Saudi Arabia to Launch LEAP Conference on Tuesday

A general view of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. (Getty Images)
A general view of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. (Getty Images)
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Saudi Arabia to Launch LEAP Conference on Tuesday

A general view of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. (Getty Images)
A general view of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. (Getty Images)

LEAP, the global technology platform, will kick off in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday with the participation of more than 350 speakers from 80 countries and 700 innovators and start-ups from around the world.

Saudi Arabia will host the LEAP conference to address future challenges by consolidating its digital regional and global leadership.

The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) and the Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming, and Drones will organize the event.

The conference is in line with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's drive to seize opportunities in the digital economy and enhance the Kingdom's global leadership as the regional hub for technology, innovation, and digital entrepreneurship.

Many major international companies announced their intention to participate in the LEAP conference to review the latest technologies in several technical fields that contribute to achieving Saudi digital leadership.

VMware will showcase its newest innovations in multi-cloud, application modernization, digital workspace, and security at LEAP.

It will offer solutions that enable organizations to thrive in the face of current challenges by embracing a multi-cloud approach that provides the flexibility to deploy modern applications and empower a secure, distributed workforce while retaining ownership and control over their data.

It will also highlight how it protects clients with a "zero trust" approach to security, end-to-end solutions, and new endpoint management capabilities utilizing a single agent and console, allowing companies to operate more quickly and effectively.

Logitech will demonstrate a range of high-quality video collaboration solutions at its pavilion in LEAP.

It will showcase its technology and how video collaboration solutions can support hybrid working models and transform industries, such as education and healthcare, while increasing customer and employee satisfaction and assisting organizations in fostering workplace diversity.

Meanwhile, a YouGov survey conducted by SAP Software Solutions revealed that nearly 92 percent of Saudi Arabia's government IT decision-makers agree that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the Kingdom's digital transformation over the past year.

In terms of the top priority areas for Saudi government organizations' digital investment in 2022 and beyond, 67 percent said human capital management, 61 percent said enterprise resource planning, 56 percent said core solutions, and 41 percent said customer experience.

Many of the Kingdom's government and public sector organizations are at the forefront of implementing new solutions as emerging technologies grow and mature.

Saudi Arabia will host LEAP between Feb. 1 and 3 to address future challenges such as healthcare technologies to improve the quality of life and increase life expectancy, empowering humans through robots and technologies.

It will review the most prominent technologies in the education sector, the creative economy, and showcase technologies that enhance the well-being of communities.

It will address future energy technologies that will enhance the region's leadership in the oil and gas sectors and the impact of technology on the development of energy sources.

Saudi Arabia will address future challenges by consolidating its digital regional and global leadership.

Held under the theme "One Eye on the Stars," LEAP seeks to discuss the most prominent social and cultural challenges facing the world through modern technologies, which have the potential to reshape the way people live and find appropriate and innovative solutions for them.



World Food Prices Ease Slightly in August

Truckers eat their lunch while blocking a street during a protest against the diesel price increase in Cali, Colombia, on September 5, 2024. (Photo by JOAQUIN SARMIENTO / AFP)
Truckers eat their lunch while blocking a street during a protest against the diesel price increase in Cali, Colombia, on September 5, 2024. (Photo by JOAQUIN SARMIENTO / AFP)
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World Food Prices Ease Slightly in August

Truckers eat their lunch while blocking a street during a protest against the diesel price increase in Cali, Colombia, on September 5, 2024. (Photo by JOAQUIN SARMIENTO / AFP)
Truckers eat their lunch while blocking a street during a protest against the diesel price increase in Cali, Colombia, on September 5, 2024. (Photo by JOAQUIN SARMIENTO / AFP)

The United Nations' world food price index eased slightly in August, data released on Friday showed, as lower prices for sugar, meat and cereals more than offset higher dairy and vegetable oil prices.

The price index, compiled by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization to track the most globally traded food commodities, slipped to 120.7 points in August from a revised 121 in July, Reuters reported.

The FAO index hit a three-year low in February this year as food prices retreated from a record peak set in March 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The August value was 1.1% lower than its level a year ago and 24.7% below its peak from March 2022.

In a separate report, the FAO lowered its forecast for global cereal production in 2024 by 2.8 million metric tons to 2.851 billion tons, putting it almost on a par with the previous year's output.
The decrease largely reflects reduced prospects for coarse grain crops in the European Union, Mexico and Ukraine, thanks to hot and dry weather conditions.

The forecast for world cereal utilization in 2024/25 was lowered by 4.7 million tons versus July to 2.852 billion tons, reflecting a 0.2% increase from 2023/24.

The agency also cut its forecast for world cereal stocks at the close of seasons in 2025 by 4.5 million tons to 890 million.