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.



China Looks to Spur Births, Aid Families in Fight on Shrinking Population

 Tourists visit Jiayu Pass, a strategic point of the Great Wall of China along the ancient "Silk Road," near the city of Jiayuguan in China's northwestern Gansu province on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP)
Tourists visit Jiayu Pass, a strategic point of the Great Wall of China along the ancient "Silk Road," near the city of Jiayuguan in China's northwestern Gansu province on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP)
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China Looks to Spur Births, Aid Families in Fight on Shrinking Population

 Tourists visit Jiayu Pass, a strategic point of the Great Wall of China along the ancient "Silk Road," near the city of Jiayuguan in China's northwestern Gansu province on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP)
Tourists visit Jiayu Pass, a strategic point of the Great Wall of China along the ancient "Silk Road," near the city of Jiayuguan in China's northwestern Gansu province on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP)

China outlined steps on Monday to improve family planning and parenting measures in an effort to boost the number of births, a statement from the state council, or cabinet, showed, after two consecutive years of a shrinking population.

The birth rate hit a record low last year in China, which has a population of 1.4 billion, as fellow Asian giant India outpaced it to become the world's most populous nation.

The state council called for efforts to build "a new marriage and childbearing culture" by spreading respect for childbearing, marriages at the right age, and parents' shared responsibility for childcare.

Measures on offer are better maternity insurance, maternity leave, subsidies and medical resources for children, with the cabinet urging local governments to budget for childcare centers and levy preferential taxes and fees for such services.

"Supporting childbirth at this stage is of great significance," said Yang Chang, chief policy analyst at Zhongtai Securities Research Institute, adding that Monday's announcement would serve as a template for future measures.

With the number of women of childbearing age between 15 and 49 likely to decline, and willingness to bear children not expected to rise soon, policy support was key to help reverse the downward trend in births, he added.

Although China abandoned its 35-year-old one-child policy in 2015, it has struggled to get the birth rate up, particularly as the period saw rural people stream into the cities for jobs.

Education is another area targeted, with local authorities asked to step up financial aid for students from disadvantaged families, with a mention of the "gradual expansion of the scope of free education".

Local authorities were also told to assist with the burden of housing and employment, by providing more support for families with multiple children to buy homes, and beef up protection for pregnant women and new mothers among workers.

Setting up non-commercial platforms for young people to make friends, date and get married was another way to encourage births, the cabinet said.

Monday's measures follow a survey this month by health officials seeking to understand the factors governing attitudes towards childbearing and the fear around having offspring.