On Oct.14, around 1300 young professionals gathered at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center for the start of the Worldskills competition which will end Oct. 18. The competition aims to raise the profile and recognition of skilled people and show how important skills are in achieving economic growth and personal success. This will be accomplished by having professionals under the age of 22 compete in 51 skills including stonemasonry, cabinet making, baking and bricklaying. The competitors must apply and prepare up to two years in advance in order to be selected and represent their country in the competition.

As of today, 77 countries and regions are members of the Worldskills organization and are responsible for selecting and training their own competitors in anticipation of the event. Throughout the four-day event competitors are awarded points by pre-selected judges upon the completion of tasks. On Oct. 18 the winners of each skill will be announced and awarded with medals.

On Oct. 13, United States President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of the Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action (JCPOA) with Iran. President Trump commenced his press conference by stating that “Iran is under the control of a fanatical regime” and continued by accusing the country of “not living up to the agreement.” The news follows months of tensions in which President Trump criticized the JCPOA deal numerous times, calling it “the worst deal ever.” The 2015 deal crafted by the Obama administration, also known as the Iran Deal, lifts UN sanctions on Iran by allowing the country to sell oil to international markets in exchange for a concrete commitment to reducing uranium mining to avoid the creation of a nuclear warhead. The UAE is closely monitoring the situation after Iran’s support of Qatar in the Gulf dispute. UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah Bin Zayed previously declared that “Iran continues to develop and conduct more ballistic missile tests in a deliberate violation of the spirit of the nuclear agreement.”

On Oct. 13, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation stressed that the Iranian regime, through its policies, is seeking to sow the seeds of chaos and instability in the region, adding, “The nuclear agreement with Iran has given it the chance to correct its policies and responsibly deal with the international community; however, the Iranian government took advantage of this agreement to support its expansionist and irresponsible policy.” The UAE has historically been allied with Saudi Arabia and the United States, both of which now strongly oppose the Iran deal.

In addition to highlighting new technologies and imminent innovations, the Gitex week held in Dubai from Oct. 8 to Oct. 12 had immediate impacts. UAE citizens possessing drones will now be able to license them for free, saving 350 AED in the process. The announcement was made during the Gitex week by the Dubai Police and Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA). The DCAA will be holding the Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Forum starting Oct. 15, in which they will offer free training on the recreational use of drones for two hundred pre-registered participants. This move comes after a new penalty on the use of unregistered drones was introduced earlier this year by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, with fines up to 20,000 AED.