Saudi General Directorate of Passports to Launch All E-services in 2020

Saudi General Directorate of Passports to Launch All E-services in 2020
TT
20

Saudi General Directorate of Passports to Launch All E-services in 2020

Saudi General Directorate of Passports to Launch All E-services in 2020

All e-services related to the Saudi General Directorate of Passports will be launched in 2020 without the need for traditional revision, Assistant Director-General of Passports Col. Khaled Hamad al-Saikhan told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper.

“We have a series of services, a timeline and we are committed to abiding by it,” Saikhan added.

The number of registered is 11.6 million beneficiaries and heads of households, he continued.

The assistant director denied the presence of any problems at the platform of Absher that serves all citizens and residents – all remarks coming from the public are taken into consideration.

The work is in the process to transfer all services provided by various sectors of the ministry to the platform of Absher, said Dr. Bandar bin Abdullah al-Mishary, Assistant Minister of Interior for Technical Affairs.

On the sidelines of the "5th Absher Forum", Mishary affirmed that the officials look forward to more development in the platform of Absher. He noted that the real standard is customers’ satisfaction towards this service.



Russian Central Bank Head Warns of Turbulent Times ahead Despite Slowing Inflation

Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
TT
20

Russian Central Bank Head Warns of Turbulent Times ahead Despite Slowing Inflation

Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
Russia's Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo

The Russian economy has adapted to Western sanctions and inflation is now slowing, but turbulent times and major technological shifts lie ahead, central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said on Wednesday.

Despite the sanctions, the Russian economy grew by 4.3% last year but is set to slow sharply in 2025, with many officials and economists saying that the current model has exhausted its growth potential.

"We have adapted to some external challenges (but) no, we are facing very turbulent times ahead," said Nabiullina, who is widely credited with steering the Russian economy through the Ukraine military conflict and resulting sanctions.

"But I am confident that this also presents new opportunities for development and for increasing labor productivity in conditions of expensive labor. We base our efforts on this," she told a banking conference.

She stressed that the high cost of labor - spurred by the military spending that has led to a wage growth spiral in many sectors, as well as by curbs on immigration - would remain for a long time, Reuters reported.

Nabiullina said the economy should in future rely entirely on domestic sources of financing as cheap funding from abroad, abundant before the Ukraine conflict, is no longer available.

"In my view, structural adaptation to external constraints has been completed. We have demonstrated our ability to adapt to these challenges, but now we are facing structural shifts of an entirely new kind, primarily technological ones," she said.

"They may have even more far-reaching consequences than what we experienced over the past two years," Nabiullina said, mentioning artificial intelligence applications in the economy as one such challenge.

INFLATION SLOWING

The central bank, which has faced heavy criticism over its tight monetary policy, began cutting its key interest rate last month as prices started to come down, helped by the rouble's strength.

Nabiullina said inflation is now slowing faster than the central bank expected, and there are signs of easing in the severity of labor market shortages.

She said that if economic indicators pointed to a more significant slowdown than anticipated, the central bank would have room for bolder interest rate cuts. She dismissed statements by critics of the bank, who want deeper cuts, that the cooling of the economy was excessive.

Nabiullina also rejected statements from many businessman and bankers that the rouble is now overvalued and should weaken to please exporting companies, which saw their revenues shrink as the rouble rallied by over 40% against the dollar this year.

"A weak exchange rate is often a sign of vulnerability, a result of chronically high inflation and a lack of confidence in one’s own currency. It is hardly something to strive for," she said.