandemic, with the aim of integrating several of our risk and control functions. The main objective was to enhance monitoring, reporting and alignment across the multiple functions involved in the delivery of standard setting health and safety practices, said John Pagano, CEO of TRSDC.

    The rollout has arrived at an opportune time, with manpower at site exceeding 16,000 TRSDC employees and contractors, he said. This was a large-scale implementation project which engaged multiple internal and external stakeholders.

    TRSDC established a committee, with management consultants Ernst & Young, Wolters Kluwer as the software provider and Wipro as the implementation consultant, which oversaw the progress and implementation of the solution.

    Laurent Dechaux, vice president and managing director, Wolters Kluwer Enablon, said: Our Enablon Vision Platform offers TRSDC a full 360-degree view of risk, addressing the environmental, health and safety challenges of the project.

    Ernst & Young said that during the 15-month implementation, their priority was to ensure TRSDC requirements were met with a focus on future adoption and value: TRSDC was indeed a pioneer in conceptualizing the alignment between its risk and controls functions, (and) utilizing the strength of Enablon.

    Given the remote location of many of the sites under development at The Red Sea Project, Enablons solution can also be used in an offline mode, allowing incident data or inspection and audit reports to be prepared and then uploaded once a device is connected to the network.

    Additional features are being assessed in efforts to continue to automate and enhance operations through the Enablon integrated platform. The system will also be rolled out for AMAALA and the growing number of projects in the TRSDC portfolio, the Public Investment Fund-owned company said.

    Work is on track to welcome the first guests to The Red Sea Project by the beginning of next year, when the first hotels will open. Phase one, which includes 16 hotels in total, will be completed by the end of 2023.

    On completion in 2030, The Red Sea Project will comprise 50 resorts, with up to 8,000 hotel rooms and more than 1,000 residential properties across 22 islands and six inland sites. The destination will also include an international airport, luxury marinas, golf courses, entertainment and leisure facilities.

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    Lebanon risks missing IMF preconditions for EFF owing to weak governance: S&P - Arab News

    How Sri Lanka’s unprecedented crisis is unfolding on the ground – The Indian Express - April 19, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    From crippling power cuts and a scarcity of essential commodities, to long queues at fuel pumps and a complete disruption of day to day life, Sri Lanka is facing an unprecedented economic crisis. Last week, Indian Express National Editor of Strategic Affairs Nirupama Subramanian, who has been covering the country since the 90s, was in Colombo to see how the crisis was folding.

    In this episode, she joins host Shashank Bhargava to talk about what she saw, what has led to this crisis, and the challenge that the present government faces.

    TRANSCRIPT

    Shashank Bhargava: Hi, Im Shashank Bharagava,, and youre listening to three things The Indian Express new show. If you have been following the news, then you know that Sri Lanka right now is facing an unprecedented economic crisis, except for Afghanistan. No other country in South Asia has ever experienced such a crisis in the past 75 years. Sri Lankans currently are facing crippling power cuts scarcity of essential commodities, including medicines, and are having to stand in long queues at fuel pumps, because diesel is an extremely short supply. Now this economic crisis has also led to a major political crisis with massive protests taking place in Sri Lankas capital. Students, teachers, lawyers, doctors and those from a whole range of other professions are all demanding that the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa should resign. One slogan that has become really popular among people is Gota go home.

    Last week, Indian Expresss national editor of strategic affairs Nirupama Subramanian was in Sri Lanka to see how the crisis was unfolding. Nirupama has been reporting on the country since the 90s, and was based out of Sri Lanka from 1996 to 2002. In this episode, she joins us to talk about what has led to this crisis, what she saw on the ground and the challenges that the present government faces. So Nirupama Why dont you begin by telling us just the kind of shortages and problems people in Sri Lanka are facing right now, because of this unprecedented economic crisis.

    Nirupama Subramanian:: So the main thing here to remember is that Sri Lanka is a very important based economy, most of its essential items are imported. So this includes fuel oil, well, most of the world imports that, but in Sri Lankas case, its also milk, pulses, lentils, some kind of fish that they dont have then many other things for daily use even detergents. So many of the things that they dont make, its not really a manufacturing economy, their economy is basically tourism and tea, they export tea. And of course, they want tourists to come all the time. So these are the two big things in their economy on which theyre dependent, and the rest is all imported, all the goods are imported. So what happened was that they ran out of dollars to pay for these inputs. That was sometime last year.

    Shashank Bhargava: And I think because they ran out of dollars, they couldnt buy fuel. And because of that they have been experiencing crippling power shortages. Right? There have been a lot of power cuts in the country.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, exactly. So because many of the power plants are thermal fired plants, so they need the diesel to actually start them up. So that led to huge power cuts 13 hours at a time now at this point, of course, long queues at petrol pumps for petrol or diesel. And the other thing that happened was that because they had no foreign exchange, the President announced last year that they would stop importing chemical fertilizers and the whole agriculture in the country would switch to organic fertilizers.

    Shashank Bhargava: And the way this decision was promoted was that they said that this was going to be some kind of a green revolution.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, he was saying that Sri Lanka will be the first country to go entirely organic. Now farmers started screaming because farmers know better than anyone else that you cant change from one thing to another just overnight. So it was a bit like our Demonetization that overnight this change happened the paddy crop now the yield is much lower than it has been at other times. And because for organic farming, you have to prepare the soil, the soil has to be cleansed over almost a year of the chemicals and only then the organic fertilizers work, all this has happened. So they now have a rice shortage also. So these are the things that are in short supply, there is also hyperinflation so people who have the money can buy some of these items that are available that limited imports that are coming in or earlier stocks they can buy with that money, but even they are feeling the pinch because its not unrestricted supply. You cant go and buy like five or 10 kilos of milk powder because the shopkeeper has to service other customers also so the restrict those supplies and people who cant afford it. Those are the cues you see outside groceries because these are government run grocery fair price shop a bit like our ration shops but its not rational you which is available at a particular time of the month, it is not like that. Its always open grocery. And there because the rice is still sold at the old prices, people queue up for that. So those are the queues outside groceries that you see.

    Shashank Bhargava: So, even though things havent gotten to a point where it has led to starvation, we are still seeing long queues for essential items. And one thing we havent even talked about so far is medicines. Those are in pretty short supply as well. Right?

    Nirupama Subramanian: Completely medicines are another big emergency actually. Because I can tell you that when I went from here, friends asked me to bring some medicines like paracetamol. The main paracetamol is a brand called Panadol. And that was simply not there in the market. So people asked me to get some kind of paracetamol for them, which I took from here. But other things, I mean, you can put a price, the hotels are open, the restaurants open, the bars are open, people are there in those places eating you can get a pizza with nice cheese and everything on it imported cheese, because they dont really make their own cheese. And then you can order noodles, you can order pasta. So thats a parallel thing. And that happens. I guess even when there is a short supply, there are people who have money, you can go to these places, these restaurants and they can order and they can eat and they can lead their lives as they would normally. But everybody knows that the economy is in freefall, as it were. And these are artificial. I mean, even if they are in a restaurant and eating, its an artificial bubble. I think people are very aware of that because for the first time, even in Colombo, people are feeling the power cuts, the fuel shortages, the diesel shortages. I mean, its not just that you dont have diesel and or you dont have petrol, it is disrupted livelihoods, it has led to an increase in the prices of goods that are available in Sri Lanka, like vegetables. So vegetables are available, but they cost the earth because they have to be transported from A to B, and that requires diesel cabs. Uber is there but cabs are scarce because theres no petrol, theres a huge petrol shortage. So these are the daily things. I mean, so many gigs are dependent upon vehicles now. And those are all out of service because theres restricted supply of these two things.

    Shashank Bhargava: Okay. so, when did this economic crisis start? I mean, many believes that this is an old problem, and it has been going on for a number of years. But when did this situation take its current turn? Like one thing you mentioned was Sri Lankas Demonetization moment, the Gotabaya government suddenly deciding to switch to organic fertilizers? So that I imagine was one thing, what are the other reasons?

    Nirupama Subramanian: So that was really a consequence of the crisis? What really perhaps triggered it? I mean, if there is one moment to say that if youre looking for that precise trigger, then it was probably immediately after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa election in 2019, during the election, he had promised that he will cut taxes, he will abolish certain other taxes, which he immediately did upon being elected. So that came down from 15% to 8%. He abolished capital gains tax, I think there are seven varieties of taxes that he either got rid of or reduced immediately what happened was that the governments revenues fell dramatically.

    Shashank Bhargava: Right, because you do need taxes, the government runs on taxes.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Correct. So the minute the revenues came down the international ratings agencies, they downgraded Sri Lanka and Sri Lankas ability to borrow then was affected because earlier it had been borrowing from the market from the international capital market. So its much of its external debt, contrary to widespread belief that it was I mean, the maximum debts are with China, thats not really the case. China is just 10% of its external debt it owes to China and Japan also it was 10% of its external debt is to Japan. But the maximum about 40% is to the international capital markets. So you know, when this revenue fell, and it became very clear to international agencies, whats going on, they downgraded and Sri Lankas ability to borrow from the international market also ended so it started digging into its own reserves. And now when youre clearly living beyond your means, and then the pandemic hit in March, and the tourists stopped coming, and when the tourists stopped coming, then of course, it was completely I became unsustainable,

    Shashank Bhargava: Right, because you mentioned that the two big things that Sri Lanka earns money from is tourism and tea.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Tourism, tea and remittances also of workers living abroad. I mean, if youre thinking in terms of foreign exchange, these are the three big foreign exchange earners and then during the COVID all those people also came back because jobs were cut and majority of them like in everywhere in South Asia are low income earners, they go to work in low end jobs. A house helps, carpenters, masons that kind of job. So those God cut and they all came back. So that remittance also dramatically reduced. So this was the origin of the crisis.

    Shashank Bhargava: And when talking about tourism, how much did the Easter bombings, the series of bomb blasts that took place in Colombo in 2019? How much has that contributed to the current problem? Because we know that the bombings had affected tourism as well.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, actually, now that you say that we are talking exactly on the third anniversary of that Easter bombings. And in 2019 itself, as soon as the Easter bombings happened, the tourism business nosedived. And so it is already a struggling thing, right. And then in 20, the pandemic really finished whatever was left of it. So just before the second wave, they had a good season, I think. And then there was a second wave. And then after that, again, it picked up. So what Im hearing is that they are already on the path to recovery on the tourism sector. And when all this suddenly hit the roof, the shortages and everything.

    Shashank Bhargava: Okay, so one thing is COVID, which every country in the world had to deal with. But a lot of the crisis that were seeing right now appears to be because of the mismanagement and the policies of the government. And this seems to be genuine anger in people against the Gotabaya Government. How do we see that anger manifested on the ground?

    Nirupama Subramanian: So that anger is very clear on the streets, people have come out, Ive never seen something like this. In all the years that Ive been following Sri Lanka used to be based there during the years that the government was waging this. I mean, the government and the LTTwere locked in a huge war. Ive never seen this kind of protest, even then the economy used to struggle at times, but this kind of a shortage, they have probably the nearest they have come to experience. This was in the 70s. But those were the shortages. People remember the as being comparable, but even those were not as crippling as ones that theyre facing now. And therefore the anger or the anger started with the farmers saying our crops are going to be destroyed by this whole organic fertilizer experiment. But you know, farmers voices, as we know, unless they take to the streets as they did in India, they dont come out really but what has happened in the last three months is that the Colombo folk have started feeling the pinch badly.

    Shashank Bhargava: From the rural areas. The anger has now spread to the urban parts.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Actually, the main the biggest protest we are seeing right now is in Colombo, there are so many protests outside, theres great discontent. Theres much insecurity about the future across the country, but the protests are really in Colombo, and for the first time middle class Colombo, wealthy Colombo professionals in Colombo lawyers, teachers, doctors, these are people who would not normally see on the road protesting like this, but theyre all out there. And the target of the ire of naturally is the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and of course, theres a feeling that the entire family the Prime Minister is Gotabayas elder brother Mahinda Rajapaksa who used to be president before. He was president for 10 years between 2005 and 2015. And now he is the prime minister. And then there are many other family members in the government. So theres a feeling that we are suffering and they are very clear in their minds that these people have made money out of mismanaging the economy. They are well off, they are wealthy, they have the flash lifestyle. In fact, Namal Rajapaksa, whos the Prime Ministers son went off in the middle of these protests to the Maldives and the hotel put it up to advertise their own property saying Namal Rajapaksa. You know, he was waterskiing and they had a photo and all that that really got people.

    Shashank Bhargava: Wait, so while Sri Lanka is facing a crippling economic crisis, you have the Prime Ministers son who is waterskiing in Maldives?

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, exactly. So all this really boiled peoples blood over and theyre out on the street, and everybodys saying they have to go first, well be able to solve our problems. Only this family quits all its positions in government, all the positions that are with the family members in the government, they have to leave and only then we can start solving the other problem.

    Shashank Bhargava: And I suppose this is a bit surprising, right? Because up until a few months ago, the Rajapaksa family was actually pretty popular with the people right like people were pretty happy with them.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, people are happy with them because people are especially happy with both minder Rajapaksa and his brother Gatabaya Rajapaksa because in 2009, when Mahinda was the president Gotabaya was a defense secretary, and he is widely credited as the architect of the defeat, or lets say, as the architect of the military campaign against the Tamil Tigers, which was successful and the entity was defeated. And both brothers took credit for having defeated terrorism and securing the country as it were from this terrorist group that was operating in the north and killing people in the south with it suicide bombers and all that this generation of protesters thats out there knows nothing. It has come of age at a time when Sri Lanka has known complete peace. There isnt that kind of fear that used to prevail at an earlier time.

    Shashank Bhargava: So this idea that they got rid of terrorism from the country is what ran in their favor, basically.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, so they have actually dined out on this they have projected themselves as the saviors of the country and then very quickly, it turned into the saviors of the Sinhalese Buddhist majority. So immediately after the war, and which ended in 2009, you saw this resurgence of Sinhalese or this majoritarianism this triumphalism in the majority community, the saying that, you know, we have defeated not just the LTT but also the Tamil community, you know that now we have kind of shown them their place. So this was the widespread kind of feeling at that time, and they have made good of this to win elections and so on.

    Shashank Bhargava: And now the Sinhalese Buddhists, the majority population in the country are now also part of the protests against this government. But with this kind of anger with people protesting what kind of challenge does the Gotabaya Rajapaksa government face politically?

    Nirupama Subramanian: So politically, still, there is a degree of uncertainty immediately after the first big incidents of these protests were on March 31. Okay, that is when some people attacked, tried to break into go to bars, restaurants, private residence, not as official residence. Its in a suburb of Colombo. And he never felt unsafe or insecure there before because he was so well loved by the people. Also, he believed that youd never be harm like that. So he was to live there often. And I dont know whether he was there on that particular day or not. But on March 31, like about hundreds of people, maybe 1000 people or so were in that March. And then they tried to break through the barricades and police had to resort to tear gassing and water cannons and some buses and all other vehicles belonging to the police was set on fire. So this was a big reality check for the entire house of rajapaksas. Because it was scary, I guess. And then he, of course, immediately call an emergency and put a curfew and all that, but better sense prevailed. And he pulled back all that because people were defying, because in a previous time curfew meant a curfew, nobody would step out. Because I mean, you could be shot off the streets immediately. But this time, people said to have a curfew. And they took out marches during the curfew. And I wasnt there on that particular day. But somebody who witnessed itself it was for me unprecedented that somebody will break a curfew. Like hes an older person. He is I think in a 60s and he has seen the worst of times earlier as well. Listen, unbelievable that people are marching on the streets completely defying saying come and arrest me if you want but I am going to march on the streets.

    Shashank Bhargava: Okay, so this is what has happened on the streets with people. What has happened in the parliament so far.

    Nirupama Subramanian: So what happened was basically there was a moment when, of course, in parliament they enjoy or they had a two thirds majority, because mind that just swept the elections. But what happened after these protests was a group of Parliamentarians 42 of them, they withdrew from the coalition, and they said theyre going to sit separately in Parliament, then there are some others within that ruling Alliance who are also unhappy with the rajapaksas. And they also indicated that they may not be with it, but even the withdrawal of these 42 people rendered their majority in parliament a bit shaky. Now, the claims on either side that we still have the majority and opposition saying no, you dont have the majority. The fact is, what has happened is no one has gone out and tested this, the opposition has not yet challenged the government to a floor test, whether through a no confidence, motion, or whatever. Instead, what has happened is the government has seen that the diffidence in the opposition ranks because no one has actually emerged as a challenger to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in Parliament. So there is a feeling that we can still possibly manage the situation among the Rajapaksa as this is appealing.

    Shashank Bhargava: Right and when Rajapaksa as majority became unsure, they even asked all ministers to hand in their resignations. And they said that they will appoint a new government, and they even invited the opposition to form a new government. But the opposition of course said that they dont want to be a part of this. In fact, you I had one of the main opposition leaders this man called Sajith Premadasa. He said that they should instead abolish the executive presidency. Sri Lanka of course has a kind of presidential system in which the Executive power is exercised by the President on the advice of the prime minister. And Premadasa says that they should get rid of that. Why does he want that?

    Nirupama Subramanian: So the executive presidency in Sri Lanka is very, very strong. You know, the guy who the president who got it in who made this oversaw the transition from Prime Ministerial former government to the presidential former government was J.R Jayewardane, and he famously joked, I dont know it may be an apocryphal story, but it said that he used to boast that with this constitution, a president can do anything except change a man and to one and a woman into a man, everything else is possible for a president for this constitution. So now it gives so much powers. Thats also another reason why no one wants to form an interim government with Gotabaya still as executive president,

    Shashank Bhargava: Right, because no matter what they do Gotabaya in his position as the president can just change that.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, he can still change that if Prime Ministers Mahinda Rajapaksa and the brother is the President, if the finance minister of say from the opposition takes a particular decision, Prime Minister and President can join hands and they can sack the finance minister also. So that is another reason why national government is not such a hot attraction for anybody but Sajith. Premadasa believes that if you abolish the executive presidency, half the problems in this country will resolve themselves on their own, and perhaps they will, and he has made a big pitch for it. But the problem is that its a very long game.

    Shashank Bhargava: Yeah, it would require significant amendments in the Constitution, right?

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, there has to be amendments to the Constitution, it needs a two thirds in Parliament. Now, even for the no confidence motion, which they have been discussing, which is a simple majority. Theyre wondering if they have a simple majority or not. But two thirds in Parliament, even if its passed by Parliament, it has to be approved in a referendum. So those are very, very long process. And many people have tried it before. I mean, many people have at least promised it before but have never kept their promise. Because once they become president, then they see Oh, wow.

    Shashank Bhargava: Yeah, because then they also enjoy the same powers and privilege.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, they dont want to change it. So there is an impasse, meaning the rajapaksas have not yet been able to appoint a full cabinet. Theyve been asking people to come up and take charge. But I think every minister, every person who was in the cabinet before, and everybody whos being approached by the rajapaksas are feeling the heat of the protests outside and they dont want to be compromised or tainted by accepting a position now so that everybody is waiting and watching.

    Shashank Bhargava: Okay, so you have the Rajapaksa who have immense power because of the presidential system. And even though they have a wafer thin majority, they dont have a major challenger who can strongly oppose them. And then you have a large population of the country who want them to go, but obviously theyre not doing that. And you spoke to protesters, and Im sure because of all these factors, they must be so uncertain about the future, right?

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, So nobody knows what next and even in the opposition, no one knows what next. So even for the opposition, whatever glue it is, that can bring them together is if tomorrow we bring a no confidence motion against Prime Minister Rajapaksa. What is the next step? What after that, who will form the government? What kind of government will it be who will edit? Those are the questions that they have not been able to resolve? Monday, April 19, is when the parliament meets again, so maybe something will emerge from that session?

    Shashank Bhargava: Okay, so now lets come to the India part of the story. India has extended help Sri Lanka, it has given the country rice and fuel, both diesel and petrol. How much relief has that been to the country?

    Nirupama Subramanian: So it has eased the shortages, but its limited quantities right? I mean, its 500 million credit line for fuel. So, you have seen diesel coming in from India and it has eased the shortages a bit and then there is another credit line of $1 billion for food and medicines. So Indian rice has been has started coming in. And April 14, it was a new year for Sinhalese and for Tamil so they were able to release some supplies of rice into the market. So the shortages were kind of mitigated a bit. So this is the extent and India is supposed to be considering another 2 billion in some form or the other it may not be a credit line. It may be something in some other form, but they are supposed to be considering this request from Sri Lanka for another 2 billion

    Shashank Bhargava: and Nirupama. One of the things that you write is that Sri Lankans, they sort of have a mixed reaction to this assistance by India, right.

    Nirupama Subramanian: Yeah, so one of the very first things that I heard when I left landed in Sri Lanka and went to a protest site was somebody just asked me Are you Indian? So I said yes. He said, I have a message for India tell your government not to help the Rajapaksa they must stand with the people. They must not stand with Rajapaksa. So I asked him, Why do you say that he was not able to explain it to me immediately. But I spoke to some other people later on. And they said, there is a sentiment, theres an undercurrent in which this food help and the diesel help that and the fuel help that weve been extending people think, okay, the shortages will be mitigated by that and then peoples anger will come down, the temperature on the streets will come down, and the rajapaksas will use it to their advantage, they will take the credit of that. So this I heard even as late as two days ago, when somebody said, your government is giving 2 billion more to the rajapaksas. So I said, its not for the Rajapaksa, its for the people of the country. They said yeah yeah. I mean, thanks a lot, but what is going to happen is that they are going to take the credit of that, you know, so there is a very strong undercurrent in this whole thing that India is probably trying to save the situation for the rajapaksas. So the Indian High Commission, whenever it speaks on these issues, they emphasize very strongly that it is a humanitarian assistance that they are extending ages for the people of the country, it is to mitigate the suffering of the people. The other rumor that came up and that also was denied very emphatically. I mean, they had to actually deny more than once the Indian High Commission is that the Indian Army had landed in Sri Lanka. And they were going to help secure the Rajapaksa family. And again, this had to be refuted very strongly by the Indian High Commission, because I dont think theres any such thing and India would not be so adventurous as to send some soldiers to another country. Theyve done this in the past, and they did this in the Maldives wants to secure your home against a coup attempt. But that was different. I mean, those are different circumstances.

    Shashank Bhargava: Okay, so finally, is there any next big thing or an event that will decide how this crisis will unfold?

    Nirupama Subramanian: So now theres fear that they might actually crack down on the protesters, maybe try to drive them away, maybe call them for talks, I think Mahinda Rajapaksa said, come and talk to me. And they said, No, first you go, and then we will talk to you. So theres been theres all that also, I think things are a bit up in the air right now. Well have to see. I think the next big thing really, in this week will be what happens at the IMF. And of course, Sri Lanka is reaching out to various countries for bridge financing the reckon for the next six to nine months, theyll need about three to $4 billion to meet the import bills. So they will be looking for that the government is hoping to tire out the protesters that they will go home, how long can they stand here and shout, maybe the energy will dissipate and they will go home. So that is one line of thinking that do not think let them all just let it fizzle out. And they also declared all of last week a holiday. They said its New Year. And so between two weekends, all days were declared official holidays by the government thinking that people will stay at home. But actually it worked in the opposite way. A lot of people just congregated at golf ease, which is the site of the protests. And I mean, the numbers are now huge. So its growing in many ways. And we just have to see how this is resolved. But a lot of people thought regime change is imminent. That has not happened yet. And for the protesters, that is a big disappointment that you know, they didnt run away.

    Shashank Bhargava: Youre listening to three things by the Indian Express. Todays show was written and produced by me, Shashank Bhargava and was edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar. If you like the show, then do subscribe to us wherever you get your podcast. You can also recommend the show to someone you think would like it, share it with a friend or someone in your family. Its the best way for people to get to know about us. You can tweet us at @Expresspodcasts and write to us at podcasts@ Indianexpress.com

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    How Sri Lanka's unprecedented crisis is unfolding on the ground - The Indian Express

    Liability, long-term care, housing discussed at ROMA conference – County Weekly News - January 25, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

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    Ontarios attorney general is establishing a working group to study a controversial liability issue which municipal leaders say is both unfair and costly.

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    The government has heard from municipalities that they are facing significant insurance costs, coverage and liability issues, and about the impact this can have on property taxes and public services, Natasha Krstajic, press secretary and parliamentary advisor for Attorney General Doug Downey, told The Intelligencer via e-mail.

    Municipal and provincial politicians took part on Monday in a series of meetings as part of the annual Rural Ontario Municipal Association conference, which was held online.

    Building on one of the recommendations by the Association of Municipalities Ontario (AMO), the government has established a technical working group of provincial and municipal officials to examine municipal proposals for addressing this important issue, Krstajic wrote.

    Deputy Warden Bonnie Adams led Mondays county delegation to meet with Downey to ask for changes to legislation governing joint and several liability.

    Both the Eastern and Western Wardens Caucuses have also taken up the cause in an attempt to guard against what municipalities say are unfair judgements against them in civil lawsuits, such as those following traffic accidents.

    It is common for a municipality to be named in an action even though there is no apparent liability on the part of the municipality, Adams, the reeve of Carlow/Mayo Township, told The Intelligencer via e-mail.

    Even if lawsuits are ultimately dismissed, the cost of defending against them puts an enormous burden on our budgets and ultimately the taxpayers.

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    She said such liability is a key driver of unsustainable increases of 20 to 30 per cent in municipal insurance costs and at a time when pandemic financial relief programs are being scaled back by the government.

    Adams said Downey recognized such payouts divert municipal funding from capital projects and services.

    I believe the meeting was productive and look forward to seeing the technical table report on this issue, Adams wrote.

    The ministrys Krstajic added the working group will be coordinated by Downeys ministry and involve staff of other ministries including finance and municipal affairs and housing as needed.

    We have also invited a representative of the insurance industry to participate.

    The first working group meeting is expected to occur in March, Krstajic wrote.

    The government is keen to get this important work underway and is pleased to be working with AMO.

    Regional advocacy

    County Warden Rick Philips was part of a separate delegation from the Eastern Ontario Wardens Caucus which met with Deputy Premier and Health Minister Christine Elliott, Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark, Long-term Care Minister Paul Calandra, and Children, Community and Social Services Minister Merrilee Fullerton, plus parliamentary assistants.

    The caucus delegation was focused on housing, long-term care and Ontario Health Teams.

    Were facing mounting pressure on affordable housing, Phillips said, calling it a major concern.

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    Thousands of households spend more than 30 per cent of their after-tax income on housing.

    We need rental housing; we need affordable housing; we need all types.

    He said the average wait for community housing is 10 years.

    The pandemic has cast a harsh spotlight upon long-term care issues, and Phillips spoke of both capacity and funding concerns. He said eastern Ontario municipalities spent $194 million in the sector in 2019, operating 15 municipal homes with 2,386 beds and 2,000 workers.

    The wait times are 45 per cent higher in eastern Ontario than the provincial average, Phillips said after he and Northumberland County Warden Bob Crate addressed the ministers.

    According to our research, residents spend 231 days on the wait list versus 166 days province-wide.

    Caucus chair and Renfrew County Warden Debbie Robinson told the ministers of Ontario Health Teams uneven approach to municipal membership. The new teams are intended to help make local decisions about care.

    The chief administrative officers of Hastings and Prince Edward Counties, Jim Pine and Marcia Wallace respectively, are members of the Hastings-Prince Edward team.

    Sheila Braidek, a co-leader of that team, said the group has not invited Belleville or Quinte West to join because neither delivers health services. The counties, however, have long-term care homes and other housing.

    But not all teams allow municipal involvement because of the political aspect, which is ludicrous, Phillips said.

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    He said one health team it was not clear which one had asked a municipality to pay a membership fee.

    Were all key partners in health care, he said, adding eastern municipalities invest $120 million annually in health and related services.

    Minister Elliott indicated that she would be looking into that and it would be rectified, said Phillips.

    The warden said the meeting was more positive than usual.

    Ive got a better feeling with this government than with any Ive dealt with before, he said. The delegation made similar presentations to opposition parties that afternoon.

    He said municipalities still have many concerns but know they must work with our provincial government in order to advance things and appreciate the support through the pandemic.

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    Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notificationsyou will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.

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    Liability, long-term care, housing discussed at ROMA conference - County Weekly News

    Have your say and help transform the health of city residents – Liverpool Express - January 25, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Are you a regular gym-goer, or do you love to get active in the beautiful surroundings of your local green space? Perhaps you struggle to fit exercise in, or just dont feel motivated to be part of a physical activity.

    Whatever your situation, we want to hear from you.

    A brand new city-wide consultation has launched with the aim of creating a thriving leisure offer that all Liverpool residents can benefit from.

    Residents are being asked to fill in a short online survey which will give the city council an insight into how people in the city currently stay active, what sports and activities they want in their community and what service improvements they would like made.

    The questionnaire aims to find out which types of facilities are used (private or the councils Lifestyles gyms), what is the main driver for people getting active, how often people take part in physical activity, whether the pandemic has changed exercise habits and what encouragement would residents need to use the citys parks and green spaces more.

    Latest figures show around 30 per cent of Liverpool residents are inactive, so the teamalso wants to hear from these people to find out what barriers theyre facing and how the council could support them on their journey to fitness and improved health.

    The responses will help shape a new approach over the coming years which will focus on transforming the health and wellbeing of residents with a focus on hotspot areas of inequality. The feedback will also allow the team to ensure current leisure services are meeting the needs of those who require it the most.

    The physical activity survey will take around ten minutes to complete and can be found at http://www.liverpool.gov.uk/consultations. Translated versions can be downloaded from the website or hardcopy versions can be obtained by calling 0151 233 3000.

    The survey will close at midnight Sunday 20 February and the findings of the study will be released in April 2022.

    The survey is the latest in a number of consultations that Liverpool City Council has held in recent months, giving residents the opportunity to have their say on different, important Liverpool issues.

    Liverpool City Councils Cabinet Member responsible for physical activity, sport and leisure, Councillor Harry Doyle, said: These consultations are a vital communication tool with residents as a council we need to be listening to local communities and finding out what is and isnt working for them and how we can work together to make a real difference.

    As a user of the Councils Lifestyles centres, I am passionate about physical activity and know how valued participation in sport and activity is within all our communities.

    Being active is one of the best things you can do for yourself for both your physical and mental wellbeing. We want to make sure we have a plan of action in place for the next 12 years which supports and encourages everyone in making positive choices that get them moving.

    To achieve this we need a snapshot of what physical activity means for our residents at this moment in time. We want to hear from as many, different people as possible those who enjoy a walk in our parks, gym-goers, people who take part in organised sports, those who arent active at all and those who take part in active travel.

    Only when we are armed with this information can we then work with everyone across Liverpool to deliver a leisure service which will be a game-changer.

    Read more from the original source:
    Have your say and help transform the health of city residents - Liverpool Express

    Will Boris Johnson be ousted as UK Prime Minister soon? The Poll Bludger – The Poll Bludger - January 25, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Speculation last week that Johnson would face a full Conservative confidence vote has so far come to nought. Also: US redistricting, French, Portuguese and Chile elections.

    Guest post by Adrian Beaumont, who joins us from time to time to provide commentary on elections internationally. Adrian is an honorary associate at the University of Melbourne. His work on electoral matters for The Conversation can be foundhere, and his own website ishere.

    For a UK Conservative leader to be ousted, the first step is for 15% of the partys MPs to send letters expressing no confidence to the chair of the 1922 Committee, Graham Brady. As there are currently 359 Conservatives in the House of Commons, 54 letters expressing no confidence in Boris Johnson are required.

    If this first threshold is met, there is a secret ballot of all Conservative MPs. If the leader wins this confidence vote, they cannot be challenged for another year, although this rule could be amended. If the leader loses, they would be expected to be a caretaker PM until the next leader is elected.

    Last week there was speculation that an announcement that Brady had received the 54 letters was imminent, but it did not occur. Johnsons danger is due to the parties that were held while the UK was in COVID lockdown at Downing Street. This caused a slump for the Conservatives in the polls in December. The Conservatives regained some ground in early January, only for even more party revelations to crash their vote again. Some Conservatives may be waiting for Sue Grays report into the parties, expected next week, before moving against Johnson.

    It was bad timing for Johnson that these party revelations came when the UK was suffering another COVID wave due to Omicron. This made peoples memories of past lockdowns more vivid, and so the parties resonated more than they would otherwise. In good news for Johnson, the Omicron wave is subsiding, with cases way down from their peak and hospitalisations also starting to fall.

    I am dubious that ousting Johnson would be in the Conservatives electoral interests. While Johnson is very unpopular now, voters tend to move past non-recurring issues. The parties occurred in the last two years, and are unlikely to cause voters additional pain in the future. As the UK COVID situation improves, voters are likely to move past the parties.

    Another argument against removing Johnson is that he got Brexit done. At the 2019 election, non-uni whites swung strongly to the Conservatives over Johnsons promise to get Brexit done see my Conversation article last May. Will these voters remain Conservative under another Conservative PM?

    Democrats gain in US redistricting, but Bidens ratings remain poor

    A US Census is held every ten years, with the boundaries of Congressional Districts set for ten years by that Census. Most states have completed redistricting of their CDs from the 2020 Census. The FiveThirtyEight tracker says that there are 129 Democratic-leaning seats, 124 Republican-leaning seats and 21 highly competitive seats in the new maps so far. The changes from the old maps are Democrats up seven, Republicans up one and competitive down six.

    While some states use nonpartisan commissions to draw their maps, in most states redistricting is up to politicians. If one party holds the governor and both chambers of the legislature in a state, that party can gerrymander. Republican-controlled Florida (28 CDs) and Democratic New York (26) are the two biggest states still to complete redistricting. A Republican gerrymander in Ohio was rejected by the state courts, and this could also occur in North Carolina.

    Bidens ratings in the FiveThirtyEight aggregate are currently 53.5% disapprove, 41.9% approve (net -11.6). They have worsened recently owing to the recent COVID surge. There has been no recent progress with the Democratic legislative agenda. Inflation over the full 2021 year was 7.0%, the highest since 1982. A recent CBS YouGov poll indicates voters think Biden is not focussed enough on combatting inflation.

    French, Portuguese and Chile developments

    The first round of the French presidential election is on April 10, with a runoff between the top two on April 24. Conservative Valrie Pcresse has slipped behind the far-right Marine Le Pen in the race for second with incumbent Emmanuel Macron well ahead in first. Macron easily beats Le Pen, but its closer against Pcresse.

    A Portuguese election will be held on January 30, with 230 seats elected by proportional representation. Polls indicate a close contest between the overall left and overall right. Portugal currently has a left government.

    At the December 19 Chilean presidential runoff election, left-wing Boric defeated the far-right Kast by 55.9-44.1.

    Excerpt from:
    Will Boris Johnson be ousted as UK Prime Minister soon? The Poll Bludger - The Poll Bludger

    Explained: Why the timing of Omicron’s arrival matters – Newstalk ZB - January 25, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    New Zealand is preparing for an avalanche of Omicron cases. When we do confront the new variant, how much does timing matter? Jamie Morton explains.

    What would an Omicron outbreak look like?

    That's precisely what modellers are busy trying to calculate right now. But it's clear the inevitable wave we're facing will be both large and swift.

    Te Pnaha Matatini's Professor Michael Plank said it was possible we may face an outbreak big enough to peak with tens of thousands of new daily cases.

    It may kick off much as Auckland's Delta crisis did, with an unlinked community case pointing to a hidden iceberg of infections, but escalate much faster.

    Across the Tasman, it took just a month for new daily cases in New South Wales to swell from a few hundred to nearly 40,000, forcing the state to bring public health restrictions back.

    That owed to the sheer speed at which the variant can spread:one recent Danish studyfound it to be 2.7 to 3.7 times more infectious than the Delta variant among vaccinated and boosted individuals.

    Plank said states like Queensland, which just recorded nearly 16,000 new cases, and South Australia could act as good guides of what to expect here, as they had high vaccination rates but hadn't seen the Delta surges their neighbours had.

    But there were steps that could soften the blow.

    One was vaccination coverage: while around 93 per cent of eligible New Zealanders have received both doses, wider uptake of the booster shot was also critical.

    While it wasn't yet clear how well the booster shot prevented transmission of Omicron, there was now plenty of data to show it greatly reduced the risk of severe illness.

    UK monitoringshowed that, at about 20 weeks after the second dose, effectiveness against symptomatic disease was only around 10 per cent with Omicron. But at two to four weeks after the booster dose, that protection rose to 65 to 70 per cent.

    Around 830,000 Kiwis have received booster doses since 1.2 million people became eligible this month.

    "It's a big unknown at the moment as to what level of coverage we'll have when Omicron does start spreading here," Plank said, "but the more people who are boosted, the more we can bring case numbers down".

    Our overall lack of exposure to the virus was also important.

    By contrast, in the UK, which has high vaccine coverage, high booster uptake, and almost two years of exposure to circulating virus, about 97 to 98 per cent of adults test positive for Sars-CoV-2 antibodies.

    Even so, Britain logged a daily high of more than 180,000 cases early this month.

    Otago University virologist Dr Jemma Geoghegan noted that New Zealand's child vaccine had only just gotten underway and nearly 220,000 unvaccinated teens and adults were also vulnerable.

    Around 830,000 Kiwis have received booster doses since 1.2 million people became eligible this month. Photo / Supplied

    "While kids have always been the least likely to have severe disease, looking overseas, the vast majority of people who end up in ICU are unvaccinated and I'd say they're the most vulnerable group here."

    As well, the same health inequities seen over Auckland's Delta outbreak where Mori and Pacific populations were hit disproportionately hard could again feature in an Omicron wave.

    Another factor was what health interventions officials tried to block it with.

    As director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield has acknowledged, the traffic light system that's performed so well against Delta may now need a change-up and the outcome of a Cabinet meeting discussing current settings will be announced tomorrow.

    Bloomfield has indicated that more restrictions were likely to be put in place as the country.

    Working from home and lowering the number of people allowed at gatherings were all back on the table, but he said the health response wouldn't necessarily be around more lockdowns.

    With Omicron's potential to quickly overwhelm our test-and-trace regime, Otago University experts have suggested pivoting to a mitigation approach of "flattening the curve" to protect the health system.

    University of Auckland senior lecturer Dr David Welch said Australia hadn't done a good job at using such measures against Omicron.

    "They've really gone for a 'let it rip' approach so I think New Zealand does have greater ability and social licence to control it a bit better than Australia has, and hopefully take the edge off."

    Does timing matter?

    Omicron's lightning-fast march across the globe it could well infect half the population of Europe within two months showed that its transmissibility didn't solely depend on inherent seasonal factors that influenced other respiratory viruses.

    "Most respiratory infections have their peak incidence in winter, at least in temperate countries like New Zealand and the UK, hence terms like 'seasonal flu'," Otago University epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker said.

    "But pandemic respiratory infections can strike during any season, as we have seen with the rapid spread of Omicron in summer in a number of Southern Hemisphere countries such as Australia and South Africa."

    Director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield has acknowledged the traffic light system that's performed so well against Delta may now need a change-up. Photo / Supplied

    However, he added, Omicron was still somewhat easier to tackle in summer, as there was slightly greater potential to slow spread with measures like encouraging people to shift activities outside, or open windows.

    The biggest headache with battling Omicron in the colder months, of course, was that health services would be already stretched dealing with winter ills like the flu or RSV, which caused a national crisis last year.

    "This winter, New Zealand can expect to see more severe respiratory infections as several of the common respiratory viruses notably influenza have been largely excluded for the last two years, so immunity to them is likely to have declined."

    While around two thirds of nationwide ICU beds were already occupied and only a few of them with Covid-19 patients that capacity could be surged to around 550 ICU-capable beds, the Ministry of Health told NewsHub last week.

    Baker expected the country would probably achieve "peak immunity" to Covid-19 at some point in the next three to four months, immediately after a high proportion of adults had received a booster, and young children were fully vaccinated.

    "Arguably, that would be the timing when New Zealand would be best placed to manage an Omicron outbreak with the least health impacts."

    That's why, despite it being further from the very warmest time, Baker and colleagues have been pushing the Government to try to delay Omicron's arrival until at least March.

    "We can also use this time to get other measures in place including supplies of rapid antigen tests, higher quality face masks, and better protocols for schools, workplaces and healthcare services."

    Otago University epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker. Photo / Supplied

    After calls to "turn down the tap" on overseas arrivals and lower the case load at the border, the Government last night put a halt on releasing more MIQ rooms.

    Will we be dealing with an outbreak before winter anyway?

    Baker said it was highly likely New Zealand would confront Omicron well before winter.

    It could happen when New Zealand relaxed its border controls as had been planned after February or indeed at any moment, if Omicron slipped into the community via MIQ, airport staff or air crew, or a sea port.

    That danger was highlighted yesterday, when an airport worker tested positive despite having received both vaccine doses and a booster, and also by the handful of other Omicron scares recorded since Christmas.

    With another 56 new cases detected at the border today the vast majority, if not all, likely to Omicron an outbreak-causing failuremight occur within weeks, or even days.

    An analysis of previous breaches indicated a failure occurring with every 100 to 200 cases in MIQ although that risk would have changed with higher vaccination levels in travellers, and the more infectious nature of Omicron.

    There's been a ten-fold increase in cases at the border compared to December.

    Currently, the seven-day rolling average of border cases is 33.

    As Baker and colleagueswrote this week: "While not all of these failures will result in a community outbreak, a certain proportion almost certainly will."

    And if an outbreak did happen now, Welch said we'd at least have the advantage of the virus having a lower effective reproductive number (Re) that's the number of secondary infections caused by one case in a population with mixed susceptibility than in winter.

    Whereas Omicron's current Re might sit at around two, it could be three or above over winter.

    "That partly might be why we're seeing so few cases right now. Yet, by the same token, New South Wales and South Africa are roughly in the same seasons we are, and they've had very large outbreaks."

    In the meantime, Welch said New Zealand had an opportunity to prepare.

    "I think there needs to be some urgency in getting those boosters out and getting children vaccinated."

    He stressed that, while Omicron infections appeared to be milder at an individual level, it was the variant's systemic risk that made it such a threat.

    "Everyone becomes at much greater risk if the hospital system stops working."

    - by Jamie Morton

    Read the original post:
    Explained: Why the timing of Omicron's arrival matters - Newstalk ZB

    Kitchen Cabinet Refacing | Kitchen Tune-Up - December 28, 2021 by Mr HomeBuilder

    For many people, do it yourself, home improvement projects can be rewarding and typically more affordable than paying professional contractors to do the job. This is, of course, if the task at hand is relatively straightforward. However, refacing cabinets is a challenging project, and if mistakes are made, it can turn out more costly than using a professional service.

    Though you might save on labor by taking the DIY route, youll still need plenty of supplies and tools to complete the job, and purchasing them can be expensive. If you cheap out and buy all the products needed at the lowest price, to save money, it will likely result in a poor-quality job.

    We have relationships with manufacturers who can provide us with high-quality products at the best price. If you try purchasing similar cabinet doors and draw fronts of the same quality yourself, its going to be much more costly.

    Kitchen cabinet refacing requires a lot of expertise and attention to detail. Hiring a professional who has had plenty of experience in carrying out cabinetry work will guarantee the end results are perfect. If you mess up, its on your dollar, and having to fix the issue will add costs and time to your project.

    You can expect us to complete the job in two to four days; we have streamlined the process, have skilled, highly-trained professionals on hand, and all the tools and materials needed available. Even the most skilled DIY enthusiast will struggle to complete the work within a week, and thats if they get it right the first time.

    If you are firmly determined to reface your cabinets yourself, realize that you dont get the guarantees that a professional cabinet refacing company offers if you mess up. If you want a fast, professional service using high-quality tools and supplies, save yourself the stress and hire skilled cabinet refacing experts such as ourselves.

    Visit link:
    Kitchen Cabinet Refacing | Kitchen Tune-Up

    Affordable Cabinet Refacing Half Cost of Replacing Cabinets - December 28, 2021 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Affordable Cabinet Refacing deserves an A+

    This was the third time my husband and I hired Affordable Cabinet Refacing because we know the quality of their work. Several years ago they refaced our cabinets in our old home. It came out beautiful and when we sold the house, that was the biggest selling pointeveryone at the open house loved the kitchen (got the offer that day!).

    Then we had ACR reface our cabinets in our vacation condo in Mount Washington Valley. They did the kitchen and the bathroom it came out really nice; we were very pleased with the results.

    Finally, we hired ACR to reface the kitchen cabinets in our new home. This time I changed my mind on my cabinet and countertop selections twice and Shawn was patient with me until I was sure I had ordered what would be best in our kitchen. It came out beautiful., again we were quite pleased with the craftsmanship and quality of the work. I love my roll out shelves and soft close drawers.

    All three times Shawn reviewed our options thoroughly and when he wrote up the contract he reviewed it word for word with us so there would be no confusion or errors. They are on time, professional, hardworking and do quality work, until the job is done.

    If you are on the fence about hiring ACR, do not hesitateyou wont be disappointed!

    More here:
    Affordable Cabinet Refacing Half Cost of Replacing Cabinets

    Why location intelligence is the science of where – Business Post - December 28, 2021 by Mr HomeBuilder

    We live in a complicated world and location is the science of our world, allowing us to organise and apply thinking related to human and natural activities. The world is constantly changing and we are part of this living, evolving system, that touches all of our lives.

    As individuals, it touches our friends and families. As workers, it touches our organisations and businesses. As citizens, it touches our cities and communities. And as human beings, it touches our whole planet. Essentially, everything happens somewhere.

    Nearly all data can be linked to a physical location and time. Location is a powerful way to connect people to place, transactions to actions, responses to trends, and customers to where they do business and the kind of business they do. However, location isn't just a common thread connecting disparate data sources and breaking down silos; often it provides the most transformative insights.

    Location intelligence is powered by what is generally referred to as a Geographic Information System, or GIS. A GIS is a platform that provides a framework of capabilities to manage, visualise, analyse, optimise and ultimately understand the significance of location, place and geography.

    A GIS helps to transform businesses and organisations across a wide range of industries by enabling a better understanding of the impact and influence of where things are.

    Location intelligence: Esri Ireland

    Esris ArcGIS System is the worlds most powerful mapping and spatial analytics technology, helping organisations across 80 countries to visualise, analyse and optimise business data for better evidence-based decision-making. The ArcGIS System combines maps, apps and data analytics to deliver location intelligence and meet digital transformation needs for organisations of all sizes.

    Esri Ireland is the market leader in GIS and its application. As Esri's official point of presence in Ireland and Northern Ireland since 2002, it has partnered with both the public and private sector to help them understand the impact of geography on their business. Esri Ireland is part of the Esri Global Network, a billion-dollar privately held software company with nearly 10,000 employees worldwide.

    Location intelligence: enabling industry growth

    Esri Ireland provides software, services and expertise for a continually growing and broad-ranging customer base. Esris technology is applied across many different industries from construction, renewable energy and engineering, to utilities, government departments and local authorities.

    Esri Ireland, through its customers, also supports critical infrastructure projects of national importance within the Programme for Government, Project Ireland 2040, the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and the National Data Strategy, all of which connect and encourage stakeholder communities to work collaboratively across different industries and market sectors.

    Esri Irelands diverse customer community is testament to the flexible and dynamic nature of its offerings and highlights the value location intelligence can bring to every industry. For example, Esris ArcGIS System is the pivotal technology enabling Actavo to design a high-speed fibre broadband network that will help to deliver connectivity to 1.1 million people in rural Ireland through the National Broadband Plan.

    Bord na Mna is actively engaged in projects to restore and rehabilitate 33,000 hectares of peatlands and uses Esris ArcGIS System to design and implement the most appropriate rehabilitation measures as quickly and efficiently as possible.

    Open Eirs new service mapping web app, built using Esris ArcGIS, allows customers to easily search by Eircode or address for a property on an interactive map to discover which areas of Ireland have 1 GB fibre-to-home or 100 MB fibre-to-cabinet connectivity.

    The Veterinary Service Animal Health Group within Northern Irelands Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs has completely transformed its animal disease investigation process with new digital workflows, swapping paper forms on clipboards for field-based ArcGIS Survey apps and online dashboards.

    Location intelligence: our planets nervous system

    Location intelligence through The Science of Where is creating an enormous impact across all parts of life, enabling individuals, organisations, businesses and communities to not only collect and manage their data, but to synthesise and socialise it into interesting collections of detailed information for the planet.

    By thinking globally and acting locally, data related to location is increasingly being organised into all types of information products that help us understand almost everything about our world, creating what Esri refers to as an intelligent nervous system for the planet.

    This nervous system is providing a framework for advancing scientific understanding and integrating and analysing all types of spatial knowledge across many fields such as biology, sociology, geology, and climatology.

    By applying the #TheScienceofWhere and harnessing the value of location intelligence, its possible to gain insights and solve some of the most complex business and societal challenges were facing today and into the future.

    For more information, call 01-8693900, email [emailprotected] or visit esri-ireland.ie

    Read more:
    Why location intelligence is the science of where - Business Post

    Restoring your cabinets without the cost of replacement – KTAR.com - November 4, 2021 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Cant stand the look of your cabinets and dont have the budget to replace them with brand new ones? Dont fret. You have options.

    DIY options

    There are three options that you can do on your own that can perk up the appearance of the cabinets painting, refinishing and refacing.

    Painting: Using good-quality, enamel-based paint, you can choose any color you want.

    Its best to remove the cabinet doors and drawers and paint them separately. You can ensure a higher quality finish by applying the paint with a cup gun, HVLP (high volume, low pressure) sprayer, or similar system. For an added layer of protection and durability, apply three to four coats of an acrylic-based clear urethane to increase the resiliency of your finished product. There are several clear coat products available at your local paint and hardware stores.

    Also, keep in mind that if you have glass doors, paint the interior to match the exterior. To antique or glaze the cabinets, use a small artist brush or glaze. Check out our e-store for painting supplies.

    Refinishing: This option is often the most affordable and the quickest way to bring life back into dreary cabinets. The cabinets must be in good condition because refinishing includes stripping the existing finish, sanding, and staining or painting. Staining wooden cabinets can give the illusion of any type of wood you want. You can go from whitewashed to a deep cherry wood color. It is, however, hard to go from a very dark to very light.

    Refacing: Refacing involves picking out new doors and drawer fronts to replace the ones you have. The existing cabinet boxes are covered with a veneer to match your new doors/drawers. There is a wide variety of colors and finishes to choose from, even wood finishes.

    Someones got a screw loose

    After years of pushing and pulling, the cabinetrys hardware may be a little worse for wear.

    Loose screws in the frame: If the screws in the cabinet frame are loose even after tightening them, try installing longer screws of the same design. The longer screw will pass the point where the wood has gone soft and grip tighter for a stronger hold.

    If the screws in the doors are loose, do not install longer screws. This will cause problems with protrusion through the face of the cabinets and doesnt leave much in the way of future maintenance or cabinet door repairs. Instead, pick up a can of Rock Hard Putty or Equal Putty at your local hardware store. Follow the directions on the back of the putty can. Once dried, pre-drill holes and reinsert the screw.

    Tip: You may want to mark a spot on your drillbit slightly shorter than the length of the screw as a stopping point, so you dont over drill into the door itself. Example: If the screw travels 1/4 inch into the door, make a mark on the drill bit at 3/16.

    The doors are not square to the rest of the cabinet: Today, hinges are made with two screws that allow for adjustment when loosened. If the seam between the two cabinet doors is not even, or the two doors are not perfectly parallel to each other, adjust them.

    Damaged hinge: If the hinge is bent, even slightly, it will cause problems. Make sure all plates are straight and there is no resistance while opening or closing the hinge. You may have to take the hinge off to test this. Take the defective hinge to a hardware store to match the replacement. If it needs a little WD-40, either tape the surrounding area to spray or just remove the hinge to spray.

    Consider secondhand cabinets

    Used cabinets are hard to find in a set. The Habitat for Humanity HabiStore in Tucson tells us they only pick up complete sets of cabinets, no odds and ends. Cabinets donated to Habitat must be a complete set, structurally sound, in good condition, no water stains, and the doors, drawers, and hardware attached. They prefer cabinets that are less than 10 years old. Painted cabinets are accepted if they are in good condition.

    Another resource is Stardust Building Supplies, which sells reclaimed building materials, some of which are in excellent condition.

    No free meals here

    When we think of termites, we generally think about termites in the foundation or the wood structure of our home. But termites can make a meal out of our indoor cabinets, too.

    Used cabinetry at a bargain price also carries the risk of infestation, especially if you dont buy from a reputable source. If the second-hand cabinetry you bring home is infested, you are exposing your entire home to trouble.

    The HabiStore tells us that their receiving team uses a device to scan for termites, insects, other critters, and damage.

    If you notice mud tubes, swarms, termite droppings, discarded wings or buckled or warped wood in or around your new cabinets, they have or had termites.

    Call an exterminator to inspect and treat your home. Depending on the amount of damage, you may need to replace them.

    Whichever option you choose to refresh your cabinets, keep them clean and repair damage quickly to keep them looking pristine for many years.

    Join Rosie on the House every Saturday morning from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. on KTAR News 92.3 FM. If youd like to send us questions or comments, email mailto:info@rosieonthehouse.com. Follow us on Twitter and Like us on Facebook. For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert since 1988, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program. Call 888-767-4348 with questions and comments.

    See original here:
    Restoring your cabinets without the cost of replacement - KTAR.com

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