Saudi Red Sea Authority, GEOSA Issue First Nautical Chart for Sindalah Island

Saudi Red Sea Authority, GEOSA Issue First Nautical Chart for Sindalah Island
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Saudi Red Sea Authority, GEOSA Issue First Nautical Chart for Sindalah Island

Saudi Red Sea Authority, GEOSA Issue First Nautical Chart for Sindalah Island

The Saudi Red Sea Authority (SRSA) and the General Authority for Survey and Geospatial Information (GEOSA) have collaborated to produce the first high-resolution paper and electronic navigational nautical chart of Sindalah Island in the NEOM region based on the latest international standards and in accordance with International Hydrographic Organization standards, in addition to producing four other maps of the NEOM region.
This collaboration was initiated by SRSA as part of its mandates, which include identifying navigation routes for marine activities within Saudi Arabia’s geographical scope, as well as developing and updating them in coordination with relevant entities to ensure environmental protection and preservation, SPA reported.
GEOSA has implemented the highest standards for producing and updating nautical charts, which include data on depths, coral reefs, islands, navigation hazards, and tidal information to enhance marine safety in Saudi Arabia’s coastal areas and to support smart decision making.
These charts provide reliable and secure geospatial marine data that will contribute to planning and development efforts in line with Saudi Vision 2030, facilitating investment attraction in coastal tourism while providing navigational data to ease the entry and exit of yachts and other watercraft to Sindalah and other islands. It also enhances marine safety and environmental protection by applying the highest security and safety standards through buoys and navigational aids.
The SRSA began its journey toward building and regulating the coastal tourism sector in 2021 to enhance integration between the relevant entities by issuing licenses and permits, developing the necessary policies and strategies, determining infrastructure requirements, preserving the marine environment, enabling investment, and promoting navigational and marine tourism activities, which will reflect as an added value to the national economy.
Meanwhile, GEOSA is working to regulate the surveying and geospatial information sector and related imaging activities in Saudi Arabia. This includes adopting and developing the national geospatial infrastructure, the national geodetic reference, national geodetic networks, hydrographic surveying, and providing data, products, services, electronic applications, topographic and aerial maps, and maritime navigation charts relevant to the sector.



Australia Moves to Ban Children Under 16 from Social Media

Australia's government says unchecked social media algorithms are serving up disturbing content to highly impressionable children and teenagers. JOEL SAGET / AFP/File
Australia's government says unchecked social media algorithms are serving up disturbing content to highly impressionable children and teenagers. JOEL SAGET / AFP/File
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Australia Moves to Ban Children Under 16 from Social Media

Australia's government says unchecked social media algorithms are serving up disturbing content to highly impressionable children and teenagers. JOEL SAGET / AFP/File
Australia's government says unchecked social media algorithms are serving up disturbing content to highly impressionable children and teenagers. JOEL SAGET / AFP/File

Australia's prime minister on Thursday vowed to ban children under 16 from social media, saying the pervasive influence of platforms like Facebook and TikTok was "doing real harm to our kids".
The tech giants would be held responsible for enforcing the age limit and face hefty fines if regulators notice young users slipping through the cracks, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
Australia is among the vanguard of nations trying to clean up social media, and the proposed age limit would be among the world's strictest measures aimed at children, AFP said.
"This one is for the mums and dads. Social media is doing real harm to kids and I'm calling time on it," Albanese told reporters outside parliament.
The new laws would be presented to state and territory leaders this week, before being introduced to parliament in late November.
Once passed, the tech platforms would be given a one-year grace period to figure out how to implement and enforce the ban.
"The onus will be on social media platforms to demonstrate they are taking reasonable steps to prevent access," Albanese said, explaining what he dubbed a "world-leading" reform.
"The onus won't be on parents or young people."
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, said it would "respect any age limitations the government wants to introduce".
But Antigone Davis, Meta's head of safety, said Australia should think carefully about how these restrictions were implemented.
She said poorly drafted laws "risk making ourselves feel better, like we have taken action, but teens and parents will not find themselves in a better place".
Snapchat pointed to a statement from industry body DIGI, which warned that a ban could stop teenagers from accessing "mental health support".
"Swimming has risks, but we don't ban young people from the beach, we teach them to swim between the flags," a DIGI spokeswoman said.
TikTok said it had nothing to add at this stage.
'Falling short'
Once celebrated as a means of staying connected and informed, social media platforms have been tarnished by cyberbullying, the spread of illegal content, and election-meddling claims.
"I get things popping up on my system that I don't want to see. Let alone a vulnerable 14-year-old," Albanese said.
"Young women see images of particular body shapes that have a real impact."
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said social media companies were repeatedly "falling short" in their obligations.
"Social media companies have been put on notice. They need to ensure their practices are made safer," she told reporters at a press briefing alongside Albanese.
Rowland said companies like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Elon Musk's X would face financial penalties if they flouted the laws.
While Rowland did not detail how big these would be, she suggested fines of US$600,000 (Aus $1 million) were well below the mark for companies boasting yearly revenues in the tens of billions of dollars.
Analysts have expressed doubt it would be technically feasible to enforce a strict age ban.
"We already know that present age verification methods are unreliable, too easy to circumvent, or risk user privacy," University of Melbourne researcher Toby Murray said earlier this year.
A series of exemptions would be hashed out for platforms such as YouTube that teenagers may need to use for school work or other reasons.
Australia has in recent years ramped up efforts to regulate the tech giants, with mixed success.
A "combating misinformation" bill was introduced earlier this year, outlining sweeping powers to fine tech companies for breaching online safety obligations.
It has also moved to outlaw the sharing of so-called "deepfake" pornography without consent.
But attempts to regulate content on Musk's X -- previously known as Twitter -- have become bogged down in a long-running courtroom battle.
The tech mogul likened the Australian government to "fascists" earlier this year after they announced they would crack down on fake news.
Several other countries have been tightening children's access to social media platforms.
Spain passed a law in June banning social media access to under-16s.
But in both cases the age verification method has yet to be determined.
France passed laws in 2023 that require social media platforms to verify users' ages -- and obtain parental consent if they are younger than 15.
China has restricted access for minors since 2021, with under-14s not allowed to spend more than 40 minutes a day on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok.
Online gaming time for children is also limited in China.