DUBAI, 26th March 2023 (WAM) — Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has introduced the pioneering Comprehensive Digital Experience Lab, a first-of-its-kind initiative among Dubai Government organisations.
The Lab aims to bolster the quality of customer service provided via digital channels and enhance employees' experience with digital systems by engaging relevant personnel in digital service design stages.
The Lab enhances the quality and design of services from customers' perspectives while simultaneously improving and standardising their experiences across various digital channels. It also boosts the customer happiness index, the adoption of digital services and supplies the necessary technologies and skilled personnel to operate the Lab.
Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the RTA, stated during a tour of the facility, “The establishment of the Comprehensive Digital Experiment Lab aligns with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to enhance the well-being of Dubai and its global competitiveness. It also contributes to offering a variety of choices for residents to transform Dubai into the world’s best city for living.
“The Lab also embodies the instructions of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of the Executive Council, to transform Dubai into the world’s smartest city. This involves delivering comprehensive, interconnected, and proactive digital experiences for customers to ensure maximum happiness with the RTA's services. This drive aligns with the Services 360 Policy, which seeks to provide seamless and forward-thinking services across all digital platforms to measure up to customer aspirations,” he explained.
“The RTA is committed to playing a leading role in service digitisation by mapping out a comprehensive roadmap for automating services and tasks. It also strives to enhance artificial intelligence and data sciences, improve the operational efficiency through optimising the use of the existing resources, and expand the scope of digital partnerships and innovation,” Al Tayer added.
Mohammed Yousef Al Mudharreb, CEO of the Corporate Technology Support Services Sector, said, “The Lab has been designed in line with the world’s best practices, utilising international expertise and benchmarks from leading international companies. It features a dedicated test room for customers to evaluate services and engage with various experiments through guided sessions, trialling specific services on apps or alternative digital platforms.”
“By applying a range of tools, software, and devices, operators can gain insight into user behaviour to enhance and refine experiences. For example, CCTV cameras and eye-tracking instruments will record the user’s interactions with the service, which are then represented on heat maps displaying areas of focus and inattention. Accordingly, it enables the analysis of strengths and weaknesses, allowing for targeted improvements to the service based on customer reactions and attitudes,” he continued.
“The Lab also includes an observation room for monitoring the testing process or engaging in focus groups on service delivery. The room has screens that detect the customer's behaviour and interaction with the service on digital platforms,” Al Mudharreb added.
“The Comprehensive Digital Platform is a new concept in designing the User’s Experience. It focuses on engaging external and internal customers (employees) in various service design phases. The Lab has been used in key current projects such as RTA App, smart kiosks, and dashboards that serve the RTA’s decision-makers,” Al Mudharreb said in conclusion.

ABU DHABI, 26th March, 2023 (WAM) – The Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme (SZHP), an initiative under the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure (MoEI), has issued 432 decisions for housing aid valued at AED 298.7 million. This includes applications for house construction, completion, purchase, maintenance, and upgrade. The move is part of the Initiatives of the UAE President and is pursuant to the order of UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to complete all housing grant applications submitted to the Programme, at a total cost of around AED 2.3 billion.
Suhail bin Mohammed Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, said: “As we welcome the holy month of Ramadan, the month of giving, SZHP continues its endeavors to enhance family stability, ensure decent living, and improve the quality of life of UAE citizens. The UAE’s wise leadership is deeply invested in the government housing sector as it helps build a cohesive society that can contribute to the progress of our nation.”
Eng Mohamed Al Mansouri, Director of SZHP, said: “We have set ambitious plans to meet the growing housing needs of UAE citizens. We work closely with our partners from the federal and local government, the private sector, and the banking sector to achieve these plans. The Programme follows in the steps of the founding father, late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, by contributing to the social wellbeing and prosperity of the people.”

GENEVA, 26th March, 2023 (WAM) – Major landmarks across the world took part in Earth Hour’s iconic switch off moment, including the Sydney Opera House, China's Zhouzhuang in Kunshan and the Beijing National Speed Skating Hall, Taipei 101, the Eiffel Tower, the Empire State Building, and Christ the Redeemer. For the first time in its incredible 17-year history, this year’s Earth Hour also encouraged people around the globe to ‘switch off’ themselves by taking a break from their routine and everyday distractions, and deciding for themselves what they can do to restore our one home.

From 08:30 pm local time on Saturday, 25th of March, WWF’s Earth Hour, the world’s largest grassroots environmental movement, created the ‘Biggest Hour for Earth’ yet, as more individuals, businesses and communities across 190 countries and territories came together in a powerful moment of unity to celebrate the planet and ‘Give an Hour for Earth’, spending 60 minutes doing something positive for our planet.

Dr Kirsten Schuijt, Director General, WWF International: “Earth Hour is a fantastic celebration of people, planet and nature. This year we created the Biggest Hour for Earth yet! , asking everyone to “switch off” – their lights or their daily habits – and spending 60 minutes doing something for the planet instead. Together, we can turn a single Earth Hour into millions of hours of inspiration, inviting millions of people to act, and making millions more take notice. Our one shared home needs our help and we can ALL play a part in protecting it.”

Meanwhile, Mr Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General, the United Nations: “On Earth Hour every year, millions of people in hundreds of cities around the world turn off the lights. It's a call to action to make peace with nature, massively increase climate action and save our planet. And it is a reminder that all of us can play our part in large ways and small, to protect our common home and safeguard our future. Every minute and every hour counts. From the darkness let us build a brighter and more sustainable future for everyone, everywhere.”

·Earth Hour, the world's largest grassroots movement for the environment, returned in 2023 to raise awareness and inspire collective action against climate change and nature loss.

Since 2007 Earth Hour has shone a spotlight on the issues of climate change and nature loss having reached over 190 countries and territories and millions of people around the globe. Earth Hour has featured many of the world’s most iconic landmarks switching off their lights, from the London Eye in England to the Eiffel Tower in France and the 2,000-year-old Colosseum in Italy. It has also united millions around the world to push for change and inspired global initiatives since it first started.