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KACST, ACWA Power Sign Deal to Establish Clean Energy, Water Desalination Technologies Development Center

The center will employ artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies - SPA
The center will employ artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies - SPA
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KACST, ACWA Power Sign Deal to Establish Clean Energy, Water Desalination Technologies Development Center

The center will employ artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies - SPA
The center will employ artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies - SPA

King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) and ACWA Power Company signed an agreement on Sunday to establish a joint "Clean Energy and Water Desalination Technologies Development Center", according to a press release from KACST.
KACST Vice President for the Energy and Industry Sector Dr. Saeed Al-Shehri and Executive Vice President of Innovation and New Technology Sector at ACWA Power Thomas Altmann signed the agreement in a ceremony attended by KACST President Dr. Munir bin Mahmoud Al-Desouki, ACWA Power Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors Mohammad Abunayyan, and Senior Vice President for the Research and Development Sector of KACST Dr. Talal Al-Sudairi.
According to the press report, the center will conduct studies and scientific research, and work to attain technical development in vital areas in the clean energy and water sector, including developing solar energy technologies, energy storage technologies to support future energy networks, and innovative technologies and materials for desalination membranes, to reduce costs and emissions of desalination processes.
The center will employ artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies to help the process of research and achieve goals, SPA reported.
The joint center also aims to increase the contribution of ACWA Power in the complex of national laboratories and innovation oases, to spread the culture of cooperation and innovation in the academic community and the business sector, and to transfer innovative water desalination technology to various areas of the industrial sector.

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China Approves Plan to Raise Retirement Age from January 2025 

Commuters ride an escalator at a subway station during the morning rush hour in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP)
Commuters ride an escalator at a subway station during the morning rush hour in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP)
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China Approves Plan to Raise Retirement Age from January 2025 

Commuters ride an escalator at a subway station during the morning rush hour in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP)
Commuters ride an escalator at a subway station during the morning rush hour in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP)

China's top legislative body has approved a proposal to raise the country's retirement age, the official Xinhua news agency said on Friday, accelerating an overhaul of decades-old laws to tackle the economic pressure of a shrinking workforce.

China's retirement ages are currently amongst the lowest globally.

Reform is urgent with life expectancy in China having risen to 78 years as of 2021 from about 44 years in 1960 and projected to exceed 80 years by 2050. At the same time, the working population needed to support the elderly is shrinking.

The retirement age will be raised for men to 63 years old from 60, while for women in white collar work it would be raised to 58 years from 55. For women in blue collar work it will be adjusted to 55 from 50.

The changes are set to come into force on Jan. 1, 2025.

Having people work for longer would ease pressure on pension budgets with many Chinese provinces already reeling from large deficits. But delaying pension payouts and requiring older workers to stay at their jobs longer may not be welcomed by all of them.

Hundreds of thousands of people took to social media after Xinhua reported that China's top lawmakers discussed the topic on Sept. 10, with many expressing concern there would be more job seekers chasing too few openings.

By raising the retirement age, the government can increase the labor force participation rate, helping to mitigate the adverse effects of population aging, said Xiujian Peng, senior research fellow at the Center of Policy Studies at Victoria University in Australia.

"The government must take action. If the population continues to decline, the shrinking of the labor force will accelerate, further negatively impacting economic growth."

Xing Zhaopeng, ANZ's senior China strategist said the move would likely have "no impact on the short-term economy. In the long run, it will help to avoid premature labor shortages and maintain stable productivity growth."